This updated and revised edition of David Joyner's entertaining -hands-on- tour of group theory and abstract algebra brings life, levity, and practicality to the topics through mathematical toys.

Joyner uses permutation puzzles such as the Rubik's Cube and its variants, the 15 puzzle, the Rainbow Masterball, Merlin's Machine, the Pyraminx, and the Skewb to explain the basics of introductory algebra and group theory. Subjects covered include the Cayley graphs, symmetries, isomorphisms, wreath products, free groups, and finite fields of group theory, as well as algebraic matrices,...

Using an original mode of presentation, and emphasizing the computational nature of the subject, this book explores a number of the unsolved problems that still exist in coding theory. A well-established, yet still highly relevant branch of mathematics, the theory of error-correcting codes is concerned with reliably transmitting data over a 'noisy' channel. Despite its frequent use in a range of contexts--the first close-up pictures of the surface of Mars, taken by the NASA spacecraft Mariner 9, were transmitted back to Earth using a Reed-Muller code--the subject still contains interesting...

The Use of Aquatics in Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Rehabilitation and Physical Conditioning represents a new generation of rehabilitation that is informative enough to be injury and sports specific. Dr. Kevin E. Wilk and Dr. David M. Joyner, along with noted...