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This introductory book is organized around a collection of simple experiments which the reader can perform at home or in a classroom setting. Methods for physically exploring the intrinsic geometry of commonplace curved objects (such as bowls, balls and watermelons) are described. The concepts of Gaussian curvature, parallel transport, and geodesics are treated.
Expert treatment introduces semi-Riemannian geometry and its principal physical application, Einstein's theory of general relativity, using the Cartan exterior calculus as a principal tool. Prerequisites include linear algebra and advanced calculus. 2012 edition.
This book introduces advanced undergraduates to Riemannian geometry and mathematical general relativity. The overall strategy of the book is to explain the concept of curvature via the Jacobi equation which, through discussion of tidal forces, further helps motivate the Einstein field equations. After addressing concepts in geometry such as metrics, covariant differentiation, tensor calculus and curvature, the book explains the mathematical framework for both special and general relativity. Relativistic concepts discussed include (initial value formulation of) the Einstein equations, stress-energy tensor, Schwarzschild space-time, ADM mass and geodesic incompleteness. The concluding chapters of the book introduce the reader to geometric analysis: original results of the author and her undergraduate student collaborators illustrate how methods of analysis and differential equations are used in addressing questions from geometry and relativity. The book is mostly self-contained and the reader is only expected to have a solid foundation in multivariable and vector calculus and linear algebra. The material in this book was first developed for the 2013 summer program in geometric analysis at the Park City Math Institute, and was recently modified and expanded to reflect the author's experience of teaching mathematical general relativity to advanced undergraduates at Lewis & Clark College.
Central topics covered include curves, surfaces, geodesics, intrinsic geometry, and the Alexandrov global angle comparision theorem Many nontrivial and original problems (some with hints and solutions) Standard theoretical material is combined with more difficult theorems and complex problems, while maintaining a clear distinction between the two levels
The mean curvature of a surface is an extrinsic parameter measuring how the surface is curved in the three-dimensional space. A surface whose mean curvature is zero at each point is a minimal surface, and it is known that such surfaces are models for soap film. There is a rich and well-known theory of minimal surfaces. A surface whose mean curvature is constant but nonzero is obtained when we try to minimize the area of a closed surface without changing the volume it encloses. An easy example of a surface of constant mean curvature is the sphere. A nontrivial example is provided by the constant curvature torus, whose discovery in 1984 gave a powerful incentive for studying such surfaces. Later, many examples of constant mean curvature surfaces were discovered using various methods of analysis, differential geometry, and differential equations. It is now becoming clear that there is a rich theory of surfaces of constant mean curvature. In this book, the author presents numerous examples of constant mean curvature surfaces and techniques for studying them. Many finely rendered figures illustrate the results and allow the reader to visualize and better understand these beautiful objects. The book is suitable for advanced undergraduates, graduate students and research mathematicians interested in analysis and differential geometry.
The book provides an introduction to Differential Geometry of Curves and Surfaces. The theory of curves starts with a discussion of possible definitions of the concept of curve, proving in particular the classification of 1-dimensional manifolds. We then present the classical local theory of parametrized plane and space curves (curves in n-dimensional space are discussed in the complementary material): curvature, torsion, Frenet’s formulas and the fundamental theorem of the local theory of curves. Then, after a self-contained presentation of degree theory for continuous self-maps of the circumference, we study the global theory of plane curves, introducing winding and rotation numbers, and proving the Jordan curve theorem for curves of class C2, and Hopf theorem on the rotation number of closed simple curves. The local theory of surfaces begins with a comparison of the concept of parametrized (i.e., immersed) surface with the concept of regular (i.e., embedded) surface. We then develop the basic differential geometry of surfaces in R3: definitions, examples, differentiable maps and functions, tangent vectors (presented both as vectors tangent to curves in the surface and as derivations on germs of differentiable functions; we shall consistently use both approaches in the whole book) and orientation. Next we study the several notions of curvature on a surface, stressing both the geometrical meaning of the objects introduced and the algebraic/analytical methods needed to study them via the Gauss map, up to the proof of Gauss’ Teorema Egregium. Then we introduce vector fields on a surface (flow, first integrals, integral curves) and geodesics (definition, basic properties, geodesic curvature, and, in the complementary material, a full proof of minimizing properties of geodesics and of the Hopf-Rinow theorem for surfaces). Then we shall present a proof of the celebrated Gauss-Bonnet theorem, both in its local and in its global form, using basic properties (fully proved in the complementary material) of triangulations of surfaces. As an application, we shall prove the Poincaré-Hopf theorem on zeroes of vector fields. Finally, the last chapter will be devoted to several important results on the global theory of surfaces, like for instance the characterization of surfaces with constant Gaussian curvature, and the orientability of compact surfaces in R3.
Extrinsic geometric flows are characterized by a submanifold evolving in an ambient space with velocity determined by its extrinsic curvature. The goal of this book is to give an extensive introduction to a few of the most prominent extrinsic flows, namely, the curve shortening flow, the mean curvature flow, the Gauß curvature flow, the inverse-mean curvature flow, and fully nonlinear flows of mean curvature and inverse-mean curvature type. The authors highlight techniques and behaviors that frequently arise in the study of these (and other) flows. To illustrate the broad applicability of the techniques developed, they also consider general classes of fully nonlinear curvature flows. The book is written at the level of a graduate student who has had a basic course in differential geometry and has some familiarity with partial differential equations. It is intended also to be useful as a reference for specialists. In general, the authors provide detailed proofs, although for some more specialized results they may only present the main ideas; in such cases, they provide references for complete proofs. A brief survey of additional topics, with extensive references, can be found in the notes and commentary at the end of each chapter.
The problem of robotic and virtual interaction with physical objects has been the subject of research for many years in both the robotic manipulation and haptics communities. Both communities have focused much attention on human touch-based perception and manipulation, modelling contact between real or virtual hands and objects, or mechanism design. However, as a whole, these problems have not yet been addressed from a unified perspective. This edited book is the outcome of a well-attended workshop which brought together leading scholars from various branches of the robotics, virtual-reality, and human studies communities during the 2004 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation. It covers some of the most challenging problems on the forefront of today’s research on physical interaction with real and virtual objects, with special emphasis on modelling contacts between objects, grasp planning algorithms, haptic perception, and advanced design of hands, devices and interfaces.
Starting from the foundations, the author presents an almost entirely self-contained treatment of differentiable spaces of nonpositive curvature, focusing on the symmetric spaces in which every geodesic lies in a flat Euclidean space of dimension at least two. The book builds to a discussion of the Mostow Rigidity Theorem and its generalizations, and concludes by exploring the relationship in nonpositively curved spaces between geometric and algebraic properties of the fundamental group. This introduction to the geometry of symmetric spaces of non-compact type will serve as an excellent guide for graduate students new to the material, and will also be a useful reference text for mathematicians already familiar with the subject.
Offers a focused point of view on the differential geometry of curves and surfaces. This monograph treats the Gauss - Bonnet theorem and discusses the Euler characteristic. It also covers Alexandrov's theorem on embedded compact surfaces in R3 with constant mean curvature.