Algebra marked the beginning of modern mathematics moving it beyond arithmetic which involves calculations featuring given numbers to problems where some quantities are unknown Now it stands as a pillar of mathematics underpinning the quantitative sciences both social & physical This Very Short Introduction explains algebra from scratch Over the course of ten logical chapters Higgins offers a step by step approach for readers keen on developing their understanding of algebra Using theory & example he renews the reader's aquaintance with school mathematics before taking them progressively further & deeper into the subject ABOUT THE SERIES The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly Our expert authors combine facts analysis perspective new ideas & enthusiasm to make interesting & challenging topics highly readable ...

In most mathematics departments at major universities one of the three or four basic first-year graduate courses is in the subject of algebraic topology This introductory textbook in algebraic topology is suitable for use in a course or for self-study featuring broad coverage of the subject & a readable exposition with many examples & exercises The four main chapters present the basic material of the subject fundamental group & covering spaces homology & cohomology higher homotopy groups & homotopy theory generally The author emphasizes the geometric aspects of the subject which helps students gain intuition A unique feature of the book is the inclusion of many optional topics which are not usually part of a first course due to time constraints & for which elementary expositions are sometimes hard to find Among these are Bockstein & transfer homomorphisms direct & inverse limits H-spaces & Hopf algebras the Brown representability theorem the James reduced product the Dold-Thom theorem & a full exposition of Steenrod squares & powers Researchers will also welcome this aspect of the book ...

Invaded in 1830 populated by one million settlers who co-existed uneasily with nine million Arabs & Berbers Algeria was different from other French colonies because it was administered as an integral part of France in theory no different from Normandy or Brittany The depth & scale of the colonization process explains why the Algerian War of 1954 to 1962 was one of the longest & most violent of the decolonization struggles An undeclared war in the sense that there was no formal beginning of hostilities the conflict produced huge tensions that brought down four governments ended the Fourth Republic in 1958 & mired the French army in accusations of torture & mass human rights abuses In carefully re-examining the origins & consequences of the conflict Martin Evans argues that it was the Socialist-led Republican Front in power from January 1956 until May 1957 which was the defining moment in the war rather than the later administration under De Gaulle Predicated on the belief in the universal civilizing mission of the Fourth Republic coupled with the conviction that Algerian nationalism was feudal & religiously fanatical in character the Republican Front dramatically intensified the war in the spring of 1956 Drawing upon previously classified archival sources as well as new oral testimonies France's Undeclared War is the first major English-language history of the Algerian conflict in a generation Throughout Martin Evans underlines the ultimately irreconcilable conflict of values between the Republican Front & Algerian nationalism explaining how this clash produced patterns of thought & action such as the institutionalization of torture & the raising of pro-French Muslim militias which tragically polarized choices & framed all stages of the conflict ...

Olivia had always heard stories about Algeria from her maternal grandmother a Black Foot (a " Pied-Noir" the French term for Christian & Jewish settlers of French Algeria who emigrated to France after the Algerian War of Independence) After her grandmother&s death Olivia found some of her grandmother&s journals & letters describing her homeland Now ten years later she resolves to travel to Algeria & experience the country for herself; she arrives alone with her grandmother&s postcards & letters in tow & a single phone number in her pocket of an Algerian Djaffar who will act as her guide Olivia&s quest to understand her origins will bring her to face questions about heritage history shame friendship memory nostalgia fantasy the nature of exile & our unending quest to understand who we are & where we come from ...

