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About Mathematical Sciences Research Institute Publications
This series is based on work undertaken at the Simons Laufer Mathematical Sciences Institute (SLMath), formerly the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI), in Berkeley, California. It publishes surveys and workshop proceedings of long-lasting value, as well as lecture notes and monographs by visitors to the Institute. The volumes below are published by Cambridge University Press; earlier ones may be available from Springer-Verlag.
General Editors:
Silvio Levy, Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, Berkeley, California
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Combinatorial games are the strategy games that people like to play, for example chess, Hex, and Go. They differ from economic games in that there are two players who play alternately with no hidden cards and no dice. These games have a mathematical structure that allows players to analyse them in the abstract. Games of No Chance 4 contains the first comprehensive explorations of misère (last player to move loses) games, extends the theory for some classes of normal-play (last player to move wins) games and extends the analysis for some specific games. It includes a tutorial for the very successful approach to analysing misère impartial games and the first attempt at using it for misère partisan games. Hex and Go are featured, as well as new games: Toppling Dominoes and Maze. Updated versions of Unsolved Problems in Combinatorial Game Theory and the Combinatorial Games Bibliography complete the volume.
Number theory is one of the oldest and most appealing areas of mathematics. Computation has always played a role in number theory, a role which has increased dramatically in the last 20 or 30 years, both because of the advent of modern computers, and because of the discovery of surprising and powerful algorithms. As a consequence, algorithmic number theory has gradually emerged as an important and distinct field with connections to computer science and cryptography as well as other areas of mathematics. This text provides a comprehensive introduction to algorithmic number theory for beginning graduate students, written by the leading experts in the field. It includes several articles that cover the essential topics in this area, and in addition, there are contributions pointing in broader directions, including cryptography, computational class field theory, zeta functions and L-series, discrete logarithm algorithms, and quantum computing.
Inverse problems lie at the heart of contemporary scientific inquiry and technological development. Applications include a variety of medical and other imaging techniques, which are used for early detection of cancer and pulmonary edema, location of oil and mineral deposits in the Earth's interior, creation of astrophysical images from telescope data, finding cracks and interfaces within materials, shape optimization, model identification in growth processes, and modeling in the life sciences among others. The expository survey essays in this book describe recent developments in inverse problems and imaging, including hybrid or couple-physics methods arising in medical imaging, Calderon's problem and electrical impedance tomography, inverse problems arising in global seismology and oil exploration, inverse spectral problems, and the study of asymptotically hyperbolic spaces. It is suitable for graduate students and researchers interested in inverse problems and their applications.
In the 2012–13 academic year, the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, Berkeley, hosted programs in Commutative Algebra (Fall 2012 and Spring 2013) and Noncommutative Algebraic Geometry and Representation Theory (Spring 2013). There have been many significant developments in these fields in recent years; what is more, the boundary between them has become increasingly blurred. This was apparent during the MSRI program, where there were a number of joint seminars on subjects of common interest: birational geometry, D-modules, invariant theory, matrix factorizations, noncommutative resolutions, singularity categories, support varieties, and tilting theory, to name a few. These volumes reflect the lively interaction between the subjects witnessed at MSRI. The Introductory Workshops and Connections for Women Workshops for the two programs included lecture series by experts in the field. The volumes include a number of survey articles based on these lectures, along with expository articles and research papers by participants of the programs. Volume 1 contains expository papers ideal for those entering the field.
Algebraic geometry is one of the most diverse fields of research in mathematics. It has had an incredible evolution over the past century, with new subfields constantly branching off and spectacular progress in certain directions, and at the same time, with many fundamental unsolved problems still to be tackled. In the spring of 2009 the first main workshop of the MSRI algebraic geometry program served as an introductory panorama of current progress in the field, addressed to both beginners and experts. This volume reflects that spirit, offering expository overviews of the state of the art in many areas of algebraic geometry. Prerequisites are kept to a minimum, making the book accessible to a broad range of mathematicians. Many chapters present approaches to long-standing open problems by means of modern techniques currently under development and contain questions and conjectures to help spur future research.
This book provides an introduction to (1) various zeta functions (for example, Riemann, Hurwitz, Barnes, Epstein, Selberg, and Ruelle), including graph zeta functions; (2) modular forms (Eisenstein series, Hecke and Dirichlet L-functions, Ramanujan's tau function, and cusp forms); and (3) vertex operator algebras (correlation functions, quasimodular forms, modular invariance, rationality, and some current research topics including higher genus conformal field theory). Various concrete applications of the material to physics are presented. These include Kaluza-Klein extra dimensional gravity, Bosonic string calculations, an abstract Cardy formula for black hole entropy, Patterson-Selberg zeta function expression of one-loop quantum field and gravity partition functions, Casimir energy calculations, atomic Schrödinger operators, Bose-Einstein condensation, heat kernel asymptotics, random matrices, quantum chaos, elliptic and theta function solutions of Einstein's equations, a soliton-black hole connection in two-dimensional gravity, and conformal field theory.
