This book features mathematical problems and results that would be of
interest to all mathematicians, but especially undergraduates (and
even high school students) who participate in mathematical
competitions such as the International Math Olympiads and Putnam
Competition. The format is a dialogue between a professor and eight
students in a summer problem solving camp and allows for a
conversational approach to the problems as well as some mathematical
humor and a few nonmathematical digressions.
The problems have been selected for their entertainment value,
elegance, trickiness, and unexpectedness, and have a wide range of
difficulty, from trivial to horrendous. They range over a wide variety
of topics including combinatorics, algebra, probability, geometry, and
set theory. Most of the problems have not appeared before in a
problem or expository format. A Notes section at the end of the book
gives historical information and references.
Readership
Undergraduate students and instructors interested in
the art of problem solving.
