We present here the first of ten units of study used by the author to train beginning graduate students and advanced undergraduates for further study in the general topic of combinatorial algorithms. This unit of study focuses on mathematical concepts used to linearly order sets of objects. Our general approach is to focus on the "geometric" theory of algorithms by which we mean the use of graphical or pictorial ways to understand what is going on. This approach is both fun and powerful, preparing you to invent your own algorithms for a wide range of problems.

How many ways do exist to mix different ingredients, how many chances to win a gambling game, how many possible paths going from one place to another in a network ? To this kind of questions Mathematics applied to computer gives a stimulating and exhaustive answer. This text, presented in three parts (Combinatorics, Probability, Graphs) addresses all those who wish to acquire basic or advanced knowledge in combinatorial theories. It is actually also used as a textbook. Basic and advanced theoretical elements are presented through simple applications like the Sudoku game, search engine algorithm and other easy to grasp applications. Through the progression from simple to complex, the teacher acquires knowledge of the state of the art of combinatorial theory. The non conventional simultaneous presentation of algorithms, programs and theory permits a powerful mixture of theory and practice.

All in all, the originality of this approach gives a refreshing view on combinatorial theory.

This is a new in paperback second edition of the acclaimed first edition. The second edition includes a new chapter on a family of symmetric functions depending rationally on two parameters and also a chapter on zonal polynomials.

From reviews of the first edition:

'Despite the amount of material of such great potential interest to mathematicians...the theory of symmetric functions remains all but unknown to the persons it is most likely to benefit...Hopefully this beautifully written book will put an end to this state of affairs...I have no doubt that this book will become the definitive reference on symmetric functions and their applications.' Bulletin of the AMS

'...In addition to providing a self-contained and coherent account of well-known and classical work, there is a great deal which is original. The book is dotted with gems, both old and new...It is a substantial and valuable volume and will be regarded as the authoritative source which has been long awaited in this subject.' LMS book reviews

From reviews of the second edition:

'Evidently this second edition will be the source and reference book for symmetric functions in the next future.' Zentralblatt fuer Mathematik

In the last thirty years, combinatorial mathematics has found itself at the heart of many technological applications. The aims of the conference on which this book is based were to stimulate combinatorial mathematicians to pursue new lines of research of potential and practical importance, and to uncover the breadth of applications to the subject. Topics covered include neural networks, cryptography, radio frequency assignment for mobile telecommunications, coding theory, sequences for communications applications, interconnection networks, data types, knot theory, radar, parallel processing, network reliability, formal specification of programs and protocols, and combinatorial optimization.

Handbook of Combinatorics, Volume 1 focuses on basic methods, paradigms, results, issues, and trends across the broad spectrum of combinatorics. The selection first elaborates on the basic graph theory, connectivity and network flows, and matchings and extensions. Discussions focus on stable sets and claw free graphs, nonbipartite matching, multicommodity flows and disjoint paths, minimum cost circulations and flows, special proof techniques for paths and circuits, and Hamilton paths and circuits in digraphs. The manuscript then examines coloring, stable sets, and perfect graphs and embeddings and minors. The book takes a look at random graphs, hypergraphs, partially ordered sets, and matroids. Topics include geometric lattices, structural properties, linear extensions and correlation, dimension and posets of bounded degree, hypergraphs and set systems, stability, transversals, and matchings, and phase transition. The manuscript also reviews the combinatorial number theory, point lattices, convex polytopes and related complexes, and extremal problems in combinatorial geometry. The selection is a valuable reference for researchers interested in combinatorics.

The projective and polar geometries that arise from a vector space over a finite field are particularly useful in the construction of combinatorial objects, such as latin squares, designs, codes and graphs. This book provides an introduction to these geometries and their many applications to other areas of combinatorics. Coverage includes a detailed treatment of the forbidden subgraph problem from a geometrical point of view, and a chapter on maximum distance separable codes, which includes a proof that such codes over prime fields are short. The author also provides more than 100 exercises (complete with detailed solutions), which show the diversity of applications of finite fields and their geometries. Finite Geometry and Combinatorial Applications is ideal for anyone, from a third-year undergraduate to a researcher, who wishes to familiarise themselves with and gain an appreciation of finite geometry.

