\(100+1\) problems in advanced calculus. A creative journey through the fjords of mathematical analysis for beginners (Q2071729)

This is a revised translation of the book \textit{Esplorando l'analisi matematica} published by the first two authors in 1996. As the title suggests, it contains 101 problems in advanced calculus. The material is organized in eight chapters, all structured in a similar manner. First, theoretical results and examples are introduced and commented, followed by the relevant problems for self study with detailed solutions. Numerous computer generated plots nicely illustrate examples and solutions. Chapter 1 introduces a number of useful inequalities for real numbers, powers, exponential and logarithmic functions. Chapter 2 deals with the properties of sets, sequences and functions. Limits of functions and continuity are discussed in Chapter 3 whereas Chapter 4 deals with the differentiation. Classical theorems in analysis due to Rolle, Lagrange, Cauchy and l'Hospital are considered in Chapter 5. Important properties of functions related to monotonicity, extrema, concavity, and inflection points are explored in Chapter 6 and graphs of functions are discussed in Chapter 7. Finally, integrals are dealt with in Chapter 8. The book invites the reader to explore concepts of a set, sequence, function, limit, derivative, integral which are crucial for the understanding of the fundamentals of mathematical analysis as a discipline. The problems are interesting and quite challenging, they contribute to the conceptual understanding of the subject and ``require a bit of imagination and critical thinking.'' The authors suggest that the text would be appropriate for students taking an advanced calculus course, can be used to complement calculus courses and even as a course book for a mathematical analysis course for the first-year students in mathematics, physics and engineering. This reviewer warmly welcomes the publication of this nice selection of problems and would recommend its use as a complementary reading for analysis and calculus courses. There are several issues which could be improved in the next edition of the book. The first concern regards the use of the standard English terminology in the formulation of problems and explanations. For example, in the problems on Pages 11--12, one has to find the infimum or supremum of a sequence of real numbers. However, both in the book under review and in most texts on mathematical analysis [Apostol, Rudin, Royden] the notions of infimum and supremum are used for sets, and limit inferior/superior (not mentioned in this book) are used for sequences. It would thus be helpful to reformulate the tasks. It is also not common to use expressions like ``the maximum variation permitted to the expression'' (Problem 1.5.1), or ``a couple of functions'' (Problems 14 and 15). In general, the English could be improved to facilitate the comprehension of the text. The second concern regards the use a circular representation of the real line combining \(-\infty\) and \(+\infty\) into \(\infty\) in a book for beginners. Empirical research in mathematics education suggests that students in calculus and analysis courses experience difficulties with the understanding of the concepts of a limit and infinity. Thus, contextualisation of the ``neighborhood of infinity'' as, for instance, \(I_{\infty}=\left( -\infty,2\right) \cup\left( 10,+\infty\right) \) may be confusing. From the didactic point of view, it is important to separate negative and positive infinity, especially in the discussions on limits, asymptotes, or graphs of functions where the sign of infinity matters the most. For the same reason, one has to be cautious with the ``modern definition of a limit'' introduced in Chapter 3. The third concern regards the clarity of the exposition which could be improved to help less experienced readers. For instance, the solution of Exercise 1.5.1 refers to ``the order properties of real numbers'' T\(_{2},\) T\(_{3},\) and T\(_{8}\) introduced however as ``Theorems on sums'', ``Theorems on the product'' and ``Theorems on powers'', respectively. The problem formulations could be improved, like ``maybe the case that for a function \(f\) we have \(\lim_{x\rightarrow c^{+}}f\left( x\right) =l^{\pm},\) where \(l^{\pm}\) denotes the convergence to \(l\) both from above and below?'' in Problem 24 or ``if a function fulfils all assumptions of Rolle's Theorem but is not differentiable at a point, does the theorem still apply to it?'' in Problem 58. Recall that Rolle's theorem requires differentiability of a function on an open interval, so if a point in question is not in that interval, it does not matter, but if it is, one simply cannot state that \textit{all} assumptions hold. The authors claim that ``each chapter is almost self-contained'' but some concepts are not defined. For example, the explanation that a function \(1/f(x)\) is a proper restriction of the function \(f(x)\) in Problem 13 is formulated as ``the graph of \(1/f(x)\) is strictly contained in the graph of \(f(x)\)'' but the latter property has not been formally defined. The notion of a graph of a function itself was not formally defined either. Surprisingly, the book has no bibliography section at all. Formulating definitions and theorems, the authors do not provide references to the relevant literature although claims like ``is often omitted in the high-school textbooks'' on Page 40 and ``then one is tempted (and some textbooks do it) one is obviously free to do it and some textbooks do it'' on Page 42 should be complemented with the relevant references to Calculus and Analysis texts. Otherwise, it remains unclear what are ``standard textbooks'' in the arguments ``commonly discussed in standard textbooks'' on Page 10 or ``typically proposed in standard textbooks'' on Page 96. The book under review nicely complements existing literature on the subject; it is a stimulating reading requiring, as suggested by the authors, a bit of critical reflection.