Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Selecting a mathematics textbook that meets the needs of a diverse student body can be a challenge. Some have too much information for a beginner; some have too little. The authors of "Fundamentals of Discrete Structures," frustrated by their search for the perfect text, decided to write their own. The result provides an excellent introduction to discrete mathematics that is both accessible to liberal arts majors satisfying their core mathematics requirements, and also challenging enough to engage math and computer science majors. To engage students who may not be comfortable with traditional mathematics texts, the book uses a light tone when introducing new concepts. While there is an emphasis on computation, it avoids mathematical formalism and formal proofs, thus making it easier for the average student to understand. Unlike other textbooks in this field, "Fundamentals of Discrete Structures" strikes just the right balance: it illuminates the essentials of discrete mathematics while still providing a comprehensive treatment of the subject matter.

In this book, we look at how cluster technology can be leveraged to build better robots. Algorithms and approaches in key areas of robotics and computer vision, such as map building, path planning, target tracking, action selection and learning, are reviewed and cluster implementations for these are presented.

The objective of the book is to give professionals working in the beowulf cluster or robotics and computer vision fields a concrete view of the strong synergy between the areas as well as to spur further fruitful exploitation of this connection. The book is written at a level appropriate for an advanced undergraduate or graduate student. The key concepts in robotics, computer vision and cluster computing are introduced before being used to make the text useful to a wide audience in these fields.