The Handbook of Cubic Math unveils the theory involved in Rubik's Cube's solution, the potential applications of that theory to other similar puzzles, and how the cube provides a physical example for many concepts in mathematics where such examples are difficult to find. Nonetheless, the authors have been able to cover and explain these topics in a way which is easily understandable to the layman, suitable for a junior-high-school or high-school course in math, and appropriate for a college course in modern algebra. This manual will satisfy the experts' curiosity about the moves that lead to the solution of the cube and will offer a useful supplementary teaching aid to the beginners.

Sporadic Groups is the first step in a programme to provide a uniform, self-contained treatment of the foundational material on the sporadic finite simple groups. The classification of the finite simple groups is one of the premier achievements of modern mathematics. The classification demonstrates that each finite simple group is either a finite analogue of a simple Lie group or one of 26 pathological sporadic groups. Sporadic Groups provides for the first time a self-contained treatment of the foundations of the theory of sporadic groups accessible to mathematicians with a basic background in finite groups such as in the author's text Finite Group Theory. Introductory material useful for studying the sporadics, such as a discussion of large extraspecial 2-subgroups and Tits' coset geometries, opens the book. A construction of the Mathieu groups as the automorphism groups of Steiner systems follows. The Golay and Todd modules, and the 2-local geometry for M24 are discussed. This is followed by the standard construction of Conway of the Leech lattice and the Conway group. The Monster is constructed as the automorphism group of the Griess algebra using some of the best features of the approaches of Griess, Conway, and Tits, plus a few new wrinkles. Researchers in finite group theory will find this text invaluable. The subjects treated will interest combinatorists, number theorists, and conformal field theorists.

Research in computational group theory, an active subfield of computational algebra, has emphasised three areas: finite permutation groups, finite solvable groups, and finitely presented groups. This book deals with the third of these areas. The author emphasises the connections with fundamental algorithms from theoretical computer science, particularly the theory of automata and formal languages, computational number theory, and computational commutative algebra. The LLL lattice reduction algorithm and various algorithms for Hermite and Smith normal forms from computational number theory are used to study the abelian quotients of a finitely presented group. The work of Baumslag, Cannonito and Miller on computing nonabelian polycyclic quotients is described as a generalisation of Buchberger's Groebner basis methods to right ideals in the integral group ring of a polycyclic group. Researchers in computational group theory, mathematicians interested in finitely presented groups and theoretical computer scientists will find this book useful.

The geometric and algebraic aspects of two-dimensional homotopy theory are both important areas of current research. Basic work on two-dimensional homotopy theory dates back to Reidemeister and Whitehead. The contributors to this book consider the current state of research beginning with introductory chapters on low-dimensional topology and covering crossmodules, Peiffer-Reid identities, and concretely discussing P2 theory. The chapters have been skillfully woven together to form a coherent picture, and the geometric nature of the subject is illustrated by over 100 diagrams. The final chapters round off neatly with a look at the present status of the conjectures of Zeeman, Whitehead and Andrews-Curtis.

This book covers a topic of great interest in abstract algebra. It gives an account of invariant theory for the action of a finite group on the ring of polynomial functions on a linear representation, both in characteristic zero and characteristic p. Heavy use is made of techniques from commutative algebra, and these are developed as needed. Special attention is paid to the role played by pseudoreflections, which arise because they correspond to the divisors in the polynomial ring that ramify over the invariants. The author includes the recent proof of the Carlisle-Kropholler conjecture.

This book consists essentially of notes which were written for an Advanced Course on Classifying Spaces and Cohomology of Groups. The course took place at the Centre de Recerca Mathematica (CRM) in Bellaterra from May 27 to June 2, 1998 and was part of an emphasis semester on Algebraic Topology. It consisted of two parallel series of 6 lectures of 90 minutes each and was intended as an introduction to new homotopy theoretic methods in group cohomology. The first part of the book is concerned with methods of decomposing the classifying space of a finite group into pieces made of classifying spaces of appropriate subgroups. Such decompositions have been used with great success in the last 10-15 years in the homotopy theory of classifying spaces of compact Lie groups and p-compact groups in the sense of Dwyer and Wilkerson. For simplicity the emphasis here is on finite groups and on homological properties of various decompositions known as centralizer resp. normalizer resp. subgroup decomposition. A unified treatment of the various decompositions is given and the relations between them are explored. This is preceeded by a detailed discussion of basic notions such as classifying spaces, simplicial complexes and homotopy colimits.

The role of representation theory in algebra is an important one and in this book Manz and Wolf concentrate on that part of the theory that relates to solvable groups. In particular, modules over finite fields are studied, but also some applications to ordinary and Brauer characters of solvable groups are given. The authors include a proof of Brauer's height-zero conjecture and a new proof of Huppert's classification of 2-transitive solvable permutation groups.

