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by James H. Weaver (Author), Lincoin Lapax (Author), Karo Maestro (Introduction by)
This beautiful, classic textbook is another excavation of a nearly forgotten work out of the mists of antiquity from Blue Collar Scholar in an inexpensive edition. Once a famous standard textbook on introductory differential and integral calculus for freshman and sophomore university students, it debuted in an age decades before anyone even imagined desktop PCs and IPhones. It is a book about mathematics and its applications for average, bright undergraduates intended not to only introduce carefully the basic concepts of calculus, but to do so in a manner where students actually have to understand these concepts without reliance upon technology or mnemonic tricks. All the standard topics of a single and multivariable calculus course are covered here: Functions, limits, derivatives, integrals, linear approximations and derivatives of higher orders, approximation, infinite series, partial derivatives and multiple integrals. Most standard applications to geometry and physics are covered as well: velocity, speed and acceleration in one and two dimensions, plane curves and arc length, finding local extrema of functions and their resulting graphs, surface areas, differential equations, force, work and much, much more. Since the book is pre-technological, students will have to learn to analyze problems using basic pre-calculus tools such as drawing detailed diagrams and solving inequalities. As a result, they will leave the course with a much greater command of both the subject itself and problem solving then they would receive in a modern course. However, while the book is careful and mathematically precise, it is intended for students with only a good background in high school mathematics: basic algebra, classical geometry and trigonometry. It doesn't require any knowledge or experience beyond this. All it really requires is that students are willing to work to absorb the concepts and develop analytical skills in problem solving, skills that were expected of all students back when it was written. The goal is to introduce average college students to mathematics for the first time in a non-traumatic way. Best of all, the book is available from BCS at an extraordinarily low price for a full blown calculus course. It is the hope that the text's inexpensiveness and the superior qualities of its' antique presentation will inspire both teachers and students of calculus to take the subject with the seriousness it demands.