This book surveys the state-of-the-art in the theory of combinatorial games, that is games not involving chance or hidden information. Enthusiasts will find a wide variety of exciting topics, from a trailblazing presentation of scoring to solutions of three piece ending positions of bidding chess. Theories and techniques in many subfields are covered, such as universality, Wythoff Nim variations, misère play, partizan bidding (a.k.a. Richman games), loopy games, and the algebra of placement games. Also included are an updated list of unsolved problems, extremely efficient algorithms for taking and breaking games, a historical exposition of binary numbers and games by David Singmaster, chromatic Nim variations, renormalization for combinatorial games, and a survey of temperature theory by Elwyn Berlekamp, one of the founders of the field. The volume was initiated at the Combinatorial Game Theory Workshop, January 2011, held at the Banff International Research Station.
This 2003 book provides an analysis of combinatorial games - games not involving chance or hidden information. It contains a fascinating collection of articles by some well-known names in the field, such as Elwyn Berlekamp and John Conway, plus other researchers in mathematics and computer science, together with some top game players. The articles run the gamut from theoretical approaches (infinite games, generalizations of game values, 2-player cellular automata, Alpha-Beta pruning under partial orders) to other games (Amazons, Chomp, Dot-and-Boxes, Go, Chess, Hex). Many of these advances reflect the interplay of the computer science and the mathematics. The book ends with a bibliography by A. Fraenkel and a list of combinatorial game theory problems by R. K. Guy. Like its predecessor, Games of No Chance, this should be on the shelf of all serious combinatorial games enthusiasts.
Random matrix theory is at the intersection of linear algebra, probability theory and integrable systems, and has a wide range of applications in physics, engineering, multivariate statistics and beyond. This volume is based on a Fall 2010 MSRI program which generated the solution of long-standing questions on universalities of Wigner matrices and beta-ensembles and opened new research directions especially in relation to the KPZ universality class of interacting particle systems and low-rank perturbations. The book contains review articles and research contributions on all these topics, in addition to other core aspects of random matrix theory such as integrability and free probability theory. It will give both established and new researchers insights into the most recent advances in the field and the connections among many subfields.
This collection of survey and research articles focuses on recent developments concerning various quantitative aspects of 'thin groups'. There are discrete subgroups of semisimple Lie groups that are both big (i.e. Zariski dense) and small (i.e. of infinite co-volume). This dual nature leads to many intricate questions. Over the past few years, many new ideas and techniques, arising in particular from arithmetic combinatorics, have been involved in the study of such groups, leading, for instance, to far-reaching generalizations of the strong approximation theorem in which congruence quotients are shown to exhibit a spectral gap, referred to as superstrong approximation. This book provides a broad panorama of a very active field of mathematics at the boundary between geometry, dynamical systems, number theory and combinatorics. It is suitable for professional mathematicians and graduate students in mathematics interested in this fascinating area of research.
In the 2012–13 academic year, the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, Berkeley, hosted programs in Commutative Algebra (Fall 2012 and Spring 2013) and Noncommutative Algebraic Geometry and Representation Theory (Spring 2013). There have been many significant developments in these fields in recent years; what is more, the boundary between them has become increasingly blurred. This was apparent during the MSRI program, where there were a number of joint seminars on subjects of common interest: birational geometry, D-modules, invariant theory, matrix factorizations, noncommutative resolutions, singularity categories, support varieties, and tilting theory, to name a few. These volumes reflect the lively interaction between the subjects witnessed at MSRI. The Introductory Workshops and Connections for Women Workshops for the two programs included lecture series by experts in the field. The volumes include a number of survey articles based on these lectures, along with expository articles and research papers by participants of the programs. Volume 2 focuses on the most recent research.
There are many interactions between noncommutative algebra and representation theory on the one hand and classical algebraic geometry on the other, with important applications in both directions. The aim of this book is to provide a comprehensive introduction to some of the most significant topics in this area, including noncommutative projective algebraic geometry, deformation theory, symplectic reflection algebras, and noncommutative resolutions of singularities. The book is based on lecture courses in noncommutative algebraic geometry given by the authors at a Summer Graduate School at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, California in 2012 and, as such, is suitable for advanced graduate students and those undertaking early post-doctorate research. In keeping with the lectures on which the book is based, a large number of exercises are provided, for which partial solutions are included.
