Chaos in discrete dynamical systems
Subtitle: a visual introduction in 2 dimensions
By: Ralph H. Abraham, Laura Gardini, Christian Mira ; with 153 illustrations made with the assistance of Scott Hotton ; companion CD-ROM by Ronald J. Record and Ralph H. Abraham.
Contributors: Gardini, L.; Mira, C.
Publisher: Springer/TELOS
Published: 1997
Place of publication: Santa Clara, Calif
Language: eng
Number of pages: 246
Subjects: Differentiable dynamical systems; Chaotic behavior in systems
Description: Chaos in Discrete Dynamical Systems covers topics in chaos theory, bifurcations and critical curves in a visual, 2-dimensional context. This unique publication is the culmination of a three-year experiment in electronic publishing. As such, it is a package comprised of three carefully intertwined components: a printed book, a cross-platform CD-ROM and a website.

The extensively illustrated book is the primary component. The CD-ROM is mainly devoted to presenting 12 computer graphic animations in full color, all tied directly into the content of the book. The user interface to the CD-ROM is made in the style of the world wide web. It is designed to integrate seamlessly with the web site dedicated to this project. This site is maintained by the Visual Math Institute, UC Santa Cruz: http://www.vismath.org/chaos.

Motivation for this ambitious package is the conviction that this style of electronic publishing is the ideal medium for mathematical communication. This is especially true for the branch of mathematics known as dynamical systems theory. The essence of this communicative style is the dynapic technique, in which a drawing is developed stroke-by-stroke, along with a carefully coordinated spoken commentary. This is the traditional method used by most mathematicians when speaking among themselves.

Visual Math!
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 235-243) and index.
System requirements for accompanying computer disc: IBM-compatible computer running DOS or Windows; UNIX platform; Macintosh computers using file exchange utility.