Scientific Computing with MATLAB and Octave

This textbook is an introduction to Scientific Computing, in which several numerical methods for the computer-based solution of certain classes of mathematical problems are illustrated. The authors show how to compute the zeros or the integrals of continuous functions, solve linear systems, approximate functions using polynomials and construct accurate approximations for the solution of ordinary and partial differential equations. To make the format concrete and appealing, the programming environments Matlab and Octave are adopted as faithful companions. The book contains the solutions to several problems posed in exercises and examples, often originating from important applications. At the end of each chapter, a specific section is devoted to subjects which were not addressed in the book and contains bibliographical references for a more comprehensive treatment of the material.

Autorentext

Alfio Quarteroni is Professor and Director of MATHICSE at EPFL, Lausanne (Switzerland), and Professor and Director of MOX at the Politecnico di Milano (Italy). Author of 20 books (mostly published with Springer), and of more than 200 papers, he is actually one of the strongest and reliable mathematicians in the world in the field of Modelling and SC. Fausto Saleri was Professor of Numerical Analysis at Politecnico di Milano (Italy) until 2007. Author of 11 books published with Springer, he worked on the approximation of partial differential equations, giving important contributions to the study of shallow water equations and to the development of scientific software libraries for finite elements. Paola Gervasio is Associate Professor of Numerical Analysis at University of Brescia (Italy) since 2005. Her research work focuses on the approximation of partial differential equations by spectral methods and domain decomposition techniques.

Klappentext

Preface to the First Edition This textbook is an introduction to Scienti?c Computing. We will illustrate several numerical methods for the computer solution of c- tain classes of mathematical problems that cannot be faced by paper and pencil. We will show how to compute the zeros or the integrals of continuous functions, solve linear systems, approximate functions by polynomials and construct accurate approximations for the solution of di?erential equations. With this aim, in Chapter 1 we will illustrate the rules of the game thatcomputersadoptwhenstoringandoperatingwith realandcomplex numbers, vectors and matrices. In order to make our presentation concrete and appealing we will 1 adopt the programming environment MATLAB as a faithful c- panion. We will gradually discover its principal commands, statements and constructs. We will show how to execute all the algorithms that we introduce throughout the book. This will enable us to furnish an - mediate quantitative assessment of their theoretical properties such as stability, accuracy and complexity. We will solve several problems that will be raisedthrough exercises and examples, often stemming from s- ci?c applications.

Inhalt

What can't be ignored.- Nonlinear equations.- Approximation of functions and data.- Numerical differentiation and integration.- Linear systems.- Eigenvalues and eigenvectors.- Ordinary differential equations.- Numerical approximation of boundary-value problems.- Solutions of the exercises.