How to Ace the Rest of Calculus: The Streetwise Guide, Including Multi-Variable Calculus (Paperback)

by Colin Adams (Author), Abigail Thompson (Author), Joel Hass (Author)
Key Phrases: parametric curves, basic comparison test, conservative vector field, Multiple Integrals, Infinite Series, Solution First (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"What a great book! It's short, it's funny, and it reveals the secrets of the calculus guild. What more could you want?"—Fernando Gouvea, Editor, MAA Online

"Congratulations! You made it through the first term of calculus. Now the fun really begins. This wonderful book will take you on a fantastic journey."—Mikhail Chkhenkeli, Williams College
-- Review

Review

"What a great book! It's short, it's funny, and it reveals the secrets of the calculus guild. What more could you want?"—Fernando Gouvea, Editor, MAA Online

"Congratulations! You made it through the first term of calculus. Now the fun really begins. This wonderful book will take you on a fantastic journey."—Mikhail Chkhenkeli, Williams College

See all Editorial Reviews

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Product Details Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: W. H. Freeman (May 1, 2001) Language: English ISBN-10: 0716741741 ISBN-13: 978-0716741749 Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.2 x 0.8 inches Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #36,515 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books) Popular in these categories: (What's this?) #20 in  Books > Science > Mathematics > Mathematical Analysis #59 in  Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Mathematics > Pure Mathematics > Calculus #60 in  Books > Science > Mathematics > Pure Mathematics > Calculus

Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

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Inside This Book (learn more)

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
parametric curves, basic comparison test, conservative vector field, positive term series, triple integral, square cubit, scalar triple product, series diverges

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Multiple Integrals, Infinite Series, Solution First, Rorschach Test Question, Riding the Roller Coaster, Example Find, Solution Notice, The Streetwise Guide, Solution Well, Second Derivative Test, Integral Test

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

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Customer Reviews

26 Reviews 5 star:  (20) 4 star:  (1) 3 star:  (2) 2 star:  (3) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.5 out of 5 stars (26 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 26 of 27 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars This book saved my GPA, February 3, 2004 By  M. Freeman "cold-shot" (East Coast, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This book has been more help to me than my Calculus textbook, and has made tricky concepts easy to understand. After getting a 51 & a 57 on my first Calculus II exams, I got desperate and purchased this book, as well as its prequel, "How To Ace Calculus." I read through both books all the way up to where I was in the course and had a revelation, Calculus finally made sense to me! I did extremely well on the next two exams and got the second best grade in the class on the final, ending up with a B in the course. Not too bad after getting a warning from the department in the middle of the semester, and it's all thanks to this book. It is an easy read, with very concise explanations and a dose of humor for good measure. 19 of 19 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Great Introduction, August 26, 2002 By  David Diez (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    This book is very strong (10 out of 10) for Calculus II, namely in the areas of indeterminant forms and improper integrals, polar coordinates, sequences and series, vectors, parametric coordinates, and graphing. It is pretty strong (9/10) in the areas of partial derivatives and integration of many variables. In vector fields, "How to Ace the Rest of Calculus" is sketchy. It covers divergence and curl well, as well as the basics about vector fields. However, the book does not do very well (6/10) in explaining the finer points in vector fields, such as Line and Surface Integrals, Green's Theorem, and Stoke's Theorems, in which more examples would be useful. If a problem arises in line or surface integrals (including Green's and Stoke's Theorems), don't look to this book to clear it up. I would recommend this book purely as the authors intended, an introduction--nothing more and nothing less. 19 of 20 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Calculus in Plain English, March 13, 2004 By  Chuck R. (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews This book is not a substitute for a textbook. By itself it seems like the explanations are too simple. This book comes in vary handy when I combine it with my class. Calculus II gets in to some very abstract concepts, and our instructor presents the material in very abstract terms - what I mean is while I am listening I am thinking that I would really enjoy this class if I was going for my masters in mathematics, but for right now, I am not grasping what is said. Our text explains everything in huge steps leaving wide gaps in the instruction. When I leave class I can turn to this book "How to Ace the Rest of Calculus" to break everything down to my level. I can get hold of the basic meaning and concepts of what is taught, and then I have a foundation to build on. If you are in Calculus II or III, and you go through the motions doing your homework without really knowing what is going on, this book can help. The book is easy to read, and I find it is best used right after you were taught the material. I find if I have a good foundation on the material in a way I understand, it is much easier to remember the concepts and apply the formulas. I study hard, but with the help of this book I am not left clueless at test time.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Great Review - Textbook Companion Should not replace your textbook, but is great for supplement. I decided to take multivariate calculus after not taking a math class for more than 3 years. Read more Published 11 months ago by NSP 5.0 out of 5 stars Great book. I, personally, love this series of books. You are not likely to learn calculus from it, but it is good for review (I recommend reading it before your class or before the lecture... Read more Published 17 months ago by Tony J. Ammirati 5.0 out of 5 stars Calculus now makes sense! I am graduate student in Pharmacy, but had to take Calculus as prerequisite for more complicated classes, like Differential Equation and Physical Chemistry. Read more Published 20 months ago by Thiago Carvalho 5.0 out of 5 stars Best Side-Text Available Students of calculus often find that they "don't understand" what the textbook is saying, what the teacher is saying, what the problem is saying/asking. Read more Published on May 25, 2007 by mathlady 5.0 out of 5 stars Saved Me in Calc II !!!! This book is great. Provides a solid foundation for the concepts in calc 2, explains the whys, and puts them all into perspective. Read more Published on May 9, 2007 by Jessica La Roque 4.0 out of 5 stars This is great for Calc II, III, and Engineering Mathematics. I am a mathematics teacher. I admire this textbook and its predecessor, and have recommended them both many times to my students. Read more Published on December 31, 2006 by Richard Frost 2.0 out of 5 stars not very helpful The book seems to spend more time making lame jokes than actually explaining anything. Also, there are not enough examples and no practice problems. Published on April 22, 2006 by erica c 5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshing You've never read a Vector Calc text like this before! With that being said, do not even read this book if you are looking for a serious introduction to Multivariable Calculus... Read more Published on October 4, 2005 by Aaron Rutledge 2.0 out of 5 stars Michael Feldman's "What Do You Know" invades Calculus I don't like this book. Primarily because of its being laden with forced humour that irritates me like hell. Read more Published on August 3, 2005 by J Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt 3.0 out of 5 stars doesn't really cover much The first book in the series helped me get down the basics of calculus. This second book does a decent job too but only covers 1/2 of the topics we are covering in lecture. Published on April 17, 2004 Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: W. H. Freeman (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0716741741
• ISBN-13: 978-0716741749
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #36,515 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #20 in	Books > Science > Mathematics > Mathematical Analysis
  #59 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Mathematics > Pure Mathematics > Calculus
  #60 in	Books > Science > Mathematics > Pure Mathematics > Calculus