This book principally concerns the rapidly growing area of what might be termed "Logical Complexity Theory": the study of bounded arithmetic, propositional proof systems, length of proof, and similar themes, and the relations of these topics to computational complexity theory. Issuing from a two-year international collaboration, the book contains articles concerning the existence of the most general unifier, a special case of Kreisel's conjecture on length-of-proof, propositional logic proof size, a new alternating logtime algorithm for boolean formula evaluation and relation to branching programs, interpretability between fragments of arithmetic, feasible interpretability, provability logic, open induction, Herbrand-type theorems, isomorphism between first and second order bounded arithmetics, forcing techniques in bounded arithmetic, and ordinal arithmetic in *L *D o. Also included is an extended abstract of J.P. Ressayre's new approach concerning the model completeness of the theory of real closed exponential fields. Additional features of the book include the transcription and translation of a recently discovered 1956 letter from Kurt Godel to J. von Neumann, asking about a polynomial time algorithm for the proof in k-symbols of predicate calculus formulas (equivalent to the P-NP question); and an open problem list consisting of seven fundamental and 39 technical questions contributed by many researchers, together with a bibliography of relevant references. This scholarly work will interest mathematical logicians, proof and recursion theorists, and researchers in computational complexity.

This workbook is designed to supplement optics textbooks and covers all the traditional topics of geometrical optics. Terms, equations, definitions, and concepts are discussed briefly and explained through a series of problems that are worked out in a step-by-step manner which simplifies the problem-solving process. Additional practice problems are provided at the end of each chapter. * - An indispensable tool when studying for the state and National Boards * - An ideal supplement to optics textbooks * - Covers the traditional topics of geometrical optics.

This book introduces combinatorial analysis to the beginning student. The author begins with the theory of permutation and combinations and their applications to generating functions. In subsequent chapters, he presents Bell polynomials; the principle of inclusion and exclusion; the enumeration of permutations in cyclic representation; the theory of distributions; partitions, compositions, trees and linear graphs; and the enumeration of restricted permutations.

Originally published in 1980.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Simplicial Global Optimization is centered on deterministic covering methods partitioning feasible region by simplices. This book looks into the advantages of simplicial partitioning in global optimization through applications where the search space may be significantly reduced while taking into account symmetries of the objective function by setting linear inequality constraints that are managed by initial partitioning. The authors provide an extensive experimental investigation and illustrates the impact of various bounds, types of subdivision, strategies of candidate selection on the performance of algorithms. A comparison of various Lipschitz bounds over simplices and an extension of Lipschitz global optimization with-out the Lipschitz constant to the case of simplicial partitioning is also depicted in this text. Applications benefiting from simplicial partitioning are examined in detail such as nonlinear least squares regression and pile placement optimization in grillage-type foundations. Researchers and engineers will benefit from simplicial partitioning algorithms such as Lipschitz branch and bound, Lipschitz optimization without the Lipschitz constant, heuristic partitioning presented. This book will leave readers inspired to develop simplicial versions of other algorithms for global optimization and even use other non-rectangular partitions for special applications.

Additive combinatorics is the theory of counting additive structures in sets. This theory has seen exciting developments and dramatic changes in direction in recent years thanks to its connections with areas such as number theory, ergodic theory and graph theory. This graduate-level 2006 text will allow students and researchers easy entry into this fascinating field. Here, the authors bring together in a self-contained and systematic manner the many different tools and ideas that are used in the modern theory, presenting them in an accessible, coherent, and intuitively clear manner, and providing immediate applications to problems in additive combinatorics. The power of these tools is well demonstrated in the presentation of recent advances such as Szemeredi's theorem on arithmetic progressions, the Kakeya conjecture and Erdos distance problems, and the developing field of sum-product estimates. The text is supplemented by a large number of exercises and new results.

