Geometry with an introduction to cosmic topology /

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Bibliographic Details
Author / Creator:Hitchman, Michael P.
Imprint:Sudbury, Mass. : Jones and Bartlett Publishers, c2009.
Description:xiii, 238 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 24 cm.
Language:English
Series:The Jones and Bartlett Publishers series in mathematics. Geometry
Jones and Bartlett Publishers series in mathematics. Geometry.
Subject:
Format: Print Book
URL for this record:http://pi.lib.uchicago.edu/1001/cat/bib/7629649
Hidden Bibliographic Details
ISBN:9780763754570 (casebound/hard cover)
0763754579 (casebound/hard cover)
Notes:Includes bibliographical references (p. 233-234) and index.
Description
Summary:Geometry with an Introduction to Cosmic Topology is motivated by questions that have ignited the imagination of stargazers since antiquity. What is the shape of the universe? Does the universe have an edge? Is it infinitely big? Dr. Hitchman aims to clarify this fascinating area of mathematics and focuses on the mathematical tools used to investigate the shape of the universe. The text follows the Erlangen Program, which develops geometry in terms of a space and a group of transformations of that space. This approach to non-Euclidean geometry provides excellent material by which students can learn the more sophisticated modes of thinking necessary in upper-division mathematics courses.This unique text is organized into three natural parts:Chapter 1 introduces the geometric perspective taken in the text and the motivation for the material that comes from cosmology.Chapters 2-7 contain the core mathematical content of the text, developing hyperbolic elliptic, and Euclidean geometry from the complex plane and subgroups of Mobius transformations. Other topics include the topology and geometry of surfaces and Dirichlet domains.Finally, Chapter 8 explores the topic of cosmic topology through the geometry learned in the preceding chapters.
Physical Description:xiii, 238 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 24 cm.
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references (p. 233-234) and index.
ISBN:9780763754570
0763754579