The definitive guide to mathematical problem solving, from one of the great teachers of the twentieth century George Polya's perennial bestseller has inspired generations around the world to think more clearly. Brilliantly showing how 'there is a grain of discovery in the solution of any problem', his strategies for mathematical problem-solving - from finding weak points to squeezing the data - will help get to the bottom of any puzzle. 'A superb book on how to think fresh thoughts ... A walk inside Polya's mind as he builds up maxims on how to comprehend a problem, how to build up a strategy, and then how to test it' David Bodanis, Guardian 'Everyone should know the work of George Polya on how to solve problems' Marvin Minsky 'A classic ... It is the outcome of careful and informed deliberation by one of the great teachers among the ranks of research mathematicians' Ian Stewart, author of Does God Play Dice? 'Every prospective teacher should read it' E. T. Bell

In 1937 there appeared a paper that was to have a profound influence on the progress of combinatorial enumeration, both in its theoretical and applied aspects. Entitled Kombinatorische Anzahlbest- immungen jUr Gruppen, Graphen und chemische Verbindungen, it was published in Acta Mathematica, Vol. 68, pp. 145 to 254. Its author, George Polya, was already a mathematician of considerable stature, well-known for outstanding work in many branches of mathematics, particularly analysis. The paper in Question was unusual in that it depended almost entirely on a single theorem -- the "Hauptsatz" of Section 4 -- a theorem which gave a method for solving a general type of enumera- tion problem. On the face of it, this is not something that one would expect to run to over 100 pages. Yet the range of the applica- tions of the theorem and of its ramifications was enormous, as Polya clearly showed. In the various sections of his paper he explored many applications to the enumeration of graphs, principally trees, and of chemical isomers, using his theorem to present a comprehen- sive and unified treatment of problems which had previously been solved, if at all, only by ad hoc methods. In the final section he investigated the asymptotic properties of these enumerational results, bringing to bear his formidable insight as an analyst.

"This is a delightful little paperback which presents a day-by-day transcription of a course taught jointly by P lya and Tarjan at Stanford University...One can count on [P lya and Tarjan] for new insights and a fresh outlook. Both instructors taught by presenting a succession of examples rather than by presenting a body of theory...[The book] is very well suited as supplementary material for any introductory class on combinatorics; as such, it is very highly recommended. Finally, for all of us who like the topic and delight in observing skilled professionals at work, this book is entertaining and, yes, instructive, reading."

Mathematical Reviews (Review of the original hardcover edition)

"The mathematical community welcomes this book as a final contribution to honour the teacher G. P lya."

Zentralblatt MATH (Review of the original hardcover edition)

From the reviews: "... In the past, more of the leading mathematicians proposed and solved problems than today, and there were problem departments in many journals. Pólya and Szego must have combed all of the large problem literature from about 1850 to 1925 for their material, and their collection of the best in analysis is a heritage of lasting value. The work is unashamedly dated. With few exceptions, all of its material comes from before 1925. We can judge its vintage by a brief look at the author indices (combined). Let's start on the C's: Cantor, Carathéodory, Carleman, Carlson, Catalan, Cauchy, Cayley, Cesàro,... Or the L's: Lacour, Lagrange, Laguerre, Laisant, Lambert, Landau, Laplace, Lasker, Laurent, Lebesgue, Legendre,... Omission is also information: Carlitz, Erdös, Moser, etc."Bull.Americ.Math.Soc.

The present English edition is not a mere translation of the German original. Many new problems have been added and there are also other changes, mostly minor. Yet all the alterations amount to less than ten percent of the text. We intended to keep intact the general plan and the original flavor of the work. Thus we have not introduced any essentially new subject matter, although the mathematical fashion has greatly changed since 1924. We have restricted ourselves to supplementing the topics originally chosen. Some of our problems first published in this work have given rise to extensive research. To include all such developments would have changed the character of the work, and even an incomplete account, which would be unsatisfactory in itself, would have cost too much labor and taken up too much space. We have to thank many readers who, since the publication of this work almost fifty years ago, communicated to us various remarks on it, some of which have been incorporated into this edition. We have not listed their names; we have forgotten the origin of some contributions, and an incomplete list would have been even less desirable than no list. The first volume has been translated by Mrs. Dorothee Aeppli, the second volume by Professor Claude Billigheimer. We wish to express our warmest thanks to both for the unselfish devotion and scrupulous conscientiousness with which they attacked their far from easy task.