Famous mathematical constants include the ratio of circular circumference to diameter, = 3.14 ..., and the natural logarithm base, e = 2.718 .... Students and professionals can often name a few others, but there are many more buried in the literature and awaiting discovery. How do such constants arise, and why are they important? Here the author renews the search he began in his book Mathematical Constants, adding another 133 essays that broaden the landscape. Topics include the minimality of soap film surfaces, prime numbers, elliptic curves and modular forms, Poisson-Voronoi tessellations, random triangles, Brownian motion, uncertainty inequalities, Prandtl-Blasius flow (from fluid dynamics), Lyapunov exponents, knots and tangles, continued fractions, Galton-Watson trees, electrical capacitance (from potential theory), Zermelo's navigation problem, and the optimal control of a pendulum. Unsolved problems appear virtually everywhere as well. This volume continues an outstanding scholarly attempt to bring together all significant mathematical constants in one place.

Discrete mathematics and theoretical computer science are closely linked research areas with strong impacts on applications and various other scientific disciplines. Both fields deeply cross fertilize each other. One of the persons who particularly contributed to building bridges between these and many other areas is Laszlo Lovasz, a scholar whose outstanding scientific work has defined and shaped many research directions in the last 40 years. A number of friends and colleagues, all top authorities in their fields of expertise and all invited plenary speakers at one of two conferences in August 2008 in Hungary, both celebrating Lovasz's 60th birthday, have contributed their latest research papers to this volume. This collection of articles offers an excellent view on the state of combinatorics and related topics and will be of interest for experienced specialists as well as young researchers.

This book is a survey on the problem of choosing from a tournament. It brings together under a unified and self-contained presentation results and concepts from Graph Theory, Choice Theory, Decision Science and Social Choice which were discovered in the last ten years. Classical scoring and ranking methods are introduced, including the Slater orderings, as well as new statistical methods for describing a tournament, graph-theoretical methods based on the covering relation and game-theoretical methods. As an illustration, results are applied to the classical problem of Majority Voting: How to deal with the Condorcet Paradox.

Ramsey theory is a fast-growing area of combinatorics with deep connections to other fields of mathematics such as topological dynamics, ergodic theory, mathematical logic, and algebra. The area of Ramsey theory dealing with Ramsey-type phenomena in higher dimensions is particularly useful. "Introduction to Ramsey Spaces" presents in a systematic way a method for building higher-dimensional Ramsey spaces from basic one-dimensional principles. It is the first book-length treatment of this area of Ramsey theory, and emphasizes applications for related and surrounding fields of mathematics, such as set theory, combinatorics, real and functional analysis, and topology. In order to facilitate accessibility, the book gives the method in its axiomatic form with examples that cover many important parts of Ramsey theory both finite and infinite.

An exciting new direction for combinatorics, this book will interest graduate students and researchers working in mathematical subdisciplines requiring the mastery and practice of high-dimensional Ramsey theory.

In "The Structure of Affine Buildings," Richard Weiss gives a detailed presentation of the complete proof of the classification of Bruhat-Tits buildings first completed by Jacques Tits in 1986. The book includes numerous results about automorphisms, completions, and residues of these buildings. It also includes tables correlating the results in the locally finite case with the results of Tits's classification of absolutely simple algebraic groups defined over a local field. A companion to Weiss's "The Structure of Spherical Buildings," "The Structure of Affine Buildings" is organized around the classification of spherical buildings and their root data as it is carried out in Tits and Weiss's "Moufang Polygons."

The solutions to each problem are written from a first principles approach, which would further augment the understanding of the important and recurring concepts in each chapter. Moreover, the solutions are written in a relatively self-contained manner, with very little knowledge of undergraduate mathematics assumed. In that regard, the solutions manual appeals to a wide range of readers, from secondary school and junior college students, undergraduates, to teachers and professors.

