Harold Parks
Gary Musser
Robert Burton
William Siebler, all of Oregon State University

Published October, 1999 by Prentice Hall Engineering/Science/Mathematics

Copyright 2000, 814 pp.
Cloth
ISBN 0-13-011690-4

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    Liberal Arts Mathematics-Mathematics

For undergraduate courses in Liberal Arts Mathematics. This contemporary approach to liberal arts math is especially helpful to instructors who want to break away from traditional instruction and move towards a more “modern” course that stresses rich ideas and more visualization with less review. This text offers superb pedagogy, an accessible writing style, and mathematical integrity—and is student-friendly. Its unique four-part organization presents liberal arts students with sound, relevant mathematics and will leave them with the (correct) impression that math is useful and affects their lives in many positive ways.




NEW—The table of contents for the second edition has been reorganized:
—Part I: The Language of Mathematics, now includes one comprehensive chapter to review key ideas and set the stage for the remaining chapters.
—Part II: Mathematics in Life, covers the basic mathematical topics of statistics, probability, and consumer math that are essential to being an informed and productive citizen in the 21st century.
—Part III: Mathematics in Society, applies math to broader topics such as game theory, management mathematics, and voting and apportionment.
—Part IV: Mathematics and the World, further expands the discussion to consider critical thinking, elementary number theory, and various applications of geometry that one encounters in the world.

• This unique four-part organization provides a structural framework and context in which to learn new concepts and understand more concrete applications before moving on to more difficult, abstract ideas. Ex. ___

NEW—Mathematical Structures and Methods (Ch. 1)—Lays down foundations upon which successive chapters build:
—Sections 1.1 (Sets) and 1.8 (Solving Equations) were expanded and brought forward from Topics.
—Sections 1.6 (The Concept of Functions) and 1.7 (Functions and their Graphs) are new to this edition.

• Ensures that students have a solid understanding of the basics before moving on to more difficult concepts.

NEW—The coverage of Probability and Statistics has been extensively revised and expanded.
—Chapter 2. Descriptive Statistics; teaches students to organize data graphically and to interpret graphical representations of data with a keen eye toward misleading pictures.
—Chapter 3. Collecting and Interpreting Data; provides an expanded background in sampling (new section 3.2) and to the measure of central tendency (Section 3.3) and variability (Section 3.4).
—Chapter 4. Inferential Statistics; is now covered in a separate chapter which provides a clearer and better paced overview of normal distributions and confidence intervals.
—Chapter 5. Probability; the basic ideas of probability are introduced in this self-contained chapter. Coverage of systematic counting has been added in section 5.4.

• The ability to read and interpret statistical information with intelligence is essential to being an informed consumer in today's world. These four well-paced chapters provide clean, thorough coverage of the key ideas with many real-world applications to support and ground the concepts.

NEW—Chapter 9, Voting and Apportionment—Now includes a new Section 9.3, Weighted Voting Systems.

• Introduces students to the method of voting widely practiced in business by stockholders (and by the Electoral Collage in the selection of the U.S. Presidents) providing them with a more complete understanding of systems of election. Ex. ___

Real Application—The authors use real and real-seeming data to motivate the mathematical concepts.
—Each chapter opens and concludes with a real-life example that demonstrates how the content of the chapter is applied in the world. Ex. Ch. 4
—Each section is motivated by an introductory Initial Problem that asks a question of interest that students will learn how to answer. The problem is solved at the end of the section. Ex. Section 3.2, section 9.3

• Allows students to relate more easily to the math concepts and underscores why the mastery of these skills and ideas is beneficial to functioning effectively in the world. Ex. ___

Rich Variety of Problems—Over 2500 problems are organized into two-tiers. Contains standard, paired exercises keyed to the section, and extended problems that encourage critical thinking and greater use of analytical skills.

• Provides plenty of practice for the basic skills and concepts and helps students develop a framework for problem solving.

The Human Side of Mathematics—Each chapter begins with historical information on various men and women who contributed to the development of the mathematics discussed in that chapter. Additional historical information and “fun facts” are integrated into the book as marginal “tidbits”.

• Familiarizes students with important historical figures in the development of mathematics and the applications of that are part of our daily vocabulary. Ex. Rene Descartes, George Gallup
  
  

I. THE LANGUAGE OF MATHEMATICS.

1. Mathematical Structures and Methods.

II. MATHEMATICS IN LIFE

2. Descriptive Statistics.
3. Collecting and Interpreting Data.
4. Inferential Statistics.
5. Probability.
6. Consumer Mathematics.

III. MATHEMATICS IN SOCIETY.

7. Game Theory.
8. Management Mathematics.
9. Voting and Apportionment.

IV. MATHEMATICS IN THE WORLD.

10. Critical Thinking.
11. Elementary Number Theory.
12. Geometry.
13. Growth and Scaling.
Topics.

The Metric System. Perimeter and Area. Surface Area and Volume.

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