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Concrete Mathematics
''Concrete Mathematics: A Foundation for Computer Science'', by Ronald Graham, Donald Knuth, and Oren Patashnik, first published in 1989, is a textbook that is widely used in computer-science departments as a substantive but light-hearted treatment of the analysis of algorithms. Contents and history The book provides mathematical knowledge and skills for computer science, especially for the analysis of algorithms. According to the preface, the topics in ''Concrete Mathematics'' are "a blend of CONtinuous and disCRETE mathematics". Calculus is frequently used in the explanations and exercises. The term "concrete mathematics" also denotes a complement to " abstract mathematics". The book is based on a course begun in 1970 by Knuth at Stanford University. The book expands on the material (approximately 100 pages) in the "Mathematical Preliminaries" section of Knuth's ''The Art of Computer Programming''. Consequently, some readers use it as an introduction to that series of book ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Summation
In mathematics, summation is the addition of a sequence of any kind of numbers, called ''addends'' or ''summands''; the result is their ''sum'' or ''total''. Beside numbers, other types of values can be summed as well: functions, vectors, matrices, polynomials and, in general, elements of any type of mathematical objects on which an operation denoted "+" is defined. Summations of infinite sequences are called series. They involve the concept of limit, and are not considered in this article. The summation of an explicit sequence is denoted as a succession of additions. For example, summation of is denoted , and results in 9, that is, . Because addition is associative and commutative, there is no need of parentheses, and the result is the same irrespective of the order of the summands. Summation of a sequence of only one element results in this element itself. Summation of an empty sequence (a sequence with no elements), by convention, results in 0. Very often, the elements ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Knuth Reward Check
Knuth reward checks are checks or check-like certificates awarded by computer scientist Donald Knuth for finding technical, typographical, or historical errors, or making substantial suggestions for his publications. The ''MIT Technology Review'' describes the checks as "among computerdom's most prized trophies". History Initially, Knuth sent real, negotiable checks to recipients. He stopped doing so in October 2008 because of problems with check fraud. As a replacement, he started his own "Bank of San Serriffe", in the fictional nation of San Serriffe, which keeps an account for everyone who found an error since 2006. Knuth now sends out "hexadecimal certificates" instead of negotiable checks. , Knuth reported having written more than 2,000 checks, with an average value exceeding $8 per check.Donald Knuth (2002),All questions answered", ''Notices of the AMS'' 49(3): 318-324. , the total value of the checks signed by Knuth was over $20,000. Very few of these checks were actually ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Discrete Probability Distribution
In probability theory and statistics, a probability distribution is the mathematical function that gives the probabilities of occurrence of different possible outcomes for an experiment. It is a mathematical description of a random phenomenon in terms of its sample space and the probabilities of events (subsets of the sample space). For instance, if is used to denote the outcome of a coin toss ("the experiment"), then the probability distribution of would take the value 0.5 (1 in 2 or 1/2) for , and 0.5 for (assuming that the coin is fair). Examples of random phenomena include the weather conditions at some future date, the height of a randomly selected person, the fraction of male students in a school, the results of a survey to be conducted, etc. Introduction A probability distribution is a mathematical description of the probabilities of events, subsets of the sample space. The sample space, often denoted by \Omega, is the set of all possible outcomes of a random phe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Generating Function
In mathematics, a generating function is a way of encoding an infinite sequence of numbers () by treating them as the coefficients of a formal power series. This series is called the generating function of the sequence. Unlike an ordinary series, the ''formal'' power series is not required to converge: in fact, the generating function is not actually regarded as a function, and the "variable" remains an indeterminate. Generating functions were first introduced by Abraham de Moivre in 1730, in order to solve the general linear recurrence problem. One can generalize to formal power series in more than one indeterminate, to encode information about infinite multi-dimensional arrays of numbers. There are various types of generating functions, including ordinary generating functions, exponential generating functions, Lambert series, Bell series, and Dirichlet series; definitions and examples are given below. Every sequence in principle has a generating function of each type (except ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sequence
In mathematics, a sequence is an enumerated collection of objects in which repetitions are allowed and order matters. Like a set, it contains members (also called ''elements'', or ''terms''). The number of elements (possibly infinite) is called the ''length'' of the sequence. Unlike a set, the same elements can appear multiple times at different positions in a sequence, and unlike a set, the order does matter. Formally, a sequence can be defined as a function from natural numbers (the positions of elements in the sequence) to the elements at each position. The notion of a sequence can be generalized to an indexed family, defined as a function from an ''arbitrary'' index set. For example, (M, A, R, Y) is a sequence of letters with the letter 'M' first and 'Y' last. This sequence differs from (A, R, M, Y). Also, the sequence (1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8), which contains the number 1 at two different positions, is a valid sequence. Sequences can be ''finite'', as in these examples, or ''infi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Binomial Coefficient
