This book rigorously deals with the abstract theory and, at the same time, devotes considerable space to the numerical and computational aspects of linear algebra. It features a large number of thumbnail portraits of researchers who have contributed to the development of linear algebra as we know it today and also includes over 1,000 exercises, many of which are very challenging. The book can be used as a self-study guide; a textbook for a course in advanced linear algebra, either at the upper-class undergraduate level or at the first-year graduate level; or as a reference book.

Building on the author's previous edition on the subject (Introduction to Linear Algebra, Jones & Bartlett, 1996), this book offers a refreshingly concise text suitable for a standard course in linear algebra, presenting a carefully selected array of essential topics that can be thoroughly covered in a single semester. Although the exposition generally falls in line with the material recommended by the Linear Algebra Curriculum Study Group, it notably deviates in providing an early emphasis on the geometric foundations of linear algebra. This gives students a more intuitive understanding of the subject and enables an easier grasp of more abstract concepts covered later in the course. The focus throughout is rooted in the mathematical fundamentals, but the text also investigates a number of interesting applications, including a section on computer graphics, a chapter on numerical methods, and many exercises and examples using MATLAB. Meanwhile, many visuals and problems (a complete solutions manual is available to instructors) are included to enhance and reinforce understanding throughout the book. Brief yet precise and rigorous, this work is an ideal choice for a one-semester course in linear algebra targeted primarily at math or physics majors. It is a valuable tool for any professor who teaches the subject.

This text for a second course in linear algebra, aimed at math majors and graduates, adopts a novel approach by banishing determinants to the end of the book and focusing on understanding the structure of linear operators on vector spaces. The author has taken unusual care to motivate concepts and to simplify proofs. For example, the book presents - without having defined determinants - a clean proof that every linear operator on a finite-dimensional complex vector space has an eigenvalue. The book starts by discussing vector spaces, linear independence, span, basics, and dimension. Students are introduced to inner-product spaces in the first half of the book and shortly thereafter to the finite- dimensional spectral theorem. A variety of interesting exercises in each chapter helps students understand and manipulate the objects of linear algebra. This second edition features new chapters on diagonal matrices, on linear functionals and adjoints, and on the spectral theorem; some sections, such as those on self-adjoint and normal operators, have been entirely rewritten; and hundreds of minor improvements have been made throughout the text.

This book is an extensively revised version of my textbook "¥esodot HaAlgebra HaLiniarit" (The Foundations of Linear Algebra) used at many universities in Israel. It is designed for a comprehensive one-year course in linear algebra (112 lecture hours) for mathematics majors. Therefore, I assume that the student already has a certain amount of mathematical background - including set theory, mathematical induction, basic analytic geometry, and elementary calculus - as wellas a modicum of mathematical sophistication. My intention is to provide not only a solid basis in the abstract theory of linear algebra, but also to provide examples of the application of this theory to other branches ofmathematics and computer science. Thus, for example, the introduction of finite fields is dictated by the needs of students studying algebraic coding theory as an immediate followup to their linear algebra studies. Many of the students studying linear algebra either are familiar with the care and feeding of computers before they begin their studies or are simultaneously en rolled in an introductory computer science course. Therefore, consideration of the more computational aspects of linear algebra - such as the solution of systems of linear equations and the calculation of eigenvalues - is delayed until all students are assumed able to write computer programs for this purpose. Beginning with Chap ter VII, there is an implicit assumption that the student has access to a personal computer and knows how to use it.

Linear algebra is a living, active branch of mathematics which is central to almost all other areas of mathematics, both pure and applied, as well as to computer science, to the physical, biological, and social sciences, and to engineering. It encompasses an extensive corpus of theoretical results as well as a large and rapidly-growing body of computational techniques. Unfortunately, in the past decade, the content of linear algebra courses required to complete an undergraduate degree in mathematics has been depleted to the extent that they fail to provide a sufficient theoretical or computational background. Students are not only less able to formulate or even follow mathematical proofs, they are also less able to understand the mathematics of the numerical algorithms they need for applications. Certainly, the material presented in the average undergraduate course is insufficient for graduate study. This book is intended to fill the gap which has developed by providing enough theoretical and computational material to allow the advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate student to overcome this deficiency and be able to work independently or in advanced courses. The book is intended to be used either as a self-study guide, a textbook for a course in advanced linear algebra, or as a reference book. It is also designed to prepare a student for the linear algebra portion of prelim exams or PhD qualifying exams. The volume is self-contained to the extent that it does not assume any previous formal knowledge of linear algebra, though the reader is assumed to have been exposed, at least informally, to some of the basic ideas and techniques, such as manipulation of small matrices and the solution of small systems of linear equations over the real numbers. More importantly, it assumes a seriousness of purpose, considerable motivation, and a modicum of mathematical sophistication on the part of the reader. In the latest edition, new major theorems have been added, as well as many new examples. There are over 130 additional exercises and many of the previous exercises have been revised or rewritten. In addition, a large number of additional biographical notes and thumbnail portraits of mathematicians have been included.