Infinity is a profoundly counter-intuitive and brain-twisting subject that has inspired some great thinkers – and provoked and shocked others. The ancient Greeks were so horrified by the implications of an endless number that they drowned the man who gave away the secret. And a German mathematician was driven mad by the repercussions of his discovery of transfinite numbers. Brian Clegg and Oliver Pugh's brilliant graphic tour of infinity features a cast of characters ranging from Archimedes and Pythagoras to al-Khwarizmi, Fibonacci, Galileo, Newton, Leibniz, Cantor, Venn, Gödel and Mandelbrot, and shows how infinity has challenged the finest minds of science and mathematics. Prepare to enter a world of paradox.
Ian Stewart considers the concept of infinity and the profound role it plays in mathematics, logic, physics, cosmology, and philosophy. He shows that working with infinity is not just an abstract, intellectual exercise, and analyses its important practical everyday applications.
This textbook is an introduction to the theory of infinity-categories, a tool used in many aspects of modern pure mathematics. It treats the basics of the theory and supplies all the necessary details while leading the reader along a streamlined path from the basic definitions to more advanced results such as the very important adjoint functor theorems. The book is based on lectures given by the author on the topic. While the material itself is well-known to experts, the presentation of the material is, in parts, novel and accessible to non-experts. Exercises complement this textbook that can be used both in a classroom setting at the graduate level and as an introductory text for the interested reader.
From the preface of the author: "...I have divided this work into two books; in the first of these I have confined myself to those matters concerning pure analysis. In the second book I have explained those thing which must be known from geometry, since analysis is ordinarily developed in such a way that its application to geometry is shown. In the first book, since all of analysis is concerned with variable quantities and functions of such variables, I have given full treatment to functions. I have also treated the transformation of functions and functions as the sum of infinite series. In addition I have developed functions in infinite series..."
This book takes the reader on a journey through Ramsey theory, from graph theory and combinatorics to set theory to logic and metamathematics. Written in an informal style with few requisites, it develops two basic principles of Ramsey theory: many combinatorial properties persist under partitions, but to witness this persistence, one has to start with very large objects. The interplay between those two principles not only produces beautiful theorems but also touches the very foundations of mathematics. In the course of this book, the reader will learn about both aspects. Among the topics explored are Ramsey's theorem for graphs and hypergraphs, van der Waerden's theorem on arithmetic progressions, infinite ordinals and cardinals, fast growing functions, logic and provability, Gödel incompleteness, and the Paris-Harrington theorem. Quoting from the book, “There seems to be a murky abyss lurking at the bottom of mathematics. While in many ways we cannot hope to reach solid ground, mathematicians have built impressive ladders that let us explore the depths of this abyss and marvel at the limits and at the power of mathematical reasoning at the same time. Ramsey theory is one of those ladders.”
Infinity is an intriguing topic, with connections to religion, philosophy, metaphysics, logic, and physics as well as mathematics. Its history goes back to ancient times, with especially important contributions from Euclid, Aristotle, Eudoxus, and Archimedes. The infinitely large (infinite) is intimately related to the infinitely small (infinitesimal). Cosmologists consider sweeping questions about whether space and time are infinite. Philosophers and mathematicians ranging from Zeno to Russell have posed numerous paradoxes about infinity and infinitesimals. Many vital areas of mathematics rest upon some version of infinity. The most obvious, and the first context in which major new techniques depended on formulating infinite processes, is calculus. But there are many others, for example Fourier analysis and fractals. In this Very Short Introduction, Ian Stewart discusses infinity in mathematics while also drawing in the various other aspects of infinity and explaining some of the major problems and insights arising from this concept. He argues that working with infinity is not just an abstract, intellectual exercise but that it is instead a concept with important practical everyday applications, and considers how mathematicians use infinity and infinitesimals to answer questions or supply techniques that do not appear to involve the infinite. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
This text provides a detailed presentation of the main results for infinite products, as well as several applications. The target readership is a student familiar with the basics of real analysis of a single variable and a first course in complex analysis up to and including the calculus of residues. The book provides a detailed treatment of the main theoretical results and applications with a goal of providing the reader with a short introduction and motivation for present and future study. While the coverage does not include an exhaustive compilation of results, the reader will be armed with an understanding of infinite products within the course of more advanced studies, and, inspired by the sheer beauty of the mathematics. The book will serve as a reference for students of mathematics, physics and engineering, at the level of senior undergraduate or beginning graduate level, who want to know more about infinite products. It will also be of interest to instructors who teach courses that involve infinite products as well as mathematicians who wish to dive deeper into the subject. One could certainly design a special-topics class based on this book for undergraduates. The exercises give the reader a good opportunity to test their understanding of each section.
