The Nature of Mathematical Modeling

• Preface; 1. Introduction; Part I. Analytical Models: 2. Ordinary differential and difference equations; 3. Partial differential equations; 4. Variational principles; 5. Random systems; Part II. Numerical Models: 6. Finite differences: ordinary difference equations; 7. Finite differences: partial differential equations; 8. Finite elements; 9. Cellular automata and lattice gases; Part III. Observational Models: 10. Function fitting; 11. Transforms; 12. Architectures; 13. Optimization and search; 14. Clustering and density estimation; 15. Filtering and state estimation; 16. Linear and nonlinear time series; Appendix 1. Graphical and mathematical software; Appendix 2. Network programming; Appendix 3. Benchmarking; Appendix 4. Problem solutions; Bibliography.

Review of the hardback: 'Simulation and mathematical modelling will power the 21st century the way steam powered the 19th. Gershenfeld masterfully compresses two armloads of dense textbooks into a single clear volume, including both classic and avant garde methods, and with well-selected references for further study. Every student of computing needs this book as the entry ticket into a vital and rapidly-changing field.' William H. Press, Harvard University, author of Numerical Recipes