In mathematics, the binomial coefficients are the positive integers that occur as coefficients in the binomial theorem. Commonly, a binomial coefficient is indexed by a pair of integers and is written \tbinom. It is the coefficient of the term in the polynomial expansion of the binomial power ; this coefficient can be computed by the multiplicative formula :\binom nk = \frac, which using factorial notation can be compactly expressed as :\binom = \frac. For example, the fourth power of is :\begin (1 + x)^4 &= \tbinom x^0 + \tbinom x^1 + \tbinom x^2 + \tbinom x^3 + \tbinom x^4 \\ &= 1 + 4x + 6 x^2 + 4x^3 + x^4, \end and the binomial coefficient \tbinom =\tfrac = \tfrac = 6 is the coefficient of the term. Arranging the numbers \tbinom, \tbinom, \ldots, \tbinom in successive rows for n=0,1,2,\ldots gives a triangular array called Pascal's triangle, satisfying the recurrence relation :\binom = \binom + \binom. The binomial coefficients occur in many areas of mathematics, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Number Theory
Number theory (or arithmetic or higher arithmetic in older usage) is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and arithmetic function, integer-valued functions. German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777–1855) said, "Mathematics is the queen of the sciences—and number theory is the queen of mathematics."German original: "Die Mathematik ist die Königin der Wissenschaften, und die Arithmetik ist die Königin der Mathematik." Number theorists study prime numbers as well as the properties of mathematical objects made out of integers (for example, rational numbers) or defined as generalizations of the integers (for example, algebraic integers). Integers can be considered either in themselves or as solutions to equations (Diophantine geometry). Questions in number theory are often best understood through the study of Complex analysis, analytical objects (for example, the Riemann zeta function) that encode properties of the integers, primes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Integer-valued Function
In mathematics, an integer-valued function is a function whose values are integers. In other words, it is a function that assigns an integer to each member of its domain. Floor and ceiling functions are examples of an integer-valued function of a real variable, but on real numbers and generally, on (non-disconnected) topological spaces integer-valued functions are not especially useful. Any such function on a connected space either has discontinuities or is constant. On the other hand, on discrete and other totally disconnected spaces integer-valued functions have roughly the same importance as real-valued functions have on non-discrete spaces. Any function with natural, or non-negative integer values is a partial case of integer-valued function. Examples Integer-valued functions defined on the domain of all real numbers include the floor and ceiling functions, the Dirichlet function, the sign function and the Heaviside step function (except possibly at 0). Integer-valu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Recurrence Relation
In mathematics, a recurrence relation is an equation according to which the nth term of a sequence of numbers is equal to some combination of the previous terms. Often, only k previous terms of the sequence appear in the equation, for a parameter k that is independent of n; this number k is called the ''order'' of the relation. If the values of the first k numbers in the sequence have been given, the rest of the sequence can be calculated by repeatedly applying the equation. In ''linear recurrences'', the th term is equated to a linear function of the k previous terms. A famous example is the recurrence for the Fibonacci numbers, F_n=F_+F_ where the order k is two and the linear function merely adds the two previous terms. This example is a linear recurrence with constant coefficients, because the coefficients of the linear function (1 and 1) are constants that do not depend on n. For these recurrences, one can express the general term of the sequence as a closed-form expression o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Concrete Roman
Concrete Roman is a slab serif typeface designed by Donald Knuth using his METAFONT program. It was intended to accompany the Euler mathematical font which it partners in Knuth's book ''Concrete Mathematics''. It has a darker appearance than its more famous sibling, Computer Modern Computer Modern is the original family of typefaces used by the typesetting program TeX. It was created by Donald Knuth with his Metafont program, and was most recently updated in 1992. Computer Modern, or variants of it, remains very widely us .... Some favour it for use on the computer screen because of this, as the thinner strokes of Computer Modern can make it hard to read at low resolutions. External linksComputer Modern family for general use select .otf fonts Typefaces designed by Donald Knuth Slab serif typefaces TeX {{Typ-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
AMS Euler
AMS Euler is an upright cursive typeface, commissioned by the American Mathematical Society (AMS) and designed and created by Hermann Zapf with the assistance of Donald Knuth and his Stanford graduate students. It tries to emulate a mathematician's style of handwriting mathematical entities on a blackboard, which is upright rather than italic. It blends very well with other typefaces made by Hermann Zapf, such as Palatino, Aldus and Melior, but very badly with the default TeX font Computer Modern. All the alphabets were implemented with the computer-assisted design system Metafont developed by Knuth. Zapf designed and drew the Euler alphabets in 1980–81 and provided critique and advice of digital proofs in 1983 and later. The typeface family is copyright by American Mathematical Society, 1983. Euler Metafont development was done by Stanford computer science and/or digital typography students; first Scott Kim, then Carol Twombly and Daniel Mills, and finally David Siegel, all ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pochhammer Symbol
In mathematics, the falling factorial (sometimes called the descending factorial, falling sequential product, or lower factorial) is defined as the polynomial :\begin (x)_n = x^\underline &= \overbrace^ \\ &= \prod_^n(x-k+1) = \prod_^(x-k) \,. \end The rising factorial (sometimes called the Pochhammer function, Pochhammer polynomial, ascending factorial, (A reprint of the 1950 edition by Chelsea Publishing Co.) rising sequential product, or upper factorial) is defined as :\begin x^ = x^\overline &= \overbrace^ \\ &= \prod_^n(x+k-1) = \prod_^(x+k) \,. \end The value of each is taken to be 1 (an empty product) when . These symbols are collectively called factorial powers. The Pochhammer symbol, introduced by Leo August Pochhammer, is the notation , where is a non-negative integer. It may represent ''either'' the rising or the falling factorial, with different articles and authors using different conventions. Pochhammer himself actually used with yet another meaning, namely to d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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