This versatile book teaches control system design using H-Infinity techniques that are simple and compatible with classical control, yet powerful enough to quickly allow the solution of physically meaningful problems. The authors begin by teaching how to formulate control system design problems as mathematical optimization problems and then discuss the theory and numerics for these optimization problems. Their approach is simple and direct, and since the book is modular, the parts on theory can be read independently of the design parts and vice versa, allowing readers to enjoy the book on many levels. Until now, there has not been a publication suitable for teaching the topic at the undergraduate level. This book fills that gap by teaching control system design using H^\infty techniques at a level within reach of the typical engineering and mathematics student. It also contains a readable account of recent developments and mathematical connections.
What is mathematics about? Does the subject-matter of mathematics exist independently of the mind or are they mental constructions? How do we know mathematics? Is mathematical knowledge logical knowledge? And how is mathematics applied to the material world? In this introduction to the philosophy of mathematics, Michele Friend examines these and other ontological and epistemological problems raised by the content and practice of mathematics. Aimed at a readership with limited proficiency in mathematics but with some experience of formal logic it seeks to strike a balance between conceptual accessibility and correct representation of the issues. Friend examines the standard theories of mathematics - Platonism, realism, logicism, formalism, constructivism and structuralism - as well as some less standard theories such as psychologism, fictionalism and Meinongian philosophy of mathematics. In each case Friend explains what characterises the position and where the divisions between them lie, including some of the arguments in favour and against each. This book also explores particular questions that occupy present-day philosophers and mathematicians such as the problem of infinity, mathematical intuition and the relationship, if any, between the philosophy of mathematics and the practice of mathematics. Taking in the canonical ideas of Aristotle, Kant, Frege and Whitehead and Russell as well as the challenging and innovative work of recent philosophers like Benacerraf, Hellman, Maddy and Shapiro, Friend provides a balanced and accessible introduction suitable for upper-level undergraduate courses and the non-specialist.
'Space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the street to the chemist, but that's just peanuts to space.' Douglas Adams, Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy We human beings have trouble with infinity - yet infinity is a surprisingly human subject. Philosophers and mathematicians have gone mad contemplating its nature and complexity - yet it is a concept routinely used by schoolchildren. Exploring the infinite is a journey into paradox. Here is a quantity that turns arithmetic on its head, making it feasible that 1 = 0. Here is a concept that enables us to cram as many extra guests as we like into an already full hotel. Most bizarrely of all, it is quite easy to show that there must be something bigger than infinity - when it surely should be the biggest thing that could possibly be. Brian Clegg takes us on a fascinating tour of that borderland between the extremely large and the ultimate that takes us from Archimedes, counting the grains of sand that would fill the universe, to the latest theories on the physical reality of the infinite. Full of unexpected delights, whether St Augustine contemplating the nature of creation, Newton and Leibniz battling over ownership of calculus, or Cantor struggling to publicise his vision of the transfinite, infinity's fascination is in the way it brings together the everyday and the extraordinary, prosaic daily life and the esoteric. Whether your interest in infinity is mathematical, philosophical, spiritual or just plain curious, this accessible book offers a stimulating and entertaining read.