Representation theory has applications to number theory, combinatorics and many areas of algebra. The aim of this text is to present some of the key results in the representation theory of finite groups. Professor Alperin concentrates on local representation theory, emphasizing module theory throughout. In this way many deep results can be obtained rather quickly. After two introductory chapters, the basic results of Green are proved, which in turn lead in due course to Brauer's First Main Theorem. A proof of the module form of Brauer's Second Main Theorem is then presented, followed by a discussion of Feit's work connecting maps and the Green correspondence. The work concludes with a treatment, new in part, of the Brauer-Dade theory. Exercises are provided at the end of most sections; the results of some are used later in the text.

The articles in these two volumes arose from papers given at the 1991 International Symposium on Geometric Group Theory, and they represent some of the latest thinking in this area. Many of the world's leading figures in this field attended the conference, and their contributions cover a wide diversity of topics. This second volume contains solely a ground breaking paper by Gromov, which provides a fascinating look at finitely generated groups. For anyone whose interest lies in the interplay between groups and geometry, these books will be an essential addition to their library.

These two volumes contain survey papers given at the 1991 international symposium on geometric group theory, and they represent some of the latest thinking in this area. Many of the world's leading figures in this field attended the conference, and their contributions cover a wide diversity of topics. Volume I contains reviews of such subjects as isoperimetric and isodiametric functions, geometric invariants of a groups, Brick's quasi-simple filtrations for groups and 3-manifolds, string rewriting, and algebraic proof of the torus theorem, the classification of groups acting freely on R-trees, and much more. Volume II consists solely of a ground breaking paper by M. Gromov on finitely generated groups.

In the large and thriving field of compact transformation groups an important role has long been played by cohomological methods. This book aims to give a contemporary account of such methods, in particular the applications of ordinary cohomology theory and rational homotopy theory with principal emphasis on actions of tori and elementary abelian p-groups on finite-dimensional spaces. For example, spectral sequences are not used in Chapter 1, where the approach is by means of cochain complexes; and much of the basic theory of cochain complexes needed for this chapter is outlined in an appendix. For simplicity, emphasis is put on G-CW-complexes; the refinements needed to treat more general finite-dimensional (or finitistic) G-spaces are often discussed separately. Subsequent chapters give systematic treatments of the Localization Theorem, applications of rational homotopy theory, equivariant Tate cohomology and actions on Poincaré duality spaces. Many shorter and more specialized topics are included also. Chapter 2 contains a summary of the main definitions and results from Sullivan's version of rational homotopy theory which are used in the book.

The first book on commutative semigroups was Redei's The theory of .finitely generated commutative semigroups, published in Budapest in 1956. Subsequent years have brought much progress. By 1975 the structure of finite commutative semigroups was fairly well understood. Recent results have perfected this understanding and extended it to finitely generated semigroups. Today's coherent and powerful structure theory is the central subject of the present book. 1. Commutative semigroups are more important than is suggested by the stan- dard examples ofsemigroups, which consist ofvarious kinds oftransformations or arise from finite automata, and are usually quite noncommutative. Commutative of factoriza- semigroups provide a natural setting and a useful tool for the study tion in rings. Additive subsemigroups of N and Nn have close ties to algebraic geometry. Commutative rings are constructed from commutative semigroups as semigroup algebras or power series rings. These areas are all subjects of active research and together account for about half of all current papers on commutative semi groups. Commutative results also invite generalization to larger classes of semigroups. Archimedean decompositions, a comparatively small part oftoday's arsenal, have been generalized extensively, as shown for instance in the upcoming books by Nagy [2001] and Ciric [2002].

It was already in 1964 Fis66] when B. Fischer raised the question: Which finite groups can be generated by a conjugacy class D of involutions, the product of any two of which has order 1, 2 or 37 Such a class D he called a class of 3-tmnspositions of G. This question is quite natural, since the class of transpositions of a symmetric group possesses this property. Namely the order of the product (ij)(kl) is 1, 2 or 3 according as {i, j} n {k, l} consists of 2,0 or 1 element. In fact, if I{i, j} n {k, I}1 = 1 and j = k, then (ij)(kl) is the 3-cycle (ijl). After the preliminary papers Fis66] and Fis64] he succeeded in Fis71J, Fis69] to classify all finite "nearly" simple groups generated by such a class of 3-transpositions, thereby discovering three new finite simple groups called M(22), M(23) and M(24). But even more important than his classification theorem was the fact that he originated a new method in the study of finite groups, which is called "internal geometric analysis" by D. Gorenstein in his book: Finite Simple Groups, an Introduction to their Classification. In fact D. Gorenstein writes that this method can be regarded as second in importance for the classification of finite simple groups only to the local group-theoretic analysis created by J. Thomp

