Applications of Group Theory to Combinatorics contains 11 survey papers from international experts in combinatorics, group theory and combinatorial topology. The contributions cover topics from quite a diverse spectrum, such as design theory, Belyi functions, group theory, transitive graphs, regular maps, and Hurwitz problems, and present the state

Peter Dembowski was born in Berlin on April 1, 1928. After studying mathematics at the University of Frankfurt of Main, he pursued his graduate studies at Brown Unviersity and the University of Illinois, mainly with R. Baer. Dembowski returned to Frankfurt in 1956. Shortly before his premature death in January 1971, he had been appointed to a chair at the University of Tuebingen. Dembowski taught at the universities of Frankfurt and Tuebingen and - as visiting Professor - in London (Queen Mary College), Rome, and Madison, WI. Dembowski's chief research interest lay in the connections between finite geometries and group theory. His book "Finite Geometries" brought together essentially all that was known at that time about finite geometrical structures, including key results of the author, in a unified and structured perspective. This book became a standard reference as soon as it appeared in 1968. It influenced the expansion of combinatorial geometric research, and left its trace also in neighbouring areas.

Combinatorics has come of age. It had its beginnings in a number of puzzles which have still not lost their charm. Among these are EULER'S problem of the 36 officers and the KONIGSBERG bridge problem, BACHET's problem of the weights, and the Reverend T.P. KIRKMAN'S problem of the schoolgirls. Many of the topics treated in ROUSE BALL'S Recreational Mathe matics belong to combinatorial theory. All of this has now changed. The solution of the puzzles has led to a large and sophisticated theory with many complex ramifications. And it seems probable that the four color problem will only be solved in terms of as yet undiscovered deep results in graph theory. Combinatorics and the theory of numbers have much in common. In both theories there are many prob lems which are easy to state in terms understandable by the layman, but whose solution depends on complicated and abstruse methods. And there are now interconnections between these theories in terms of which each enriches the other. Combinatorics includes a diversity of topics which do however have interrelations in superficially unexpected ways. The instructional lectures included in these proceedings have been divided into six major areas: 1. Theory of designs; 2. Graph theory; 3. Combinatorial group theory; 4. Finite geometry; 5. Foundations, partitions and combinatorial geometry; 6. Coding theory. They are designed to give an overview of the classical foundations of the subjects treated and also some indication of the present frontiers of research.

This volume forms a valuable source of information on recent developments in research in combinatorics, with special regard to the geometric point of view. Topics covered include: finite geometries (arcs, caps, special varieties in a Galois space; generalized quadrangles; Benz planes; foundation of geometry), partial geometries, Buekenhout geometries, transitive permutation sets, flat-transitive geometries, design theory, finite groups, near-rings and semifields, MV-algebras, coding theory, cryptography and graph theory in its geometric and design aspects.

This volume contains the proceedings of the 10th International Congress on Finite Fields and their Applications (Fq 10), held July 11-15, 2011, in Ghent, Belgium. Research on finite fields and their practical applications continues to flourish. This volume's topics, which include finite geometry, finite semifields, bent functions, polynomial theory, designs, and function fields, show the variety of research in this area and prove the tremendous importance of finite field theory.

This second volume of Featured Reviews makes available special detailed reviews of some of the most important mathematical articles and books published from 1997 through 1999. Also included are excellent reviews of several classic books and articles published prior to 1970. Among those reviews, for example, are the following: Homological Algebra by Henri Cartan and Samuel Eilenberg, reviewed by G. Hochschild; Faisceaux algebriques coherents by Jean-Pierre Serre, reviewed by C. Chevalley; and On the Theory of General Partial Differential Operators by Lars Hormander, reviewed by J. L. Lions. In particular, those seeking information on current developments outside their own area of expertise will find the volume very useful. By identifying some of the best publications, papers, and books that have had or are expected to have a significant impact in applied and pure mathematics, this volume will serve as a comprehensive guide to important new research across all fields covered by MR.