The Higher Arithmetic: An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers [Paperback]

H. Davenport (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521634466 | ISBN-13: 978-0521634465 | Publication Date: August 21, 2008 | Edition: 7

Updated in a seventh edition, The Higher Arithmetic introduces concepts and theorems in a way that does not require the reader to have an in-depth knowledge of the theory of numbers, and also touches on matters of deep mathematical significance. This new edition includes state of the art material on the use of computers in number theory, as well as taking full account of the proving of Fermat's last theorem.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Although this book is not written as a textbook but rather as a work for the general reader, it could certainly be used as a textbook for an undergraduate course in number theory and, in the reviewer's opinion, is far superior for this purpose to any other book in English." Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society

"It is a pleasant experience to see a book on Number theory in its seventh edition." Monatshefte fur Mathematik

Book Description

Updated in a seventh edition The Higher Arithmetic introduces concepts and theorems in a way that does not require the reader to have an in depth knowledge of the theory of numbers, but also touches upon matters of deep mathematical significance.'Although this book is not written as a textbook but rather as a work for the general reader, it could certainly be used as a textbook for an undergraduate course in number theory and, in the reviewers opinion, is far superior for this purpose to any other book in English'--From a review of the first edition in Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 241 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 7 edition (August 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521634466
• ISBN-13: 978-0521634465
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,699,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a MUST BUY if you want to learn Number Theory!, June 7, 2000

By 

Anthony Varilly - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Higher Arithmetic: An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers (Paperback)

This book is an AMAZING introduction to the Theory of Numbers. It assumes no previous exposure to the subject, or any technical mathematical knowledge for that matter. Its prose is lucid and the style appealing. Davenport chose NOT to write a lemma-theorem-proof kind of book, and the result is a marvelous, eminently readable introduction to the subject. Its wonderful to read a book where good prose is used to appropiately substitute a massive collection of uninviting symbols. I've also been reading other books on Number Theory, such as Hardy & Wright, but none are as clear as this one.

I found the chapter on quadratic residues (which includes the reciprocity law) to be especially well written. The section on computers and number theory is excelent as well. A concise and coherent discussion of crytography and the RSA system is included here. The organization of the book's chapters is fantastic. Each chapter builds up on results proven in the previous ones, showing well the connections between the different aspects of Number Theory. The exercises of the book range from simple to challenging, but are all accesible to someone willing to put effort into them.

This would be an excelent source for learning number theory for mathematical competition purposes, such as the ASHME, AIME, USAMO, and even for the International Mathematical Olympiad. The book contains much more than what is needed for these competitions, but the olympiad/contest reader will benefit greatly from a study of Davenport's work.

The book can certainly be used for an undergraduate course in Number Theory, though it might need supplementary materials, to cover a semester's worth of work. I know the book has been used in the past in previous editions as the main text for Math 124: Number Theory at Harvard University.

I would also recommend this book to anyone interested in acquanting themselves with Number Theory.

Awesome! There is simply no other word that describes The Higher Arithmetic.

21 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good book, but if you have the money, there are better, July 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Higher Arithmetic: An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers (Paperback)

Well, this is definitely a very good introduction to number theory. The author provides clear, readable proofs of all the most basic theorems on topics such as congruences, sums of squares, etc. He explains things quite well. However, despite costing almost 2.5 times as much, I would recommend Hardy and Wright's book An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers more highly than Davenport's book. Seriously, although it may seem good that Davenport doesn't require a knowledge of calculus as a prerequisite for his book (which Hardy DOES require), one probably shouldn't learn number theory until one has a good backrground on topics ranging from improper integrals to infinite series. Because Davenport does not require calculus as a prerequisite, he neglects HUGE aspects of what could actually be considered BASIC number theory: namely, the basic analytic aspects (such as Tchebycheff's results on the Prime Number Theorem) and the additive theory (i.e. partitions and such, as well as the basics of the generalized theory surrounding Waring's problem for high powers of integers). So, my recommendation is, wait until you know integral calculus and the theory of infinite series BEFORE buying a book on number theory, and then buy Hardy and Wright's book rather than this one.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic that is still valuable, January 1, 2012

By 

Dave the Math Guy - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Higher Arithmetic: An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers (Paperback)

The principal virtue of this text is that it can be taken up by readers with no more than ordinary high school level mathematical maturity yet it can aptly serve as the text for an undergraduate level first course in Number Theory. It is a model of clear and concise mathematical enunciation.