This book provides the first practical guide to the function & implementation of algorithmic differentiation in finance Written in a highly accessible way Algorithmic Differentiation Explained will take readers through all the major applications of AD in the derivatives setting with a focus on implementation Algorithmic Differentiation (AD) has been popular in engineering & computer science in areas such as fluid dynamics & data assimilation for many years Over the last decade it has been increasingly (and successfully) applied to financial risk management where it provides an efficient way to obtain financial instrument price derivatives with respect to the data inputs Calculating derivatives exposure across a portfolio is no simple task It requires many complex calculations & a large amount of computer power which in prohibitively expensive & can be time consuming Algorithmic differentiation techniques can be very successfully in computing Greeks & sensitivities of a portfolio with machine precision Written by a leading practitioner who works & programmes AD it offers a practical analysis of all the major applications of AD in the derivatives setting & guides the reader towards implementation Open source code of the examples is provided with the book with which readers can experiment & perform their own test scenarios without writing the related code themselves ...

A fascinating exploration of how computer algorithms can be applied to our everyday lives In this dazzlingly interdisciplinary work acclaimed author Brian Christian & cognitive scientist Tom Griffiths show us how the simple precise algorithms used by computers can also untangle very human questions Modern life is constrained by limited space & time limits that give rise to a particular set of problems What should we do or leave undone in a day or a lifetime? How much messiness should we accept? The authors explain how to have better hunches & when to leave things to chance how to deal with overwhelming choices & how best to connect with others From finding a spouse to finding a parking spot from organizing one's inbox to understanding the workings of human memory Algorithms To Live By is full of practical takeaways to help you solve common decision-making problems & illuminate the workings of the human mind ...

For anyone who has ever wondered how computers solve problems an engagingly written guide for nonexperts to the basics of computer algorithms Have you ever wondered how your GPS can find the quickest way to your destination selecting one route from seemingly countless possibilities in mere seconds? How your credit card account number is protected when you make a purchase over the Internet? The answer is algorithms & how do these mathematical formulations translate themselves into your GPS your laptop or your smart phone? This book offers an engagingly written guide to the basics of computer algorithms In Algorithms Unlocked Thomas Cormen -- coauthor of the leading college textbook on the subject -- provides a general explanation with limited mathematics of how algorithms enable computers to solve problems Readers will learn what computer algorithms are how to describe them & how to evaluate them They will discover simple ways to search for information in a computer; methods for rearranging information in a computer into a prescribed order (sorting); how to solve basic problems that can be modeled in a computer with a mathematical structure called a graph (useful for modeling road networks dependencies among tasks & financial relationships); how to solve problems that ask questions about strings of characters such as DNA structures; the basic principles behind cryptography; fundamentals of data compression; & even that there are some problems that no one has figured out how to solve on a computer in a reasonable amount of time ...

In Alhambra players are acquiring buildings to be placed within their Alhambra complex Employ the most suitable teams of Builders & make sure that you always have enough of the right currency Because no matter whether they are stonemasons from the north or horticulturists from the south
- they all want a proper wage & insist on their "native" currency The game rewards efficiency & strategic play interpeting what your oppenents are going to do next Play as one of the master builders of Europe Compete against your opponents to build the Alhambra Make sure you always have plenty of the right currency to pay your Builders 60 minutes playing time 2-6 players
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This expansion contains four different modules which can be combined individually or all together with the basic game Diamonds adds diamond cards to the game which can be used to buy anything but can’t be combined with any other currency Characters have character cards which are auctioned off when revealed & which have a variety of powers Camps add camps which are placed outside the city walls & which score points for the adjacent line of buildings inside the city City Gates contains city gates which can be placed in your city to allow a path to go through an internal wall to make certain illegal placements legal For 2 to 6 players expansion Playtime of 45 to 60 minutes Moorish theme It is a board game City building tile & cards ...

Ali Khan & Nino Kipiani live in the cosmopolitan oil-rich capital of Azerbaijan which at the beginning of the twentieth century is a melting-pot of different cultures Ali is a Muslim with his ancestors' passion for the desert & Nino is a Christian Georgian girl with sophisticated European ways Despite their differences the two have loved each other since childhood & Ali is determined that he will marry Nino as soon as she leaves school But there is not only the obstacle of their different religions & parental consent to overcome The First World War breaks out As the Russians withdraw the Turks advance & Ali & Nino find themselves swept up in Azerbaijan's fight for independence ...