Descriptive topology and functional analysis, with extensive material demonstrating new connections between them, are the subject of the first section of this work. Applications to spaces of continuous functions, topological Abelian groups, linear topological equivalence and to the separable quotient problem are included and are presented as open problems. The second section is devoted to Banach spaces, Banach algebras and operator theory. Each chapter presents a lot of worthwhile and important recent theorems with an abstract discussing the material in the chapter. Each chapter can almost be seen as a survey covering a particular area.

Neural field theory has a long-standing tradition in the mathematical and computational neurosciences. Beginning almost 50 years ago with seminal work by Griffiths and culminating in the 1970ties with the models of Wilson and Cowan, Nunez and Amari, this important research area experienced a renaissance during the 1990ties by the groups of Ermentrout, Robinson, Bressloff, Wright and Haken. Since then, much progress has been made in both, the development of mathematical and numerical techniques and in physiological refinement und understanding. In contrast to large-scale neural network models described by huge connectivity matrices that are computationally expensive in numerical simulations, neural field models described by connectivity kernels allow for analytical treatment by means of methods from functional analysis. Thus, a number of rigorous results on the existence of bump and wave solutions or on inverse kernel construction problems are nowadays available. Moreover, neural fields provide an important interface for the coupling of neural activity to experimentally observable data, such as the electroencephalogram (EEG) or functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). And finally, neural fields over rather abstract feature spaces, also called dynamic fields, found successful applications in the cognitive sciences and in robotics. Up to now, research results in neural field theory have been disseminated across a number of distinct journals from mathematics, computational neuroscience, biophysics, cognitive science and others. There is no comprehensive collection of results or reviews available yet. With our proposed book Neural Field Theory, we aim at filling this gap in the market. We received consent from some of the leading scientists in the field, who are willing to write contributions for the book, among them are two of the founding-fathers of neural field theory: Shun-ichi Amari and Jack Cowan.

This work is a continuation of the first volume published by Springer in 2011, entitled "A Cp-Theory Problem Book: Topological and Function Spaces." The first volume provided an introduction from scratch to Cp-theory and general topology, preparing the reader for a professional understanding of Cp-theory in the last section of its main text.This present volume covers a wide variety of topics in Cp-theory and general topology at the professional level bringing the reader to the frontiers of modern research. The volume contains 500 problems and exercises with complete solutions. It can also be used as an introduction to advanced set theory and descriptive set theory. The book presents diverse topics of the theory of function spaces with the topology of pointwise convergence, or Cp-theory which exists at the intersection of topological algebra, functional analysis and general topology. Cp-theory has an important role in the classification and unification of heterogeneous results from these areas of research. Moreover, this book gives a reasonably complete coverage of Cp-theory through 500 carefully selected problems and exercises. By systematically introducing each of the major topics of Cp-theory the book is intended to bring a dedicated reader from basic topological principles to the frontiers of modern research."

This book introduces the basic concepts of real and functional analysis. It presents the fundamentals of the calculus of variations, convex analysis, duality, and optimization that are necessary to develop applications to physics and engineering problems. The book includes introductory and advanced concepts in measure and integration, as well as an introduction to Sobolev spaces. The problems presented are nonlinear, with non-convex variational formulation. Notably, the primal global minima may not be attained in some situations, in which cases the solution of the dual problem corresponds to an appropriate weak cluster point of minimizing sequences for the primal one. Indeed, the dual approach more readily facilitates numerical computations for some of the selected models. While intended primarily for applied mathematicians, the text will also be of interest to engineers, physicists, and other researchers in related fields."

Many of our daily-life problems can be written in the form of an optimization problem. Therefore, solution methods are needed to solve such problems. Due to the complexity of the problems, it is not always easy to find the exact solution. However, approximate solutions can be found. The theory of the best approximation is applicable in a variety of problems arising in nonlinear functional analysis and optimization. This book highlights interesting aspects of nonlinear analysis and optimization together with many applications in the areas of physical and social sciences including engineering. It is immensely helpful for young graduates and researchers who are pursuing research in this field, as it provides abundant research resources for researchers and post-doctoral fellows. This will be a valuable addition to the library of anyone who works in the field of applied mathematics, economics and engineering.

Modern algorithmic techniques for summation, most of which were introduced in the 1990s, are developed here and carefully implemented in the computer algebra system Maple (TM). The algorithms of Fasenmyer, Gosper, Zeilberger, Petkovsek and van Hoeij for hypergeometric summation and recurrence equations, efficient multivariate summation as well as q-analogues of the above algorithms are covered. Similar algorithms concerning differential equations are considered. An equivalent theory of hyperexponential integration due to Almkvist and Zeilberger completes the book. The combination of these results gives orthogonal polynomials and (hypergeometric and q-hypergeometric) special functions a solid algorithmic foundation. Hence, many examples from this very active field are given. The materials covered are suitable for an introductory course on algorithmic summation and will appeal to students and researchers alike.

