The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics

About this book

With over 4,000 entries, this informative A to Z provides clear, jargon-free definitions on a wide variety of mathematical terms. Its entries cover both pure and applied mathematics, and include key theories, concepts, methods, programmes, people, and terminology.

For this sixth edition, around 800 new terms have been defined, expanding on the dictionary's coverage of topics such as algebra, differential geometry, algebraic geometry, representation theory, and statistics. Among this new material are articles such as cardinal arithmetic, first fundamental form, Lagrange's theorem, Navier-Stokes equations, potential, and splitting field. The existing entries have also been revised and updated to account for developments in the field.

Numerous supplementary features complement the text, including detailed appendices on basic algebra, areas and volumes, trigonometric formulae, and Roman numerals. Newly added to these sections is a historical timeline of significant mathematicians lives and the emergence of key theorems. There are also illustrations, graphs, and charts throughout the text, as well as useful web links to provide access to further reading.

Contents

List of contributors
Preface

A to Z entries

Areas and volumes
Centres of mass
Moments of inertia
SI units and constants
Geometry: equations of lines and planes
Basic algebra
Derivatives
Integrals
Common ordinary differential equations and solutions
Series
Convergence tests for series
Common inequalities
Trigonometric formulae
Probability distributions
Vector algebra and differential operators
Groups of orders up to 15
List of primes up to 1000
Symbols
Greek letters
Roman numerals
Fields Medal winners
Millennium Prize problems
Historical timeline

Customer Reviews

Biography

Richard Earl is Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, and Senior Mathematics Tutor at Worcester College, Oxford. He has taught a range of pure and applied mathematics at undergraduate and graduate levels, specializing in algebra, geometry, and topology, as well as presenting various mathematics to secondary school students at masterclasses and summer schools. He is the author of Towards Higher Mathematics: A Companion (CUP, 2017), and Topology: A Very Short Introduction (OUP, 2019).

James Nicholson has a mathematics degree from Cambridge, and taught at Harrow School for twelve years before becoming Head of Mathematics at Belfast Royal Academy in 1990. From 2003 he has worked mostly with the School of Education at Durham University and as an education consultant for a variety of organizations. He is the author of four A-level Statistics texts, two GCSE Mathematics revision guides, and he is a contributing author for a number of other mathematics textbooks.