This volume features a complete set of problems, hints, and solutions based on Stanford University's well-known competitive examination in mathematics. It offers high school and college students an excellent mathematics workbook of rigorous problems that will assist in developing and cultivating their logic and probability skills.These 20 sets of intriguing problems test originality and insight rather than routine competence. They involve theorizing and verifying mathematical facts; examining the results of general statements; discovering that highly plausible conjectures can be incorrect; solving sequences of subproblems to reveal theory construction; and recognizing "red herrings," in which obvious relationships among the data prove irrelevant to solutions. Hints for each problem appear in a separate section, and a final section features solutions that outline the appropriate procedures.Ideal for teachers seeking challenging practice math problems for their gifted students, this book will also help students prepare for mathematics, science, and engineering programs. Mathematics buffs of all ages will also find it a source of captivating challenges.

From the reviews: "The work is one of the real classics of this century; it has had much influence on teaching, on research in several branches of hard analysis, particularly complex function theory, and it has been an essential indispensable source book for those seriously interested in mathematical problems. These volumes contain many extraordinary problems and sequences of problems, mostly from some time past, well worth attention today and tomorrow. Written in the early twenties by two young mathematicians of outstanding talent, taste, breadth, perception, perseverence, and pedagogical skill, this work broke new ground in the teaching of mathematics and how to do mathematical research. (Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society)

VI mehr Zeit, Sorgfalt und minutiose Arbeit verwendet, als es dem Un- beteiligten im ersten Moment notwendig erscheinen konnte. Die Vermittlung von Wissensstoff kommt fUr uns erst in zweiter Linie in Frage. Vor allem mochten wir die richtige Einstellung des Lesers, eine gewisse Disziplin seines Denkens fordern, worauf es doch beim Studium der Mathematik wohl noch in hOherem MaBe ankommt als in anderen Wissenschaften. Irgendwelche "regulae cogitandi", die die zweckmaBigste Disziplin des Denkens genau vorschreiben konnten, sind uns nicht bekannt. Waren solche Regeln auch moglich, sehr nutzlich waren sie nicht. Man muB die richtigen Denkregeln nicht etwa auswendig wissen, sondern in Fleisch und Blut, in instinktmaBiger Bereitschaft haben. Daher ist zur Schulung des Denkens nur die Ubung des Denkens wirklich nutzlich. Die selbstandige Losung' spannender Aufgaben wird den Leser mehr fordern als die folgenden Aphorismen, die jedoch am Anfang auch nicht schaden konnen. Man suche alles zu verstehen; einzelne Tatsachen durch Aneinander- reihung verwandter Tatsachen, Neuerkanntes durch Anlehnung an das Altbekannte, Ungewohntes durch Analogie mit dem GeHiufigen, Spezielles durch Verallgemeinerung, Allgemeines durch geeignete Spezialisierung, ver ckelte Tatbestande durch Zerlegen in einzelne Teile, Einzelheiten durch Aufstieg zu einer umfassenden Gesamtansicht.

Dieser Buchtitel ist Teil des Digitalisierungsprojekts Springer Book Archives mit Publikationen, die seit den Anfangen des Verlags von 1842 erschienen sind. Der Verlag stellt mit diesem Archiv Quellen fur die historische wie auch die disziplingeschichtliche Forschung zur Verfugung, die jeweils im historischen Kontext betrachtet werden mussen. Dieser Titel erschien in der Zeit vor 1945 und wird daher in seiner zeittypischen politisch-ideologischen Ausrichtung vom Verlag nicht beworben.

Dieser Buchtitel ist Teil des Digitalisierungsprojekts Springer Book Archives mit Publikationen, die seit den Anfangen des Verlags von 1842 erschienen sind. Der Verlag stellt mit diesem Archiv Quellen fur die historische wie auch die disziplingeschichtliche Forschung zur Verfugung, die jeweils im historischen Kontext betrachtet werden mussen. Dieser Titel erschien in der Zeit vor 1945 und wird daher in seiner zeittypischen politisch-ideologischen Ausrichtung vom Verlag nicht beworben.