A Student S Guide To Numerical Methods

The plain language style, worked examples and exercises in this book help students to understand the foundations of computational physics and engineering.

A plain language style, worked examples and exercises help students to understand the foundations of computational physics and engineering.

Detailed lecture notes on six topics at the forefront of current research in numerical analysis and applied mathematics, with each set of notes presenting a self-contained guide to a current research area and supplemented by an extensive bibliography. In addition, most of the notes contain detailed proofs of the key results. They start from a level suitable for first year graduates in applied mathematics, mathematical analysis or numerical analysis, and proceed to current research topics. Readers will thus quickly gain an insight into the important results and techniques in each area without recourse to the large research literature. Current (unsolved) problems are also described, and directions for future research given.

This concise, plain-language guide for senior undergraduates and graduate students aims to develop intuition, practical skills and an understanding of the framework of numerical methods for the physical sciences and engineering. It provides accessible self-contained explanations of mathematical principles, avoiding intimidating formal proofs. Worked examples and targeted exercises enable the student to master the realities of using numerical techniques for common needs such as solution of ordinary and partial differential equations, fitting experimental data, and simulation using particle and Monte Carlo methods. Topics are carefully selected and structured to build understanding, and illustrate key principles such as: accuracy, stability, order of convergence, iterative refinement, and computational effort estimation. Enrichment sections and in-depth footnotes form a springboard to more advanced material and provide additional background. Whether used for self-study, or as the basis of an accelerated introductory class, this compact textbook provides a thorough grounding in computational physics and engineering.

A comprehensive guide to numerical methods for simulating physical-chemical systems This book offers a systematic, highly accessible presentation of numerical methods used to simulate the behavior of physical-chemical systems. Unlike most books on the subject, it focuses on methodology rather than specific applications. Written for students and professionals across an array of scientific and engineering disciplines and with varying levels of experience with applied mathematics, it provides comprehensive descriptions of numerical methods without requiring an advanced mathematical background. Based on its author’s more than forty years of experience teaching numerical methods to engineering students, Numerical Methods for Solving Partial Differential Equations presents the fundamentals of all of the commonly used numerical methods for solving differential equations at a level appropriate for advanced undergraduates and first-year graduate students in science and engineering. Throughout, elementary examples show how numerical methods are used to solve generic versions of equations that arise in many scientific and engineering disciplines. In writing it, the author took pains to ensure that no assumptions were made about the background discipline of the reader. Covers the spectrum of numerical methods that are used to simulate the behavior of physical-chemical systems that occur in science and engineering Written by a professor of engineering with more than forty years of experience teaching numerical methods to engineers Requires only elementary knowledge of differential equations and matrix algebra to master the material Designed to teach students to understand, appreciate and apply the basic mathematics and equations on which Mathcad and similar commercial software packages are based Comprehensive yet accessible to readers with limited mathematical knowledge, Numerical Methods for Solving Partial Differential Equations is an excellent text for advanced undergraduates and first-year graduate students in the sciences and engineering. It is also a valuable working reference for professionals in engineering, physics, chemistry, computer science, and applied mathematics.

The Student Solutions Manual contains worked-out solutions to many of the problems. It also illustrates the calls required for the programs using the algorithms in the text, which is especially useful for those with limited programming experience.

Initial training in pure and applied sciences tends to present problem-solving as the process of elaborating explicit closed-form solutions from basic principles, and then using these solutions in numerical applications. This approach is only applicable to very limited classes of problems that are simple enough for such closed-form solutions to exist. Unfortunately, most real-life problems are too complex to be amenable to this type of treatment. Numerical Methods – a Consumer Guide presents methods for dealing with them. Shifting the paradigm from formal calculus to numerical computation, the text makes it possible for the reader to · discover how to escape the dictatorship of those particular cases that are simple enough to receive a closed-form solution, and thus gain the ability to solve complex, real-life problems; · understand the principles behind recognized algorithms used in state-of-the-art numerical software; · learn the advantages and limitations of these algorithms, to facilitate the choice of which pre-existing bricks to assemble for solving a given problem; and · acquire methods that allow a critical assessment of numerical results. Numerical Methods – a Consumer Guide will be of interest to engineers and researchers who solve problems numerically with computers or supervise people doing so, and to students of both engineering and applied mathematics.

This introduction to dimensional analysis covers the methods, history and formalisation of the field. Utilising topics including mechanics, hydro- and electrodynamics, and thermal and quantum physics, it illustrates the possibilities and limitations of dimensional analysis, making it perfect for students on introductory courses in physics, engineering and mathematics.