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From: pi@buddha.usc.edu (Jen-I Pi)
Newsgroups: sci.math,comp.edu
Subject: Re: Concrete Mathematics
Keywords: Knuth
Message-ID: <13256@oberon.USC.EDU>
Date: 5 Nov 88 03:05:22 GMT
References: <3484@pt.cs.cmu.edu>
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Reply-To: pi@buddha.usc.edu (Jen-I Pi)
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
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In article <3484@pt.cs.cmu.edu> cap@cs.cmu.edu (Chris Paris) writes:
>I saw in the CMU bookstore yesterday a book called {\it Concrete
>Mathematics\/}, by someone, Donald Knuth, and someone.  When I went
>back today to buy it, it was gone!  I would like to have the bookstore
>order me a copy, but they can't because there seems to be no proof
>that the book exists.  I don't know the first author, and the book
>isn't listed in {\it Books in Print\/}.
>	[ lines deleted ]
>-----
>cap@cs.cmu.edu (Chris Paris)

The boook is titled "Concrete Mathematics", by Ronald L. Graham (AT&T),
Donald E. Knuth (Stanford), and Oren Patashnik (Stanford)., Addison-Wesley
Publishing Company, 1989.

The book is based on a course that was taught at Stanford Univ. since 1970.
To use the authors words:

   "What exactly is Concrete Mathematics? It is a blend of CONtinous
    and DisCRETE mathematics. More concretely, it is the controlled
    manipulation of mathematical formulars, using a collection of
    techniques for solving problems ...

    The major topicstreated in this book include sums, recurrences,
    elementary number theory, binomial coefficients, generating
    functions, discrete probability, and asymptotic methods. The
    emphasis is on manipulative technique rather than on existence
    theorems or combinatorial reasoning ... "

I personally find the book very useful and enjoy their "math graffiti"
very much. It is highly recommended for first year graduate in Applied
Mathematics and Computer Science.






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