Harold M. Edwards – författare

In his new undergraduate textbook, Harold M. Edwards proposes a radically new and thoroughly algorithmic approach to linear algebra. Originally inspired by the constructive philosophy of mathematics championed in the 19th century by Leopold Kronecker, the approach is well suited to students in the computer-dominated late 20th century.

Each proof is an algorithm described in English that can be translated into the computer language the class is using and put to work solving problems and generating new examples, making the study of linear algebra a truly interactive experience.

Designed for a one-semester course, this text adopts an algorithmic approach to linear algebra giving the student many examples to work through and copious exercises to test their skills and extend their knowledge of the subject. Students at all levels will find much interactive instruction in this text while teachers will find stimulating examples and methods of approach to the subject.

In a book written for mathematicians, teachers of mathematics, and highly motivated students, Harold Edwards has taken a bold and unusual approach to the presentation of advanced calculus. He begins with a lucid discussion of differential forms and quickly moves to the fundamental theorems of calculus and Stokes’ theorem. The result is genuine mathematics, both in spirit and content, and an exciting choice for an honors or graduate course or indeed for any mathematician in need of a refreshingly informal and flexible reintroduction to the subject. For all these potential readers, the author has made the approach work in the best tradition of creative mathematics.

This affordable softcover reprint of the 1994 edition presents the diverse set of topics from which advanced calculus courses are created in beautiful unifying generalization. The author emphasizes the use of differential forms in linear algebra, implicit differentiation in higher dimensions using the calculus of differential forms, and the method of Lagrange multipliers in a general but easy-to-use formulation. There are copious exercises to help guide the reader in testing understanding. The chapters can be read in almost any order, including beginning with the final chapter that contains some of the more traditional topics of advanced calculus courses. In addition, it is ideal for a course on vector analysis from the differential forms point of view.

The professional mathematician will find here a delightful example of mathematical literature; the student fortunate enough to have gone through this book will have a firm grasp of the nature of modern mathematics and a solid framework to continue to more advanced studies.

The most important feature…is that it is fun—it is fun to read the exercises, it is fun to read the comments printed in the margins, it is fun simply to pick a random spot in the book and begin reading. This is the way mathematics should be presented,with an excitement and liveliness that show why we are interested in the subject.

—The American Mathematical Monthly (First Review)

An inviting, unusual, high-level introduction to vector calculus, based solidly on differential forms. Superb exposition: informal but sophisticated, down-to-earth but general, geometrically rigorous, entertaining but serious. Remarkable diverse applications, physical and mathematical.

—The American Mathematical Monthly (1994) Based on the Second Edition

This collection of essays aims to promote constructive mathematics, not by defining it or formalizing it, but by practicing it. All definitions and proofs are based on finite algorithms, which pave illuminating paths to nontrivial results, primarily in algebra, number theory, and the theory of algebraic curves. The second edition adds a new set of essays that reflect and expand upon the first. 

The topics covered derive from classic works of nineteenth-century mathematics, among them Galois’s theory of algebraic equations, Gauss’s theory of binary quadratic forms, and Abel’s theorems about integrals of rational differentials on algebraic curves. Other topics include Newton''s diagram, the fundamental theorem of algebra, factorization of polynomials over constructive fields, and the spectral theorem for symmetric matrices, all treated using constructive methods in the spirit of Kronecker.

Mathematical maturity is required of the reader, and some prior knowledge of Galois theory is helpful.  But experience with constructive mathematics is not necessary; readers should simply be willing to set aside abstract notions of infinity and explore deep mathematics via explicit constructions.