This text offers a clear, efficient exposition of Galois Theory with complete proofs and exercises. Topics include: cubic and quartic formulas; Fundamental Theory of Galois Theory; insolvability of the quintic; Galois's Great Theorem (solvability by radicals of a polynomial is equivalent to solvability of its Galois Group); and computation of Galois groups of cubics and quartics. There are appendices on group theory, ruler-compass constructions, and the early history of Galois Theory. This book provides a concise introduction to Galois Theory suitable for first-year graduate students, either as a text for a course or for study outside the classroom. This new edition has been completely rewritten in an attempt to make proofs clearer by providing more details. The book now begins with a short section on symmetry groups of polygons in the plane, for there is an analogy between polygons and their symmetry groups and polynomials and their Galois groups; this analogy can serve as a guide by helping readers organize the various field theoretic definitions and constructions. The exposition has been reorganized so that the discussion of solvability by radicals now appears later and several new theorems not found in the first edition are included (e.g., Casus Irreducibilis).

The analysis of orthogonal polynomials associated with general weights has been a major theme in classical analysis this century. The use of potential theory since the early 1980¿s had a dramatic influence on the development of orthogonal polynomials associated with weights on the real line. For many applications of orthogonal polynomials, for example in approximation theory and numerical analysis, it is not asymptotics but certain bounds that are most important. In this monograph, the authors define and discuss their classes of weights, state several of their results on Christoffel functions, Bernstein inequalities, restricted range inequalities, and record their bounds on the orthogonal polynomials as well as their asymptotic results. This book will be of interest to researchers in approximation theory and potential theory, as well as in some branches of engineering.

Reflection groups and their invariant theory provide the main themes of this book and the first two parts focus on these topics. The first 13 chapters deal with reflection groups (Coxeter groups and Weyl groups) in Euclidean Space while the next thirteen chapters study the invariant theory of pseudo-reflection groups. The third part of the book studies conjugacy classes of the elements in reflection and pseudo-reflection groups. The book has evolved from various graduate courses given by the author over the past 10 years. It is intended to be a graduate text, accessible to students with a basic background in algebra.

This ground-breaking new volume reviews and extends theory and research on the psychology of justice in social contexts, exploring the dynamics of fairness judgments and their consequences. Perceptions of fairness, and the factors that cause and are caused by fairness perceptions, have long been an important part of social psychology. Featuring work from leading scholars on psychological processes involved in reactions to fairness, as well as the applications of justice research to government institutions, policing, medical care and the development of radical and extremist behavior, the book expertly brings together two traditionally distinct branches of social psychology: social cognition and interpersonal relations. Examining how people judge whether the treatment they experience from others is fair and how this effects their attitudes and behaviors, this essential collection draws on theory and research from multiple disciplines as it explores the dynamics of fairness judgments and their consequences. Integrating theory on interpersonal relations and social cognition, and featuring innovative biological research, this is the ideal companion for senior undergraduates and graduates, as well as researchers and scholars interested in the social psychology of justice.

In semigroup theory there are certain kinds of band decompositions, which are very useful in the study of the structure semigroups. There are a number of special semigroup classes in which these decompositions can be used very successfully. The book focuses attention on such classes of semigroups. Some of them are partially discussed in earlier books, but in the last thirty years new semigroup classes have appeared and a fairly large body of material has been published on them. The book provides a systematic review on this subject. The first chapter is an introduction. The remaining chapters are devoted to special semigroup classes. These are Putcha semigroups, commutative semigroups, weakly commutative semigroups, R-Commutative semigroups, conditionally commutative semigroups, RC-commutative semigroups, quasi commutative semigroups, medial semigroups, right commutative semigroups, externally commutative semigroups, E-m semigroups, WE-m semigroups, weakly exponential semigroups, (m, n)-commutative semigroups and n(2)-permutable semigroups. Audience: Students and researchers working in algebra and computer science.

