0
    Adventures in Group Theory: Rubik's Cube, Merlin's Machine, and Other Mathematical Toys

    Adventures in Group Theory: Rubik's Cube, Merlin's Machine, and Other Mathematical Toys

    4.0 2

    by David Joyner


    eBook

    (second edition)
    $24.99
    $24.99
     $33.00 | Save 24%

    Customer Reviews

      ISBN-13: 9780801897269
    • Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
    • Publication date: 12/29/2008
    • Sold by: Barnes & Noble
    • Format: eBook
    • Pages: 328
    • File size: 27 MB
    • Note: This product may take a few minutes to download.
    • Age Range: 18Years

    David Joyner is a professor of mathematics at the U.S. Naval Academy. He is coauthor of Applied Abstract Algebra, also published by Johns Hopkins, and editor of Coding Theory and Cryptography: From Enigma and Geheimschreiber to Quantum Theory.

    Table of Contents

    Preface
    Acknowledgments
    Where to Begin...
    1. Elementary, my dear Watson
    2. 'And you do addition?'
    3. Bell ringing and other permutations
    4. A procession of permutation puzzles
    5. What's commutative and purple?
    6. Welcome to the machine
    7. 'God's algorithm' and graphs
    8. Symmetry and the Platonic solids
    9. The illegal cube group
    10. Words which move
    11. The (legal) Rubik's Cube group
    12. Squares, two-faces, and other subgroups
    13. Other Rubik-like puzzle groups
    14. Crossing the Rubicon
    15. Some solution strategies
    16. Coda: Questions and other directions
    Bibliography
    Index

    Available on NOOK devices and apps

    • NOOK eReaders
    • NOOK GlowLight 4 Plus
    • NOOK GlowLight 4e
    • NOOK GlowLight 4
    • NOOK GlowLight Plus 7.8"
    • NOOK GlowLight 3
    • NOOK GlowLight Plus 6"
    • NOOK Tablets
    • NOOK 9" Lenovo Tablet (Arctic Grey and Frost Blue)
    • NOOK 10" HD Lenovo Tablet
    • NOOK Tablet 7" & 10.1"
    • NOOK by Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 [Tab A and Tab 4]
    • NOOK by Samsung [Tab 4 10.1, S2 & E]
    • Free NOOK Reading Apps
    • NOOK for iOS
    • NOOK for Android

    Want a NOOK? Explore Now

    This updated and revised edition of David Joyner’s entertaining "hands-on" tour of group theory and abstract algebra brings life, levity, and practicality to the topics through mathematical toys.

    Joyner uses permutation puzzles such as the Rubik’s Cube and its variants, the 15 puzzle, the Rainbow Masterball, Merlin’s Machine, the Pyraminx, and the Skewb to explain the basics of introductory algebra and group theory. Subjects covered include the Cayley graphs, symmetries, isomorphisms, wreath products, free groups, and finite fields of group theory, as well as algebraic matrices, combinatorics, and permutations.

    Featuring strategies for solving the puzzles and computations illustrated using the SAGE open-source computer algebra system, the second edition of Adventures in Group Theory is perfect for mathematics enthusiasts and for use as a supplementary textbook.

    Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

    Recently Viewed 

    From the Publisher
    Adventures in Group Theory is a tour through the algebra of several 'permutation puzzles' . . . If you like puzzles, this is a somewhat fun book. If you like algebra, this is a fun book. If you like puzzles and algebra, this is a really fun book.
    MAA Online

    Joyner has collated all the Rubik lore and integrated it with a self-contained introduction to group theory that equals or, more likely, exceeds what is available in typical dedicated elementary texts.
    Choice

    Joyner does convey some of the excitement and adventure in picking up knowledge of group theory by trying to understand Rubik's Cube. Enthusiastic students will learn a lot of mathematics from this book.
    American Scientist

    The book begins with some lecture notes of discrete mathematics and group theory. These theoretical notions are very nicely applied to some practical problems, e.g.: Rubik's cube, Rubik-like puzzle groups, crossing the rubicon, God's algorithm and graphs. The work ends with a rich bibliography and index.
    Zentralblatt Math
    American Scientist
    "Joyner does convey some of the excitement and adventure in picking up knowledge of group theory by trying to understand Rubik's Cube. Enthusiastic students will learn a lot of mathematics from this book."

    Choice
    "Joyner has collated all the Rubik lore and integrated it with a self-contained introduction to group theory that equals or, more likely, exceeds what is available in typical dedicated elementary texts."

    MAA Online
    "Adventures in Group Theory is a tour through the algebra of several 'permutation puzzles'... If you like puzzles, this is a somewhat fun book. If you like algebra, this is a fun book. If you like puzzles and algebra, this is a really fun book."

    Zentralblatt Math
    "The book begins with some lecture notes of discrete mathematics and group theory. These theoretical notions are very nicely applied to some practical problems, e.g.: Rubik's cube, Rubik-like puzzle groups, crossing the rubicon, God's algorithm and graphs. The work ends with a rich bibliography and index."

    Read More

    Sign In Create an Account
    Search Engine Error - Endeca File Not Found