Dieses Buch richtet sich an Studierende verschiedener Fachrichtungen, die das Softwarepaket Octave als kostenfreien und praktischen Lernassistenten nutzen moechten. Es stellt dar, wie sich Octave zur Loesung mathematischer Probleme aus technischen und ingenieurwissenschaftlichen Anwendungen einsetzen lasst. Nebenbei koennen mit diesem Buch elementare Programmierkenntnisse erlernt oder aufgefrischt werden. Da Octave Parallelen zu dem kostenpflichtigen, haufig auf Rechnerarbeitsplatzen in Hochschulen und forschungsorientierten Einrichtungen installierten Softwarepaket MATLAB aufweist, lassen sich die in diesem Buch besprochenen Inhalte und Methoden bequem in die Hochschule und daruber hinaus in die spatere Berufspraxis ubertragen. Das Buch eignet sich damit auch fur Anwender, die in ihrem Berufsleben mathematische Probleme mit Octave oder MATLAB zu loesen haben. Behandelt werden die wichtigsten Grundlagen und Methoden von Octave: elementare Rechnungen mit reellen und komplexen Zahlen, die besonders wichtige Arbeit mit Matrizen und Vektoren, die Arbeit mit Zeichenketten, die Loesung von linearen Gleichungssystemen, die Erstellung von Grafiken mit und ohne animierten Inhalten, die Nutzung und die eigene Programmierung von Octave-Skripten und Octave-Funktionen. Lernenden wird an ausgewahlten Beispielen aus den Bereichen Lineare Algebra, Analysis und numerische Mathematik erlautert, wie Octave zur UEberprufung und Korrektur von Rechenergebnissen bzw. Rechenwegen sowie zum Verstehen und Entdecken von mathematischen Sachverhalten eingesetzt werden kann. Ausserdem werden die Loesung linearer und nichtlinearer Optimierungsprobleme, die Approximation von Daten und Funktionen (Methode der kleinsten Quadrate, Interpolation mit Polynomen und Splines), die Loesung nichtlinearer Gleichungssysteme sowie ausgewahlte Grundlagen der beschreibenden Statistik und Wahrscheinlichkeitsrechnung behandelt. UEbungsaufgaben laden zum Mitmachen ein und helfen, die besprochenen Inhalte zu verstehen, anzuwenden und auf die Aufgaben und Probleme aus den eigenen Mathematikvorlesungen zu ubertragen. Zu jeder Aufgabe gibt es mehr oder weniger ausfuhrliche Musterloesungen. Zusatzmaterialien zum Download erganzen das Buch, wobei die enthaltenen Skripte und Funktionen von den Lesern als Ausgangspunkt fur eigene Programmiertatigkeiten genutzt werden koennen und sollen.

This work offers a contribution in the geometric form of the theory of several complex variables. Since complex Grassmann manifolds serve as classifying spaces of complex vector bundles, the cohomology structure of a complex Grassmann manifold is of importance for the construction of Chern classes of complex vector bundles. The cohomology ring of a Grassmannian is therefore of interest in topology, differential geometry, algebraic geometry, and complex analysis. Wilhelm Stoll treats certain aspects of the complex analysis point of view. This work originated with questions in value distribution theory. Here analytic sets and differential forms rather than the corresponding homology and cohomology classes are considered. On the Grassmann manifold, the cohomology ring is isomorphic to the ring of differential forms invariant under the unitary group, and each cohomology class is determined by a family of analytic sets.

Wie sieht eine Kurve aus, die die ganze Ebene oder den Raum vollstandig ausfullt? Kann man einen Polyeder flexibel bewegen, ja sogar umstulpen? Was ist die projektive Ebene oder der vierdimensionale Raum? Gibt es Seifenblasen, die keine runden Kugel sind? Wie kann man die komplizierte Struktur von Stroemungen besser verstehen? In diesem Buch erleben Sie die Mathematik von ihrer anschaulichen Seite und finden faszinierende und bisher nie gesehene Bilder, die Ihnen illustrative Antworten zu all diesen Fragestellungen geben. Zu allen Bildern gibt es kurze Erklarungstexte, viele Literaturhinweise und jede Menge Web-Links. Das Buch ist fur alle Freunde der Mathematik, die nicht nur trockenen Text und endlose Formeln sehen wollen. Vom Schuler zum Lehrer, vom Studenten zum Professor. Es soll sie alle inspirieren und anregen, sich mit diesem oder jenem vermeintlich nur Insidern vorbehaltenem Thema zu beschaftigen. Lernen Sie die Mathematik von einer ganz neuen und bunten Seite kennen. Die Neuauflage ist vollstandig durchgesehen und um acht Doppelseiten mit neuen und spektakularen Bildern erganzt.

