TY - BOOK AU - Mark Kot TI - A first course in the calculus of variation T2 - Student Mathematical Library SN - 978-1-4704-1495-5 AV - QA315 PY - 2014///] CY - Rhode Island PB - American Mathematical Society KW - Mathematics N1 - Chapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2. The first variation Chapter 3. Cases and examples Chapter 4. Basic generalizations Chapter 5. Constraints Chapter 6. The second variation Chapter 7. Review and preview Chapter 8. The homogeneous problem Chapter 9. Variable-endpoint conditions Chapter 10. Broken extremals Chapter 11. Strong variations Chapter 12. Sufficient conditions N2 - The text lays out important necessary and sufficient conditions for extrema in historical order, and it illustrates these conditions with numerous worked-out examples from mechanics, optics, geometry, and other fields.The exposition starts with simple integrals containing a single independent variable, a single dependent variable, and a single derivative, subject to weak variations, but steadily moves on to more advanced topics, including multivariate problems, constrained extrema, homogeneous problems, problems with variable endpoints, broken extremals, strong variations, and sufficiency conditions. Numerous line drawings clarify the mathematics.Each chapter ends with recommended readings that introduce the student to the relevant scientific literature and with exercises that consolidate understanding.---Summary provided by publisher ER -