The book is the first systematical treatment of the theory of finite elements in Archimedean vector lattices and contains the results known on this topic up to the year 2013. It joins all important contributions achieved by a series of mathematicians that can only be found in scattered in literature.

This book contains the proceedings of the 23rd International Workshop on Operator Theory and its Applications (IWOTA2012), which was held at the University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia) from 16 July to 20 July 2012. It includes twelve articles presenting both surveys of current research in operator theory and original results."

This book consists of research papers that cover the scientific areas of the International Workshop on Operator Theory, Operator Algebras and Applications, held in Lisbon in September 2012. The volume particularly focuses on (i) operator theory and harmonic analysis (singular integral operators with shifts; pseudodifferential operators, factorization of almost periodic matrix functions; inequalities; Cauchy type integrals; maximal and singular operators on generalized Orlicz-Morrey spaces; the Riesz potential operator; modification of Hadamard fractional integro-differentiation), (ii) operator algebras (invertibility in groupoid C*-algebras; inner endomorphisms of some semi group, crossed products; C*-algebras generated by mappings which have finite orbits; Folner sequences in operator algebras; arithmetic aspect of C*_r SL(2); C*-algebras of singular integral operators; algebras of operator sequences) and (iii) mathematical physics (operator approach to diffraction from polygonal-conical screens; Poisson geometry of difference Lax operators).

This book explains and examines the theoretical underpinnings of the Complex Variable Boundary Element Method (CVBEM) as applied to higher dimensions, providing the reader with the tools for extending and using the CVBEM in various applications. Relevant mathematics and principles are assembled and the reader is guided through the key topics necessary for an understanding of the development of the CVBEM in both the usual two as well as three or higher dimensions. In addition to this, problems are provided that build upon the material presented. The Complex Variable Boundary Element Method (CVBEM) is an approximation method useful for solving problems involving the Laplace equation in two dimensions. It has been shown to be a useful modelling technique for solving two-dimensional problems involving the Laplace or Poisson equations on arbitrary domains. The CVBEM has recently been extended to 3 or higher spatial dimensions, which enables the precision of the CVBEM in solving the Laplace equation to be now available for multiple dimensions. The mathematical underpinnings of the CVBEM, as well as the extension to higher dimensions, involve several areas of applied and pure mathematics including Banach Spaces, Hilbert Spaces, among other topics. This book is intended for applied mathematics graduate students, engineering students or practitioners, developers of industrial applications involving the Laplace or Poisson equations and developers of computer modelling applications.

The purpose of this book is to provide an integrated course in real and complex analysis for those who have already taken a preliminary course in real analysis. It particularly emphasises the interplay between analysis and topology. Beginning with the theory of the Riemann integral (and its improper extension) on the real line, the fundamentals of metric spaces are then developed, with special attention being paid to connectedness, simple connectedness and various forms of homotopy. The final chapter develops the theory of complex analysis, in which emphasis is placed on the argument, the winding number, and a general (homology) version of Cauchy's theorem which is proved using the approach due to Dixon. Special features are the inclusion of proofs of Montel's theorem, the Riemann mapping theorem and the Jordan curve theorem that arise naturally from the earlier development. Extensive exercises are included in each of the chapters, detailed solutions of the majority of which are given at the end. From Real to Complex Analysis is aimed at senior undergraduates and beginning graduate students in mathematics. It offers a sound grounding in analysis; in particular, it gives a solid base in complex analysis from which progress to more advanced topics may be made.

This book gives an introduction to the very active field of combinatorics of affine Schubert calculus, explains the current state of the art, and states the current open problems. Affine Schubert calculus lies at the crossroads of combinatorics, geometry, and representation theory. Its modern development is motivated by two seemingly unrelated directions. One is the introduction of k-Schur functions in the study of Macdonald polynomial positivity, a mostly combinatorial branch of symmetric function theory. The other direction is the study of the Schubert bases of the (co)homology of the affine Grassmannian, an algebro-topological formulation of a problem in enumerative geometry. This is the first introductory text on this subject. It contains many examples in Sage, a free open source general purpose mathematical software system, to entice the reader to investigate the open problems. This book is written for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, as well as researchers, who want to become familiar with this fascinating new field.

