Calculus is a subject that needs to be studied many times over, ideally with a different book in each new round. Using Ezra Pound’s analogy (in ABC of Reading), we may think of the learner as an apprentice carpenter, and of calculus as a stool or table; the learner must keep going until the piece of furniture has three legs and will stand up, or four legs and won’t tip over too easily. Most people cannot follow this plan, because life is short and the list of other demands on their time just too long. This book has been written with a view to making calculus more interesting and intelligible to those who left college, recently or a long time ago, without becoming an adept; those who are familiar with the contents of undergraduate calculus, but not altogether content with their own grasp of the central concepts; those who are aware that the structure put together by them during their apprenticeship is too wobbly, and liable to tip over when the number of independent variables is increased from one to just two. An absurd simile? Not in the opinion of a distinguished mathematician and educator (quoted verbatim in the preface), who acknowledged that the customary definition of a differential in the theory of functions of a single variable breaks down when one extends it to functions of several variables and considers double integrals. He continued: “Students are rightly baffled when they attempt to convert such an integral to polar coordinates and are told that no longer is it permissible to [apply a straightforward extension of the relevant formula for a change of variable in a single integral]. The Jacobian must be used instead, and at this point the logical structure which was built so carefully collapses entirely. If we wish to make calculus an intellectually honest subject and not a collection of convenient tricks, it is time we made a fresh start.” Calculus Without Hocus Pocus aims to elucidate those (and only those) issues that are not treated adequately in standard textbooks. It offers more cogent explanations of the conundrums and paradoxes which have been nagging the minds of students and teachers of calculus for generations. The author, who has been using calculus as a teacher and researcher for over fifty years, has tried to produce a condensed and readable book that throws light from various directions upon the difficult parts of this very technical (and somewhat unpopular) subject; to show some of the reasons why calculus has been cast in the mould in which we find it; and to recommend some minor changes in notation and nomenclature that would remove nearly all of the hocus-pocus which almost every learner of calculus has had to endure so far.

This book is divided into two parts. The first addresses the simpler variational problems in parametric and nonparametric form. The second covers extensions to optimal control theory. The author opens with the study of three classical problems whose solutions led to the theory of calculus of variations. They are the problem of geodesics, the brachistochrone, and the minimal surface of revolution. He gives a detailed discussion of the Hamilton-Jacobi theory, both in the parametric and nonparametric forms. This leads to the development of sufficiency theories describing properties of minimizing extremal arcs. Next, the author addresses existence theorems. He first develops Hilbert's basic existence theorem for parametric problems and studies some of its consequences. Finally, he develops the theory of generalized curves and "automatic" existence theorems. In the second part of the book, the author discusses optimal control problems. He notes that originally these problems were formulated as problems of Lagrange and Mayer in terms of differential constraints. In the control formulation, these constraints are expressed in a more convenient form in terms of control functions. After pointing out the new phenomenon that may arise, namely, the lack of controllability, the author develops the maximum principle and illustrates this principle by standard examples that show the switching phenomena that may occur. He extends the theory of geodesic coverings to optimal control problems. Finally, he extends the problem to generalized optimal control problems and obtains the corresponding existence theorems.

Transcendental Curves in the Leibnizian Calculus analyzes a mathematical and philosophical conflict between classical and early modern mathematics. In the late 17th century, mathematics was at the brink of an identity crisis. For millennia, mathematical meaning and ontology had been anchored in geometrical constructions, as epitomized by Euclid's ruler and compass. As late as 1637, Descartes had placed himself squarely in this tradition when he justified his new technique of identifying curves with equations by means of certain curve-tracing instruments, thereby bringing together the ancient constructive tradition and modern algebraic methods in a satisfying marriage. But rapid advances in the new fields of infinitesimal calculus and mathematical mechanics soon ruined his grand synthesis. Descartes's scheme left out transcendental curves, i.e. curves with no polynomial equation, but in the course of these subsequent developments such curves emerged as indispensable. It was becoming harder and harder to juggle cutting-edge mathematics and ancient conceptions of its foundations at the same time, yet leading mathematicians, such as Leibniz felt compelled to do precisely this. The new mathematics fit more naturally an analytical conception of curves than a construction-based one, yet no one wanted to betray the latter, as this was seen as virtually tantamount to stop doing mathematics altogether. The credibility and authority of mathematics depended on it. - Brings to light this underlying and often implicit complex of concerns that permeate early calculus - Evaluates the technical conception and mathematical construction of the geometrical method - Reveals a previously unrecognized Liebnizian programmatic cohesion in early calculus - Provides a beautifully written work of outstanding original scholarship

Sixty years after its first edition, there is an increasing consensus among scholars that the work posthumously published as Philosophical Investigations represents something that is far from a complete picture of Wittgenstein’s second book project. G.H. von Wright’s seminal research on the Nachlass was an important contribution in this direction, showing that the Wittgenstein papers can reveal much more than the source of specific remarks. This book specifically explores Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations from the different angles of its originary conceptions, including the mathematical texts, shedding new light on fundamental issues in twentieth century and contemporary philosophy. Leading authorities in the field focus on newly published or hitherto unpublished sources for the interpretation of Wittgenstein’s later work and a Wittgenstein typescript, translated for the first time into English, is included as an appendix.

Richly textured and versatile text characterizes real numbers as a complete, ordered field. Rigorous development of the calculus, plus thorough treatment of basic topics of limits and inequalities. 1968 edition.

First published in 2005. The essays and replies in this volume represent, with some modifications, the proceedings of a colloquium held in Oxford in Trinity Term, 1979. With occasional exceptions, critical response to the Philosophical Investigations following publication focused on a limited range of topics - an unsystematic book was discussed in an unsystematic fashion. This book employs a different approach, one that interprets disconnected discussions of Wittgenstein's as united by a single underlying set of powerful arguments.

Collected essays by noted scholars covering the breadth and influence of Kurt Vonnegut's literature.

Based on the Workshop Mathematics approach which focuses on interactive learning -- learning by doing -- this volume covers topics in calculus while reviewing precalculus concepts. The reader is encouraged to make observations and connections while exploring data and experimenting through the graphing calculator.