Customer Reviews

An Introduction to Algebraic Structures (Dover Books on Mathematics)

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3 star:		(1)
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Landin's book is a great introduction to abstract algebra. It is written at about a 3rd year undergraduate level, so it should be easily accessible to interested readers. Mathematicians will probably find this book a bit easy, but for those of use who are not mathematicians by training, the ease of this book is welcome. The topics covered are set theory, the number systems, groups, group homomorphisms, rings, and polynomial rings. Landin provides plenty of definitions, theorems and proofs, but he is kind enough to also build intuition about the theory with incisive prose and illustrative examples. It is also great for self study, but does not include solutions to the problems. However Landin gives the reader the equipment necessary to solve the problems with little difficulty. Overall I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning the basics of abstract algebra.

I found this book pretty good. I used to think that algebra was what came before calculus. Then I took a class about mathematical logic and I realized I was missing something. I think this book does a good job of explaining what modern/abstract algebra is about. I thought the sequence of topics helped me "get it", even though it does progress slowly. I'm about 2/3's of the way through and so far I think it has served it's purpose of introducing me to the topic of abstract algebra.

I bought this book because I wanted to explore entry into abstract algebra. I don't consider this book a very good introduction to any area of math. This book is very heavy on the definitions, theorems and proofs. While the examples are good, they are little raisins amidst the hard tack that comprises the meat of the book.

This book might be great for a math person who just needs the facts or someone who wants a concise listing of pertinent information, but if you want to learn the subject, there's surely something more engaging and less terse. It is not difficult, but it does not motivate me to read the 8th type of group in a 2-page section much like the last one. I don't use a dictionary as my textbook when learning French, but that might be all someone else needs.

So some people might find it useful, but I didn't. Maybe I'll have a use for it one day.