This is a textbook for an introductory combinatorics course lasting one or two semesters. An extensive list of problems, ranging from routine exercises to research questions, is included. In each section, there are also exercises that contain material not explicitly discussed in the preceding text, so as to provide instructors with extra choices if they want to shift the emphasis of their course.Just as with the first three editions, the new edition walks the reader through the classic parts of combinatorial enumeration and graph theory, while also discussing some recent progress in the area: on the one hand, providing material that will help students learn the basic techniques, and on the other hand, showing that some questions at the forefront of research are comprehensible and accessible to the talented and hardworking undergraduate. The basic topics discussed are: the twelvefold way, cycles in permutations, the formula of inclusion and exclusion, the notion of graphs and trees, matchings, Eulerian and Hamiltonian cycles, and planar graphs.New to this edition are the Quick Check exercises at the end of each section. In all, the new edition contains about 240 new exercises. Extra examples were added to some sections where readers asked for them.The selected advanced topics are: Ramsey theory, pattern avoidance, the probabilistic method, partially ordered sets, the theory of designs, enumeration under group action, generating functions of labeled and unlabeled structures and algorithms and complexity.The book encourages students to learn more combinatorics, provides them with a not only useful but also enjoyable and engaging reading.The Solution Manual is available upon request for all instructors who adopt this book as a course text. Please send your request to [email protected] previous edition of this textbook has been adopted at various schools including UCLA, MIT, University of Michigan, and Swarthmore College. It was also translated into Korean.

In China, lots of excellent students who are good at maths takes an active part in various maths contests and the best six senior high school students will be selected to form the IMO National Team to compete in the International Mathematical Olympiad. In the past ten years China's IMO Team has achieved outstanding results - they have won the first place almost every year.The author is one of the coaches of China's IMO National Team, whose students have won many gold medals many times in IMO.This book is part of the Mathematical Olympiad Series which discusses several aspects related to maths contests, such as algebra, number theory, combinatorics, graph theory and geometry. The book elaborates on methods of discrete extremization, such as inequality control, repeated extremum, partial adjustment, exploiting symmetry, polishing transform, space estimates, etc.

Completely updated and containing two new chapters, this title covers spatial analysis and urban management using graph theory simulation.? Highly practical, the simulation approach allows readers to solve classic problems such as placement of high-speed roads, the capacity of a network, pollution emission control, and more.

Emphasizes a Problem Solving Approach
A first course in combinatorics

Completely revised, How to Count: An Introduction to Combinatorics, Second Edition shows how to solve numerous classic and other interesting combinatorial problems. The authors take an easily accessible approach that introduces problems before leading into the theory involved. Although the authors present most of the topics through concrete problems, they also emphasize the importance of proofs in mathematics.

New to the Second Edition
This second edition incorporates 50 percent more material. It includes seven new chapters that cover occupancy problems, Stirling and Catalan numbers, graph theory, trees, Dirichlet 's pigeonhole principle, Ramsey theory, and rook polynomials. This edition also contains more than 450 exercises.

Ideal for both classroom teaching and self-study, this text requires only a modest amount of mathematical background. In an engaging way, it covers many combinatorial tools, such as the inclusion-exclusion principle, generating functions, recurrence relations, and P lya 's counting theorem.

This book gives a new foundation for the theory of links in 3-space modeled on the modern developmentby Jaco, Shalen, Johannson, Thurston et al. of the theory of 3-manifolds. The basic construction is a method of obtaining any link by "splicing" links of the simplest kinds, namely those whose exteriors are Seifert fibered or hyperbolic. This approach to link theory is particularly attractive since most invariants of links are additive under splicing. Specially distinguished from this viewpoint is the class of links, none of whose splice components is hyperbolic. It includes all links constructed by cabling and connected sums, in particular all links of singularities of complex plane curves. One of the main contributions of this monograph is the calculation of invariants of these classes of links, such as the Alexander polynomials, monodromy, and Seifert forms.