Reverse Mathematics: Proofs from the Inside Out

Description

This book presents reverse mathematics to a general mathematical audience for the first time. Reverse mathematics is a new field that answers some old questions. In the two thousand years that mathematicians have been deriving theorems from axioms, it has often been asked: which axioms are needed to prove a given theorem? Only in the last two hundr

John Stillwell is professor of mathematics at the University of San Francisco and an affiliate of the School of Mathematical Sciences at Monash University, Australia. His many books include Mathematics and Its History and Elements of Mathematics: From Euclid to Godel (Princeton).

"If you are not familiar with this relatively new research about the foundations and and minimal assumptions needed to develop the massive mathematical structure, this provides a good informal guideline."---Adhemar Bultheel, European Mathematical Society "John Stillwell's book gives a clear and engaging introduction to an intriguing area of mathematics: reverse mathematics."---Martyn Prigmore, Mathematics Today "The book is rich in examples and historical perspectives, is clearly argued and immaculately presented."---Graham Hoare, Mathematical Gazette