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Do mathematicians need books?

Have any mathematicians been given a reading list because i have not purchased any books!

Yeah I had a reading list of about 8 books (£200 or so) and then some more suggestions. Some of them helped with the problem sheets I was given and others just gave me a headache.

Reply 2

dieeiervonsatan

xxrachxx

Yeah I had a reading list of about 8 books (£200 or so) and then some more suggestions. Some of them helped with the problem sheets I was given and others just gave me a headache.

Oh my god don't buy any books! For a start, you won't use half of them. Secondly, any book you could ever want for your course will be in your college library. No need to buy anything, unless perhaps there are one or two really great books that you might want you own copy of, but other than that, don't bother!

Reply 3

Coth

How much you need books depends on how many lectures you turn up to and how good you are at making notes. I've found very little use for the books I brought, but the book grant from my college is so great that I still buy them anyway. They occasionally save me a trip to the libreary.

If you're a fresher just starting then the two books I'd still buy without a grant are:

Basic Linear Algebra - Blyth & Robertson (yellow paperback)
Introduction to Real Analysis - Bartle & Sherbert (green hardback)

They should see you through the best part of the pure maths in first year.

I'd think hard before buying any applied books, 'cause there aren't really any that fit the lectures very well and you'll end up spending £15-20 on a book with only one relevant chapter.

In particular, I wouldn't advise 'From calculus to Chaos' (the recomended book for dynamics), it's much more of a popular maths book than a useful text book, but will get plugged to you several times on account of having been written by the lecturer.

Reply 4

mikeyT

If your college library doesn't have the required books then you should be able to find a copy at the Hooke library which usually holds a number of copies of the main texts.

Reply 5

Popa Dom

xxrachxx

Yeah I had a reading list of about 8 books (£200 or so) and then some more suggestions. Some of them helped with the problem sheets I was given and others just gave me a headache.

Please dont tell me you've done all the problem sheets.. :shot:

Reply 6

RichE

Popa Dom

Please dont tell me you've done all the problem sheets.. :shot:

So how are you progressing Dom? :biggrin:

Reply 7

El Stevo

Popa Dom

I managed to get round to doing a whole 3 sheets (well I say I, when really I mean the TSR maths forum).. :frown:

If they ask me what I've done to prepare I may have to bring out the old interview bull****ting technique, cos its very close to nothing. I did do the first two weeks' calculus problem sheets and the first week's dynamics one though, so maybe they'll think I've done enough..*deludes self*

good effort, lol.

Reply 8

xxrachxx

Popa Dom

Please dont tell me you've done all the problem sheets.. :shot:

NO!! i managed about 7 whole sheets but whether the proofs are right or I've just made it up is another matter. I didnt even study matrices, induction or taylor series in my a levels so I had to learn all that first.

Reply 9

RichE

The answers to the sheets go up at the start of first week - so tutors (at some colleges) can collect the answers in before that.

Reply 10

xxrachxx

Popa Dom

Well I guess you had an excuse then :smile:

*pretends to remember what a taylor series is..*

Well the reading list didnt say they were compulsory, just said it would be a good idea. Thats enough ambiguity for me :biggrin:

(though it also said the answers would be put on in september, liars!)

And to the OP, I got 5 or so books, tried reading them, gave up very quickly (seriously, how can anyone actually read an analysis book without wanting to drill a hole in their head to let out the pain?) The one that looks useful though is the mathematical techniques (by Jordan and smith- OUP) one, might be a good reference.

Ive been using "advanced engineering mathematics" as a source. Which college are you going to dom?

Reply 11

Day Dream

RichE

The answers to the sheets go up at the start of first week - so tutors (at some colleges) can collect the answers in before that.

dammmmit, i best try a few then

Reply 12

xxrachxx

Popa Dom

Wadham, though my second interview was at New, really liked it there, the tutor was really nice (and they asked that really good question about the points at random in a triangle. I say really good cos I'd answered one similar for a bmo thing a week or so before :biggrin:

). Almost went terribly though, cos he saw I was doing M1-5 and thought I'd like a more mechanicsy interview until he saw the look of horror on my face and asked if I'd prefer pure.

I dont think it can compare to my interview **** up. At trinity college (first choice) I got really nervous because I thought I did badly on the test. Needless to say I'm going to new college

Reply 13

Coth

Popa Dom

I did do the first two weeks' calculus problem sheets and the first week's dynamics one though, so maybe they'll think I've done enough..*deludes self*

Urm... you guys do know that you aren't expected to have done any sheets untill after the lectures on them?

You'll probably have your first proper tutes in 2nd week*. Untill then, relax. Seriously.

*Disclaimer: obviously if you've been sent anything clearly marked "Vac Work" then do it.

Reply 14

Popa Dom

Coth

Yeah, that was the plan, do some of the term work now so I can extend my freshers' socialising/laziness a bit when I'm there. But the other problem sheets that I've not really bothered with were on teh reading list to do before we go up

Reply 15

AlfaTols

Sounds like you have a good plan.

Reply 16

WokSz

Ramanujan

Have any mathematicians been given a reading list because i have not purchased any books!

No, in fact many Oxford Mathematicians use a chisel and stones to make notes. Books are strictly reserved for the brighter students, such as those reading law.

:rolleyes:

Reply 17

klowne`

Basic Linear Algebra - Blyth & Robertson (yellow paperback)
Introduction to Real Analysis - Bartle & Sherbert (green hardback)

The only two maths books I have ever used in first year. I'm presuming the Basic Linear Algebra is the SUMS one. That's really good.
Bartle & Sherbert is basically the same as the lecture course on Analysis. It's probably the most mind-numbingly boring take on maths anyone could have dreamt up, but happens to be about a quarter of the first-year course :biggrin:

The only other useful one I've come across is the 'Numbers and Proofs' one on the reading list - especially if, like me, you didn't really concern yourself too much with proof at school and just learnt how to do the questions. It explains the stuff like 'A implies B is not the same as B implies A', proof by contradiction, that sort of thing.

I'm doing joint honours which means I don't do dynamics, geometry or probability and I've found the following books they told me to buy useless:
Roe - Elementary geometry (obviously)
the book the Calculus lecturer recommends (about 3 pages are relevant)

I wouldn't rely on college libraries for Maths books, they usually only have about one for every four students or something, but you only need a few and can buy those when you've arrived. What is useful to bring is the A-level formula book because, whilst I'm sure you wouldn't dream of using a result you hadn't personally derived from first principles, it's nice to know what's available.

Also, we had the 'practice' problem sheets asked to be handed in by Sunday night at the end of 0th week (all 11 of them for non-joint). This was told to us on Thursday, and no we hadn't done them, but if you have you'll save yourself some time.

Reply 18

Coth

AlfaTols

First, when will the first tutorial be (approximately)?
Secondly, define 'some'.

You'll probably meet your tutors arround thursday to arrange tutorial times etc. then you'll probably have one tute in first week on any holiday work, then propper tutes on new material will start in second at a rate of about 2 1/2 a week.

'Some' probably means as much as you can. They're not going to worry if there's something you can't do, but it's nice to show you've made an effort. My college took a rather different approach. Instead of 11 pages of A-Level work over the vac, we got 1 page which started "What are the real numbers?" (answer in the third year btw) and went on to:

"Let (a[n]) be a sequence of real numbers. Consider the following:
a) For all [epsilon] >0, there exists N such that......."

Needless to say, I don't think anyone got a single question right, and I think that was the point.