There are many bits and pieces of folklore in mathematics that are passed down from advisor to student, or from collaborator to collaborator, but which are too fuzzy and non-rigorous to be discussed in the formal literature. Traditionally, it was a matter of luck and location as to who learned such folklore mathematics. But today, such bits and pieces can be communicated effectively and efficiently via the semiformal medium of research blogging. This book grew from such a blog. In 2007, Terry Tao began a mathematical blog to cover a variety of topics, ranging from his own research and other recent developments in mathematics, to lecture notes for his classes, to non-technical puzzles and expository articles. The articles from the first year of that blog have already been published by the AMS. The posts from 2008 are being published in two volumes. This book is Part I of the second-year posts, focusing on ergodic theory, combinatorics, and number theory. Chapter 2 consists of lecture notes from Tao's course on topological dynamics and ergodic theory. By means of various correspondence principles, recurrence theorems about dynamical systems are used to prove some deep theorems in combinatorics and other areas of mathematics. The lectures are as self-contained as possible, focusing more on the 'big picture' than on technical details. In addition to these lectures, a variety of other topics are discussed, ranging from recent developments in additive prime number theory to expository articles on individual mathematical topics such as the law of large numbers and the Lucas-Lehmer test for Mersenne primes. Some selected comments and feedback from blog readers have also been incorporated into the articles. The book is suitable for graduate students and research mathematicians interested in broad exposure to mathematical topics.

About the Author
Terence Tao was the winner of the 2014 Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics. He is the James and Carol Collins Chair of mathematics at UCLA and the youngest person ever to be promoted to full professor at the age of 24. In 2006 Tao became the youngest ever mathematician to win the Fields Medal. His other honours include the George Polya Prize from the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (2010), the Alan T Waterman Award from the National Science Foundation (2008), the SASTRA Ramanujan Prize (2006), the Clay Research Award from the Clay Mathematical Institute (2003), the Bocher Memorial Prize from the American Mathematical Society (2002) and the Salem Prize (2000).

Reviews
Tao's mathematical knowledge has an extraordinary combination of breadth and depth: he can write confidently and authoritatively on topics ... Reading these extended discussions in book form will, for many people at least, be easier than reading them on the blog." - Mathematical Reviews

"[This book] is demanding, entertaining, provides you with the big picture behind the sometimes technical results, and certainly gives you your money's worth. ... Armed with a minimal background in number theory, these lectures can be read with profit by advanced undergraduates." - Zentralblatt MATH



Book Information
ISBN 9780821848838
Author Terence Tao
Format Paperback
Page Count 293
Imprint American Mathematical Society
Publisher American Mathematical Society
Weight(grams) 553g