Leon Ehrenpreis has been one of the leading mathematicians in the twentieth century. His contributions to the theory of partial differential equations were part of the golden era of PDEs, and led him to what is maybe his most important contribution, the Fundamental Principle, which he announced in 1960, and fully demonstrated in 1970. His most recent work, on the other hand, focused on a novel and far reaching understanding of the Radon transform, and offered new insights in integral geometry. Leon Ehrenpreis died in 2010, and this volume collects writings in his honor by a cadre of distinguished mathematicians, many of which were his collaborators.

This book focuses on the constructive and practical aspects of spectral methods. It rigorously examines the most important qualities as well as drawbacks of spectral methods in the context of numerical methods devoted to solve non-standard eigenvalue problems. In addition, the book also considers some nonlinear singularly perturbed boundary value problems along with eigenproblems obtained by their linearization around constant solutions.

The book is mathematical, poising problems in their proper function spaces, but its emphasis is on algorithms and practical difficulties. The range of applications is quite large. High order eigenvalue problems are frequently beset with numerical ill conditioning problems. The book describes a wide variety of successful modifications to standard algorithms that greatly mitigate these problems.

In addition, the book makes heavy use of the concept of pseudospectrum, which is highly relevant to understanding when disaster is imminent in solving eigenvalue problems. It also envisions two classes of applications, the stability of some elastic structures and the hydrodynamic stability of some parallel shear flows.

This book is an ideal reference text for professionals (researchers) in applied mathematics, computational physics and engineering. It will be very useful to numerically sophisticated engineers, physicists and chemists. The book can also be used as a textbook in review courses such as numerical analysis, computational methods in various engineering branches or physics and computational methods in analysis.

Since the publication of Banach's treatise on the theory of linear operators, the literature on the theory of bases in topological vector spaces has grown enormously. Much of this literature has for its origin a question raised in Banach's book, the question whether every sepa rable Banach space possesses a basis or not. The notion of a basis employed here is a generalization of that of a Hamel basis for a finite dimensional vector space. For a vector space X of infinite dimension, the concept of a basis is closely related to the convergence of the series which uniquely correspond to each point of X. Thus there are different types of bases for X, according to the topology imposed on X and the chosen type of convergence for the series. Although almost four decades have elapsed since Banach's query, the conjectured existence of a basis for every separable Banach space is not yet proved. On the other hand, no counter examples have been found to show the existence of a special Banach space having no basis. However, as a result of the apparent overconfidence of a group of mathematicians, who it is assumed tried to solve the problem, we have many elegant works which show the tight connection between the theory of bases and structure of linear spaces."

The idea of optimization runs through most parts of control theory. The simplest optimal controls are preplanned (programmed) ones. The problem of constructing optimal preplanned controls has been extensively worked out in literature (see, e. g., the Pontrjagin maximum principle giving necessary conditions of preplanned control optimality). However, the concept of op timality itself has a restrictive character: it is limited by what one means under optimality in each separate case. The internal contradictoriness of the preplanned control optimality ("the better is the enemy of the good") yields that the practical significance of optimal preplanned controls proves to be not great: such controls are usually sensitive to unregistered disturbances (includ ing the round-off errors which are inevitable when computer devices are used for forming controls), as there is the effect of disturbance accumulation in the control process which makes controls to be of little use on large time inter vals. This gap is mainly provoked by oversimplified settings of optimization problems. The outstanding result of control theory established in the end of the first half of our century is that controls in feedback form ensure the weak sensitivity of closed loop systems with respect to "small" unregistered internal and external disturbances acting in them (here we do not need to discuss performance indexes, since the considered phenomenon is of general nature). But by far not all optimal preplanned controls can be represented in a feedback form."

The aim of this book is to give a systematic and self-contained presentation of the Mathematical Scattering Theory within the framework of operator theory in Hilbert space. The term Mathematical Scattering Theory denotes that theory which is on the one hand the common mathematical foundation of several physical scattering theories (scattering of quantum objects, of classical waves and particles) and on the other hand a branch of operator theory devoted to the study of the behavior of the continuous part of perturbed operators (some authors also use the term Abstract Scattering Theory). EBBential contributions to the development of this theory are due to K. FRIEDRICHS, J. CooK, T. KATo, J. M. JAuCH, S. T. KURODA, M.S. BmMAN, M.G. KREiN, L. D. FAD DEEV, R. LAVINE, W. 0. AMREIN, B. SIMoN, D. PEARSON, V. ENss, and others. It seems to the authors that the theory has now reached a sufficiently developed state that a self-contained presentation of the topic is justified."

