Mathematical Explorations with MATLAB

by K. Chen, Peter J. Giblin, A. Irving

Overview

Mathematical Explorations with MATLAB examines the mathematics most frequently encountered in first-year university courses. A key feature of the book is its use of MATLAB, a popular and powerful software package. The book's emphasis is on understanding and investigating the mathematics by putting the mathematical tools into practice in a wide variety of modeling situations. Even readers who have no prior experience with MATLAB will gain fluency. The book covers a wide range of material: matrices, whole numbers, complex numbers, geometry of curves and families of lines, data analysis, random numbers and simulations, and differential equations from the basic mathematics. These lessons are applied to a rich variety of investigations and modeling problems, from sequences of real numbers to cafeteria queues, from card shuffling to models of fish growth. All extras to the standard MATLAB package are supplied on the World Wide Web.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521639200
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	04/15/1999
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	324
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.71(d)

Table of Contents

Part I. Foundations: 1. Introduction; 2. Matrices and complex numbers; 3. Whole numbers; 4. Graphs and curves; 5. Representation of data; 6. Probability and random numbers; 7. Differential and difference equations; Part II. Investigations: 8. Magic squares; 9. GCDs, pseudoprimes and Miller's test; 10. Graphics: curves and envelopes; 11. Zigzags and fast curves; 12. Sequences of real numbers; 13. Newton-Raphson iteration and fractals; 14. Permutations; 15. Iterations for nonlinear equations; 16. Matrices and solutions of linear systems; 17. Functional interpolations and approximation; 18. Ordinary differential equations; Part III. Modelling: 19. Checkout queues: long or short; 20. Fish farming; 21. Epidemics; 22. Dynamics of snowboating; 23. Tides.

Editorial Reviews

"Anyone who has ever pondered using a sophisticated computer algebra system in a course involving nontrivial mathematics should peruse this book...Those with an applied mathematics orientation should find this work particularly interesting." Choice

From the Publisher