Differential Geometry, Lie Groups, and Symmetric Spaces (Graduate Studies in Mathematics) | 
 enlarge | Author: Sigurdur Helgason
Publisher: American Mathematical Society
Category: Book
Buy New: $72.00
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Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 366230
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 641
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3
Dimensions (in): 10.2 x 7.3 x 1.4
ISBN: 0821828487
Dewey Decimal Number: 516.36
EAN: 9780821828489
Publication Date: July 2001
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Book Description
The study of homogeneous spaces provides excellent insights into both differential geometry and Lie groups. In geometry, for instance, general theorems and properties will also hold for homogeneous spaces, and will usually be easier to understand and to prove in this setting. For Lie groups, a significant amount of analysis either begins with or reduces to analysis on homogeneous spaces, frequently on symmetric spaces. For many years and for many mathematicians, Sigurdur Helgason's classic Differential Geometry, Lie Groups, and Symmetric Spaces has been--and continues to be--the standard source for this material. Helgason begins with a concise, self-contained introduction to differential geometry. He then introduces Lie groups and Lie algebras, including important results on their structure. This sets the stage for the introduction and study of symmetric spaces, which form the central part of the book. The text concludes with the classification of symmetric spaces by means of the Killing-Cartan classification of simple Lie algebras over $\mathbf{C}$ and Cartan's classification of simple Lie algebras over $\mathbf{R}$. The excellent exposition is supplemented by extensive collections of useful exercises at the end of each chapter. All the problems have either solutions or substantial hints, found at the back of the book. For this latest edition, Helgason has made corrections and added helpful notes and useful references. The sequels to the present book are published in the AMS's Mathematical Surveys and Monographs Series: Groups and Geometric Analysis, Volume 83, and Geometric Analysis on Symmetric Spaces, Volume 39. Sigurdur Helgason was awarded the Steele Prize for Differential Geometry, Lie Groups, and Symmetric Spaces and Groups and Geometric Analysis.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Superb Treatise and Indispensible Reference June 25, 2007
Jason D. Brown
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
The mere thought or mention of the name Helgason inspires respect and awe. This book gets five stars all the way on its merit alone, regardless of who wrote it. Difficult as it is, the book starts from the fundamentals and works up in a coherent logical manner, there are no gaps in his presentation. The negative review below is completely unjustified. If anyone would like to at least see some of what this book is like go to ocw.mit.edu and download Helgason's notes which use excerpts in this book. Some of the topics in this book are covered in a more easy going way in "Lie Groups, Lie Algebras, and Some of Their Applications" by Robert Gilmore. (If I'm not mistaken Gilmore was a student of Helgason.) This book is mathematical exposition at it's absolute finest and I don't think but 1 in 1,000 people reading this page need me to tell them that much less need a review to persuade them. This book has quite a reputation.
 Unsurpassed, but demanding May 28, 2007
Jim Curry (MT)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
As I reviewed this book at Amazon, I found only one review, which I considered to be too harsh. You should understand that Helgason is writing a graduate textbook. Students will learn about "modules" in their graduate algebra course. They will learn De Rham's theorem in an introductory analysis course or sometimes even in a topology course (yes, it can happen). So, most of the language for which another reviewer criticized him would usually be covered in other graduate courses.
Helgason writes tersely but extremely precisely. I know of no other author who gives similar sophistication of point of view and quick, to the point, proofs. He is a "best of breed," and I suppose that is part of the reason he has been a core member of the faculty at M.I.T. for such a long time. A serious student cannot really avoid reading the entire progression of these texts, particularly the "Groups and Geometric Analysis" title, perhaps second in the Helgason manuscripts.
 Semisimple( Simple)->Bad May 13, 2007
R. Bagula (Lakeside, Ca United States)
3 out of 15 found this review helpful
I certainly hate being cheated.
This book is advance as a textbook for a course in Lie Algebra.
I can picture the man who wrote this book lecturing to the future great minds of MIT
and putting them to sleep.
The fellow is the worst sort of pedant.
On page one he mentions one of the more difficult theorems in modern Mathematics,
De Rham's theorem, then drops it like it was too hot to handle.
On page three he introduces Hausdorff's difficult separation axiom
without any explanation at all.
Throughout the book he beats you over the head with terms like "module"
without adequate definition or explanation of terms.
He literally expects you to have learned
what he is supposed to be teaching
before you take his course?
In short , anyone taking the course with this book as a text book
will be hunting for a good text on Lie AlgebraSemi-Simple Lie Algebras and Their Representations (Dover Books on Mathematics) Lie Groups, Lie Algebras, and Some of Their Applications
and differential geometry,
since this one is entirely unreadable,
even by those who know and love the subjects.
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