Nonlinear functional analysis is an important branch of contemporary mathematics. It's related to topology, ordinary differential equations, partial differential equations, groups, dynamical systems, differential geometry, measure theory, and more. In this book, the author presents some new and interesting results on fundamental methods in nonlinear functional analysis, namely variational, topological and partial order methods, which have been used extensively to solve existence of solutions for elliptic equations, wave equations, Schroedinger equations, Hamiltonian systems etc., and are also used to study the existence of multiple solutions and properties of solutions. This book is useful for researchers and graduate students in the field of nonlinear functional analysis.

The monograph gives a detailed exposition of the theory of general elliptic operators (scalar and matrix) and elliptic boundary value problems in Hilbert scales of Hormander function spaces. This theory was constructed by the authors in a number of papers published in 2005 2009. It is distinguished by a systematic use of the method of interpolation with a functional parameter of abstract Hilbert spaces and Sobolev inner product spaces. This method, the theory and their applications are expounded for the first time in the monographic literature. The monograph is written in detail and in a reader-friendly style. The complete proofs of theorems are given. This monograph is intended for a wide range of mathematicians whose research interests concern with mathematical analysis and differential equations."

This volume contains twenty-one solicited articles by speakers at the IWOTA 2009 workshop, ranging from expository surveys to original research papers, each carefully refereed.The contributions reflect recent developments in operator theory and its applications. Consistent with the topics of recent IWOTA meetings, IWOTA 2009 was designed as a comprehensive, inclusive conference covering all aspects of theoretical and applied operator theory, ranging from classical analysis, differential and integral equations, complex and harmonic analysis to mathematical physics, mathematical systems and control theory, signal processing and numerical analysis. The conference brought together international experts for a week-long stay at Hotel Real de Minas, in an atmosphere conducive to fruitful professional interactions. These Proceedings reflect the high quality of the papers presented at the conference. "

Spectral analysis of linear operators has always been one of the more active and important fields of operator theory, and of extensive interest to many operator theorists. Its devel opments usually are closely related to certain important problems in contemporary mathematics and physics. In the last 20 years, many new theories and interesting results have been discovered. Now, in this direction, the fields are perhaps wider and deeper than ever. This book is devoted to the study of hyponormal and semi-hyponormal operators. The main results we shall present are those of the author and his collaborators and colleagues, as well as some concerning related topics. To some extent, hyponormal and semi-hyponormal opera tors are "close" to normal ones. Although those two classes of operators contain normal operators as a subclass, what we are interested in are, naturally, nonnormal operators in those classes. With the well-studied normal operators in hand, we cer tainly wish to know the properties of hyponormal and semi-hypo normal operators which resemble those of normal operators. But more important than that, the investigations should be concen trated on the phenomena which only occur in the nonnormal cases."

This book is dedicated to the memory of Israel Gohberg (1928-2009) - one of the great mathematicians of our time - who inspired innumerable fellow mathematicians and directed many students. The volume reflects the wide spectrum of Gohberg's mathematical interests. It consists of more than 25 invited and peer-reviewed original research papers written by his former students, co-authors and friends. Included are contributions to single and multivariable operator theory, commutative and non-commutative Banach algebra theory, the theory of matrix polynomials and analytic vector-valued functions, several variable complex function theory, and the theory of structured matrices and operators. Also treated are canonical differential systems, interpolation, completion and extension problems, numerical linear algebra and mathematical systems theory.

The volume contains selected papers of the Spectral Function Theory seminar, Leningrad Branch of Steklov Mathematical Institute. The papers are mostly devoted to the theory of Toeplitz and model operators. These subjects are considered here from various points of view. Several papers concern the relationships of Toeplitz operators to weighted polynomial approximation. Namely, two papers by B. Solomyak and A. Volberg intensively treat the problem of spectra! multiplicity f~r analytic Toeplitz operators (which are, in fact, multiplication operators) and my paper can serve as an introduction to the problem. This theme of multiplicities is continued in a paper by V. Vasyunin where the multiplicity of the spectrum is computed for Hilbert space contractions with finite defect indices. V. Peller's paper deals with a perturbation theory problem for Toeplitz operators. In a paper by D. Yakubovich a new similarity model for a class of Toeplitz operators is constructed. S. Treil' presents a survey of a part of spectral function theory for vector valued function (Szego-Kolmogorov extreme prob!ems for operator weights, bases of vector rational functions, estimations of Hilbert transform with respect to operator weights, the operator corona problem). As a concluding remark I dare only note that the whole collection convinces us once more without a doubt of the fruitfullness of the natural union of operator theory and complex analysis (if at all the union of these fields is at all different from their intersection).