A Beginner's Guide to Finite Mathematics: For Business, Management, and the Social Sciences

by W.D. Wallis

This concisely written text in finite mathematics gives a sequential, distinctly applied presentation of topics, employing a pedagogical approach that is ideal for freshmen and sophomores in business, the social sciences, and the liberal arts. The work opens with a brief review of sets and numbers, followed by an introduction to data sets, counting arguments, and the Binomial Theorem, which sets the foundation for elementary probability theory and some basic statistics. Further chapters treat graph theory as it relates to modelling, matrices and vectors, and linear programming. Requiring only two years of high school algebra, this book's many examples and illuminating problem sets - with selected solutions - will appeal to a wide audience of students and teachers.

304 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 2002

Reviews

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

This second edition of Wallis’ concisely written textbook on finite mathematics can be a valuable resource for freshmen and sophomores. After opening with a brief overview of sets and numbers, counting arguments come in as part of probability measures, including the (unnamed) inclusion–exclusion principle leading to Bernoulli trials a section prior to truly basic counting principles. As a result, a student tackling the work sequentially confronts the probability of a netted butterfly being either striped or female two sections before meeting the much simpler ideal urn and its monochrome marbles. An economy of language lends elegance and thus hopefully clarity to this text which is unusual among comparable texts that I work with. However, the sequence presented convinces me it would be awkward in the classroom. Much additional lecture would be required as well as probably rerouting the students through the sections. Such situations, I find, often confuse and unsettle a student already on the margins of his or her confidence and works against encouraging students to read ahead and do independent study. However, I know of no better work to suggest as a study aid for parents or students seeking a second resource along with a required textbook during the first couple of years of pre-calculus college algebra...

[See my full review on MAA Reviews