A Friendly Guide to Wavelets [Hardcover]

Gerald Kaiser (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0817637117 | ISBN-13: 978-0817637118 | Publication Date: August 1, 1994 | Edition: 1

This volume is designed as a textbook for an introductory course on wavelet analysis and time-frequency analysis aimed at graduate students or advanced undergraduates in science and engineering. It can also be used as a self-study or reference book by practicing researchers in signal analysis and related areas. Since the expected audience is not presumed to have a high level of mathematical background, much of the needed analytical machinery is developed from the beginning. The only prerequisites for the first eight chapters are matrix theory, Fourier series, and Fourier integral transforms. Each of these chapters ends with a set of straightforward exercises designed to drive home the concepts just covered, and the many graphics should further facilitate absorption.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I wholeheartedly recommend this book for a solid and friendly introduction to wavelets, for anyone who is comfortable with the mathematics required of undergraduate electrical engineers. The book's appeal is that it covers all the fundamental concepts of wavelets in an elegant, straightforward way. It offers truly enjoyable (friendly!) mathematical exposition that is rich in intuitive explanations, as well as clean, direct, and clear in its theoretical developments. I found Kaiser's straightforward end-of-chapter exercises excellent...Kaiser has written an excellent introduction to the fundamental concepts of wavelets. For a book of its length and purpose, I think it should be essentially unbeatable for a long time."

—Proceedings of the IEEE

"It is well produced and certainly readable...This material should present no difficulty for fourth-year undergraduates...It also will be useful to advanced workers in that it presents a different approach to wavelet theory from the usual one."

—Computing Reviews

"I found this to be an excellent book. It is eminently more readable than the books...which might be considered the principal alternatives for textbooks on wavelets."

—Physics Today

"This volume is probably the most gentle introduction to wavelet theory on the market. As such, it responds to a significant need. The intended audience will profit from the motivation and common-sense explanations in the text. Ultimately, it may lead many readers, who may not otherwise have been able to do so, to go further into wavelet theory, Fourier analysis, and signal processing."

—SIAM Review

"The first half of the book is appropriately named. It is a well-written, nicely organized exposition...a welcome addition to the literature. The second part of the book introduces the concept of electromagnetic wavelets...This theory promises to have many other applications and could well lead to new ways of studying these topics. This book has a number of unique features which...makes it particularly valuable for newcomers to the field."

—Mathematical Reviews

"The book is indeed what its title promises: A friendly guide to wavelets...In short, Kaiser's book is excellently written and can be considered as one of the best textbooks on this topic presently available...it will enjoy wide distribution among mathematicians and physicists interested in wavelet analysis."

—Internationale Mathematische Nachrichten

"I loved 'A Friendly Guide to Wavelets'.  I advised it to my graduate students."

—Yves Meyer, Université Paris-Dauphine

From the Back Cover

I wholeheartedly recommend this book for a solid and friendly introduction to wavelets, for anyone who is comfortable with the mathematics required of undergraduate electrical engineers. The book's appeal is that it covers all the fundamental concepts of wavelets in an elegant, straightforward way. It offers truly enjoyable (friendly!) mathematical exposition that is rich in intuitive explanations, as well as clean, direct, and clear in its theoretical developments. I found Kaiser's straightforward end-of-chapter exercises excellent...Kaiser has written an excellent introduction to the fundamental concepts of wavelets. For a book of its length and purpose, I think it should be essentially unbeatable for a long time.

—Proceedings of the IEEE

It is well produced and certainly readable...This material should present no difficulty for fourth-year undergraduates...It also will be useful to advanced workers in that it presents a different approach to wavelet theory from the usual one.

—Computing Reviews

I found this to be an excellent book. It is eminently more readable than the books...which might be considered the principal alternatives for textbooks on wavelets.

—Physics Today

This volume is probably the most gentle introduction to wavelet theory on the market. As such, it responds to a significant need. The intended audience will profit from the motivation and common-sense explanations in the text. Ultimately, it may lead many readers, who may not otherwise have been able to do so, to go further into wavelet theory, Fourier analysis, and signal processing.

—SIAM Review

The first half of the book is appropriately named. It is a well-written, nicely organized exposition...a welcome addition to the literature. The second part of the book introduces the concept of electromagnetic wavelets...This theory promises to have many other applications and could well lead to new ways of studying these topics. This book has a number of unique features which...makes it particularly valuable for newcomers to the field.

—Mathematical Reviews

The book is indeed what its title promises: A friendly guide to wavelets...In short, Kaiser's book is excellently written and can be considered as one of the best textbooks on this topic presently available...it will enjoy wide distribution among mathematicians and physicists interested in wavelet analysis.

—Internationale Mathematische Nachrichten

For additional review samples and related material, please visit the author's website at www.wavelets.com.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: Birkhäuser Boston; 1 edition (August 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0817637117
• ISBN-13: 978-0817637118
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 7.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #707,460 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding! Written for broad audience of potential users!, March 16, 1999

By 

Norman Bleistein "tinkerer" (Denver, Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Friendly Guide to Wavelets (Hardcover)

I bought this book when I was particularly interested in continuous wavelet transforms. I found myself flying through the exposition. I felt confident about the knowledge I was acquiring and I was quickly able to apply it. Although I come at this book as a mathematician, I think that it is ideal for engineers and physical scientists who usually have far better grounding in signal processing and related issues in Fourier analysis than do mathematicians. I have recommended this book to students, friends and colleagues with high praise.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very thorough treatment, but *not* a beginner's text., July 18, 2003

By 

Me "Me" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Friendly Guide to Wavelets (Hardcover)

A classic text *but* look at the graph on the cover very carefully because it is the only one you'll get until you reach the last chapters of the book. In terms of the presentation of the basic theorems and equations, the text is excellent ... BUT ... there is precious little to guide a student to an intuitive and practical understanding of the theory. In practice, one looks at the graphical representations of wavelets quite often -- just like the ones used for Fourier analysis (can you imagine your first Fourier analysis class with no graphs of convolution, impulses, etc? Wavelets *are* Fourier analysis taken a step further in order to handle time varying systems. Graphs are essential to the uninitiated.) In fact, it is helpful to think of wavelets (i.e., wavelet packet decompositions) as a Fourier spectrum with an additional time axis added so you can see how the spectrum changes over time. The "wavelet" method simply optimizes the resolution used at different frequencies. True, it is a little more complicated than that, but it is easy to lose sight of the simple elegance of the topic when so many equations are flung at you without intuitive context. The topic could be presented MUCH better, so don't worry that it takes a long time to get through this material. Read other basic wavelet texts first and then *definitely* come back to this one. You will appreciate its otherwise *excellent* presentation much more and the principles will be easier to put into actual practice rather than mere academic conjecture.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Solid mathematical foundation, but not "friendly"., August 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Friendly Guide to Wavelets (Hardcover)

This book provides a solid mathematical foundation for wavelets, however the title (no doubt responsible for selling a lot of books) is extremely misleading. This book is "friendly" only if you have recently passed your Ph.D. qualifying exam in mathematical analysis. Nevertheless, advanced readers looking for a good overview of wavelets will find that material here.