Lie linksbetweentorus and Toroidal arethe complex missing groups any groups such and of Lie as complex pseudoconvexity groups. Manyphenomena groups the of beunderstood thestructure can onlythrough concept cohomologygroups of different behavior ofthe oftoroidal The cohomology complex groups groups. the of their toroidal Lie be characterized can by properties groups - groups in their centers. pearing book. So the oldest have not been treated in a Toroidal systematically groups in it who worked in this field and the mathematician youngest working living aboutthemain results these decidedto a concerning comprehensivesurvey give and to discuss problems. open groups of the torus As the Toroidal are generalization groups. groups non-compact and Grauert. As in the sense ofAndreotti manifolds are convex complex they others have similarbehaviorto Lie someofthem a complextori, complex groups whencec- different with for non-Hausdorff are example cohomology groups, mustbe used. newmethods pletely of is to describe the fundamental The aim of these lecture notes properties the reductiontheorem toroidal As a result ofthe qua- meromorphic groups. basic ends inthethird varieties of interest.Their Abelian are special description MainTheorem. withthe chapter wide atthe - ofSOPHus LIE -wasintroducedtoa This inhonour public theory " 1999. after Lie" in on Conference 100Years Leipzig, July 8-9, Sophus HUMBOLDT wishes to thank the ALEXANDER VON The first-named author FOUNDATION for partial support. December 1998 Hannoverand Toyama, YukitakaAbeandKlaus Kopfermann Contents 1 Introduction ..................................................... of Toroidal 3 1. The Concept Groups ............................. 1.1 and toroidal coordinates 3 Irrationality ........................ Toroidal 3 ........................................... groups 7 Complex homomorphisms .................................. Toroidal coordinates and C*n-q -fibre bundles 9 .................

Aimed toward graduate students and research mathematicians, with minimal prerequisites this book provides a fresh take on Alexandrov geometry and explains the importance of CAT(0) geometry in geometric group theory. Beginning with an overview of fundamentals, definitions, and conventions, this book quickly moves forward to discuss the Reshetnyak gluing theorem and applies it to the billiards problems. The Hadamard-Cartan globalization theorem is explored and applied to construct exotic aspherical manifolds.

This text is an introduction to the representation theory of the symmetric group from three different points of view: via general representation theory, via combinatorial algorithms, and via symmetric functions. It is the only book to deal with all three aspects of this subject at once. The style of presentation is relaxed yet rigorous and the prerequisites have been kept to a minimum¿undergraduate courses in linear algebra and group theory will suffice.

This volume contains contributions by the participants of the conference "Groups and Computation," which took place at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, in June 1999. This conference was the successor of two workshops on "Groups and Computation" held at DIMACS in 1991 and 1995. There are papers on permutation group algorithms, finitely presented groups, polycyclic groups, and parallel computation, providing a representative sample of the breadth of Computational Group Theory. On the other hand, more than one third of the papers deal with computations in matrix groups, giving an in-depth treatment of the currently most active area of the field. The points of view of the papers range from explicit computations to group-theoretic algorithms to group-theoretic theorems needed for algorithm development.

One of the characteristics of modern algebra is the development of new tools and concepts for exploring classes of algebraic systems, whereas the research on individual algebraic systems (e. g. , groups, rings, Lie algebras, etc. ) continues along traditional lines. The early work on classes of alge bras was concerned with showing that one class X of algebraic systems is actually contained in another class F. Modern research into the theory of classes was initiated in the 1930's by Birkhoff's work [1] on general varieties of algebras, and Neumann's work [1] on varieties of groups. A. I. Mal'cev made fundamental contributions to this modern development. ln his re ports [1, 3] of 1963 and 1966 to The Fourth All-Union Mathematics Con ference and to another international mathematics congress, striking the ories of classes of algebraic systems were presented. These were later included in his book [5]. International interest in the theory of formations of finite groups was aroused, and rapidly heated up, during this time, thanks to the work of Gaschiitz [8] in 1963, and the work of Carter and Hawkes [1] in 1967. The major topics considered were saturated formations, Fitting classes, and Schunck classes. A class of groups is called a formation if it is closed with respect to homomorphic images and subdirect products. A formation is called saturated provided that G E F whenever Gjip(G) E F.

In this graduate textbook Professor Humphreys presents a concrete and up-to-date introduction to the theory of Coxeter groups. He assumes that the reader has a good knowledge of algebra, but otherwise the book is self contained. The first part is devoted to establishing concrete examples; the author begins by developing the most important facts about finite reflection groups and related geometry, and showing that such groups have a Coxeter representation. In the next chapter these groups are classified by Coxeter diagrams, and actual realizations of these groups are discussed. Chapter 3 discusses the polynomial invariants of finite reflection groups, and the first part ends with a description of the affine Weyl groups and the way they arise in Lie theory. The second part (which is logically independent of, but motivated by, the first) starts by developing the properties of the Coxeter groups. Chapter 6 shows how earlier examples and others fit into the general classification of Coxeter diagrams. Chapter 7 is based on the very important work of Kazhdan and Lusztig and the last chapter presents a number of miscellaneous topics of a combinatorial nature.

From the reviews:"This book (...) defines the boundaries of the subject now called combinatorial group theory. (...)it is a considerable achievement to have concentrated a survey of the subject into 339 pages. This includes a substantial and useful bibliography; (over 1100 (items)). ...the book is a valuable and welcome addition to the literature, containing many results not previously available in a book. It will undoubtedly become a standard reference." Mathematical Reviews, AMS, 1979