This comprehensive text focuses on the homotopical technology in use at the forefront of modern algebraic topology. Following on from a standard introductory algebraic topology sequence, it will provide students with a comprehensive background in spectra and structured ring spectra. Each chapter is an extended tutorial by a leader in the field, offering the first really accessible treatment of the modern construction of the stable category in terms of both model categories of point-set diagram spectra and infinity-categories. It is one of the only textbook sources for operadic algebras, structured ring spectra, and Bousfield localization, which are now basic techniques in the field, and the book provides a rare expository treatment of spectral algebraic geometry. Together the contributors — Emily Riehl, Daniel Dugger, Clark Barwick, Michael A. Mandell, Birgit Richter, Tyler Lawson, and Charles Rezk — offer a complete, authoritative source to learn the foundations of this vibrant area.
The three main themes of this book, probability theory, differential geometry, and the theory of integrable systems, reflect the broad range of mathematical interests of Henry McKean, to whom it is dedicated. Written by experts in probability, geometry, integrable systems, turbulence, and percolation, the seventeen papers included here demonstrate a wide variety of techniques that have been developed to solve various mathematical problems in these areas. The topics are often combined in an unusual and interesting fashion to give solutions outside of the standard methods. The papers contain some exciting results and offer a guide to the contemporary literature on these subjects.
Signal processing is everywhere in modern technology. Its mathematical basis and many areas of application are the subject of this book, based on a series of graduate-level lectures held at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute. Emphasis is on challenges in the subject, particular techniques adapted to particular technologies, and certain advances in algorithms and theory. The book covers two main areas: computational harmonic analysis, envisioned as a technology for efficiently analysing real data using inherent symmetries; and the challenges inherent in the acquisition, processing and analysis of images and sensing data in general [EMDASH] ranging from sonar on a submarine to a neuroscientist's fMRI study.
Inverse problems arise in practical situations such as medical imaging, geophysical exploration, and non-destructive evaluation where measurements made on the exterior of a body are used to determine properties of the inaccessible interior. There have been substantial developments in the mathematical theory of inverse problems, and applications have expanded greatly. In this volume, leading experts in the theoretical and applied aspects of inverse problems offer extended surveys on several important topics in modern inverse problems, such as microlocal analysis, reflection seismology, tomography, inverse scattering, and X-ray transforms. Each article covers a particular topic or topics with an emphasis on accessibility and integration with the whole volume. Thus the collection can be at the same time stimulating to researchers and accessible to graduate students.
Finsler geometry generalises Riemannian geometry in the same sense that Banach spaces generalise Hilbert spaces. This book presents an expository account of seven important topics in Riemann–Finsler geometry, ones which have undergone significant development but have not had a detailed pedagogical treatment elsewhere. Each article will open the door to an active area of research, and is suitable for a special topics course in graduate-level differential geometry. The contributors consider issues related to volume, geodesics, curvature, complex differential geometry and parametrised jet bundles, and include a variety of instructive examples.
During the past decade, mathematics education has changed rapidly, giving rise to a polarization of opinions among the community of research mathematicians. What is the appropriate balance between theory, technique, and applications? What is the role of technology? How do we fulfil the needs of students entering other fields? The purpose of this volume, the proceedings of a conference held at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley in 1996, is to present a serious discussion of these educational issues, with a balanced representation of opposing ideas. Part I deals with general issues in university mathematics education; Part II presents case studies on particular projects; Part III presents a range of opinions on mathematics education in elementary and secondary schools; and Part IV presents the reports of the working groups.
Is Nine-Men Morris, in the hands of perfect players, a win for white or for black - or a draw? Can king, rook, and knight always defeat king and two knights in chess? What can Go players learn from economists? What are nimbers, tinies, switches and minies? This book deals with combinatorial games, that is, games not involving chance or hidden information. Their study is at once old and young: though some games, such as chess, have been analyzed for centuries, the first full analysis of a nontrivial combinatorial game (Nim) only appeared in 1902. The first part of this book will be accessible to anyone, regardless of background: it contains introductory expositions, reports of unusual tournaments, and a fascinating article by John H. Conway on the possibly everlasting contest between an angel and a devil. For those who want to delve more deeply, the book also contains combinatorial studies of chess and Go; reports on computer advances such as the solution of Nine-Men Morris and Pentominoes; and theoretical approaches to such problems as games with many players. If you have read and enjoyed Martin Gardner, or if you like to learn and analyze new games, this book is for you.
During the past few decades, the gradual merger of Discrete Geometry and the newer discipline of Computational Geometry has provided enormous impetus to mathematicians and computer scientists interested in geometric problems. This 2005 volume, which contains 32 papers on a broad range of topics of interest in the field, is an outgrowth of that synergism. It includes surveys and research articles exploring geometric arrangements, polytopes, packing, covering, discrete convexity, geometric algorithms and their complexity, and the combinatorial complexity of geometric objects, particularly in low dimension. There are points of contact with many applied areas such as mathematical programming, visibility problems, kinetic data structures, and biochemistry, as well as with algebraic topology, geometric probability, real algebraic geometry, and combinatorics.