Description
The Budapest semesters in mathematics were initiated with the aim of offering undergraduate courses that convey the tradition of Hungarian mathematics to English-speaking students.
This book is an elaborate version of the course on Conjecture and Proof. It gives miniature introductions to various areas of mathematics by presenting some interesting and important, but easily accessible results and methods. The text contains complete proofs of deep results such as the transcendence of $e$, the Banach-Tarski paradox and the existence of Borel sets of arbitrary (finite) class. One of the purposes is to demonstrate how far one can get from the first principles in just a couple of steps.
Prerequisites are kept to a minimum, and any introductory calculus course provides the necessary background for understanding the book. Exercises are included for the benefit of students. However, this book should prove fascinating for any mathematically literate reader.
Reviews
I love this book! It's a very well designed problem driven course done in the splendid Hungarian tradition." -Michael Bert, MAA Online
Book Information
ISBN 9781470472412
Author Miklos Laczkovich
Format Paperback
Page Count 118
Imprint American Mathematical Society
Publisher American Mathematical Society
This book is an elaborate version of the course on Conjecture and Proof. It gives miniature introductions to various areas of mathematics by presenting some interesting and important, but easily accessible results and methods. The text contains complete proofs of deep results such as the transcendence of $e$, the Banach-Tarski paradox and the existence of Borel sets of arbitrary (finite) class. One of the purposes is to demonstrate how far one can get from the first principles in just a couple of steps.
Prerequisites are kept to a minimum, and any introductory calculus course provides the necessary background for understanding the book. Exercises are included for the benefit of students. However, this book should prove fascinating for any mathematically literate reader.
Reviews
I love this book! It's a very well designed problem driven course done in the splendid Hungarian tradition." -Michael Bert, MAA Online
Book Information
ISBN 9781470472412
Author Miklos Laczkovich
Format Paperback
Page Count 118
Imprint American Mathematical Society
Publisher American Mathematical Society