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book saved my GPA, February 3, 2004

By	M. Freeman "cold-shot" (East Coast, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book has been more help to me than my Calculus textbook, and has made tricky concepts easy to understand. After getting a 51 & a 57 on my first Calculus II exams, I got desperate and purchased this book, as well as its prequel, "How To Ace Calculus." I read through both books all the way up to where I was in the course and had a revelation, Calculus finally made sense to me! I did extremely well on the next two exams and got the second best grade in the class on the final, ending up with a B in the course. Not too bad after getting a warning from the department in the middle of the semester, and it's all thanks to this book. It is an easy read, with very concise explanations and a dose of humor for good measure.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Introduction, August 26, 2002

By	David Diez (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This book is very strong (10 out of 10) for Calculus II, namely in the areas of indeterminant forms and improper integrals, polar coordinates, sequences and series, vectors, parametric coordinates, and graphing. It is pretty strong (9/10) in the areas of partial derivatives and integration of many variables. In vector fields, "How to Ace the Rest of Calculus" is sketchy. It covers divergence and curl well, as well as the basics about vector fields. However, the book does not do very well (6/10) in explaining the finer points in vector fields, such as Line and Surface Integrals, Green's Theorem, and Stoke's Theorems, in which more examples would be useful. If a problem arises in line or surface integrals (including Green's and Stoke's Theorems), don't look to this book to clear it up.

I would recommend this book purely as the authors intended, an introduction--nothing more and nothing less.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Calculus in Plain English, March 13, 2004

By	Chuck R. (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews

This book is not a substitute for a textbook. By itself it seems like the explanations are too simple. This book comes in vary handy when I combine it with my class.
Calculus II gets in to some very abstract concepts, and our instructor presents the material in very abstract terms - what I mean is while I am listening I am thinking that I would really enjoy this class if I was going for my masters in mathematics, but for right now, I am not grasping what is said. Our text explains everything in huge steps leaving wide gaps in the instruction. When I leave class I can turn to this book "How to Ace the Rest of Calculus" to break everything down to my level. I can get hold of the basic meaning and concepts of what is taught, and then I have a foundation to build on.
If you are in Calculus II or III, and you go through the motions doing your homework without really knowing what is going on, this book can help. The book is easy to read, and I find it is best used right after you were taught the material.
I find if I have a good foundation on the material in a way I understand, it is much easier to remember the concepts and apply the formulas. I study hard, but with the help of this book I am not left clueless at test time.