Open Text Book

Vector Calculus

Michael Corral of Schoolcraft College has just let us know about his Vector Calculus which is available as a PDF under the GFDL. Its source will be available soon.

The book description says:

This is a text on elementary multivariable calculus, designed for students who have completed courses in single-variable calculus. The traditional topics are covered: basic vector algebra; lines, planes and surfaces; vector-valued functions; functions of 2 or 3 variables; partial derivatives; optimization; multiple integrals; line and surface integrals.

The book also includes discussion of numerical methods: Newton’s method for optimization, and the Monte Carlo method for evaluating multiple integrals. There is a section dealing with applications to probability. Appendices include a proof of the right-hand rule for the cross product, and a short tutorial on using Gnuplot for graphing functions of 2 variables.

There are 420 exercises in the book. Answers to selected exercises are included.

Update 2008-05-06: The LaTeX source is now available!

2 comments April 30th, 2008

Reasonable Basic Algebra

Reasonable Basic Algebra by Alain Schremmer is available under the GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL). Chapters are available for download separately, or as a single PDF (18.4mb). Alain also has other texts in development at his site, Free Math Texts.

Update 2008-04-16: After contacting Alain, he’s told me that the source material for the textbook is also available. He also said its worth noting that the text is part of a “package including homeworks, tests, exams, etc.” and that it is “a standalone version of part of what is to be a three semester volume text, starting with arithmetic and ending with differential calculus”. We’ll certainly look forward to seeing this develop!

1 comment April 8th, 2008