Praise for the First Edition
"Stahl offers the solvability of equations from the historicalpoint of view...one of the best books available to support aone-semester introduction to abstract algebra."
--CHOICE
Introductory Modern Algebra: A Historical Approach, SecondEdition presents the evolution of algebra and provides readerswith the opportunity to view modern algebra as a consistentmovement from concrete problems to abstract principles. With a fewpertinent excerpts from the writings of some of the greatestmathematicians, the Second Edition uniquely facilitates theunderstanding of pivotal algebraic ideas.
The author provides a clear, precise, and accessibleintroduction to modern algebra and also helps to develop a moreimmediate and well-grounded understanding of how equations lead topermutation groups and what those groups can inform us about suchdiverse items as multivariate functions and the 15-puzzle.Featuring new sections on topics such as group homomorphisms, theRSA algorithm, complex conjugation, the factorization of realpolynomials, and the fundamental theorem of algebra, the SecondEdition also includes:
* An in-depth explanation of the principles and practices ofmodern algebra in terms of the historical development from theRenaissance solution of the cubic equation to Dedekind'sideals
* Historical discussions integrated with the development ofmodern and abstract algebra in addition to many new explicitstatements of theorems, definitions, and terminology
* A new appendix on logic and proofs, sets, functions, andequivalence relations
* Over 1,000 new examples and multi-level exercises at the end ofeach section and chapter as well as updated chapter summaries
Introductory Modern Algebra: A Historical Approach, SecondEdition is an excellent textbook for upper-undergraduatecourses in modern and abstract algebra.