Book Description
This book grew out of a course of lectures given to third year undergraduates at Oxford University and it has the modest aim of producing a rapid introduction to the subject. It is designed to be read by students who have had a first elementary course in general algebra. On the other hand, it is not intended as a substitute for the more voluminous tracts such as Zariski-Samuel or Bourbaki. We have concentrated on certain central topics, and large areas, such as field theory, are not touched. In content we cover rather more ground than Northcott and our treatment is substantially different in that, following the modern trend, we put more emphasis on modules and localization. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Favorite book as a grad student
This book is what led to me getting a Ph.D. in commutative algebra.I carried it around for an entire summer studying it.I highly recommend it for a graduate student introduction to the subject, after taking a course that at least introduces modules.Too bad there wasn't a volume II.

Introduction to Commutative Algebra
This is a difficult book for undergraduates, even ones who have already had some abstract algebra.
Many refer to the book's style as "terse", meaning that there is little explanation, few examples, and proofs are very condensed.

Concise Introduction to Commutative Algebra, strong preparation for Algebraic Number Theory and basic Algebraic Geometry
The strongest aspects of Atiyah & MacDonald's book are its brevity, accessibility to undergraduates, and subtle introduction of more advanced material.

Audience:I think an undergraduate with a solid understanding of material from a first course in abstract algebra (i.e., the chapter on rings--the modules chapter would help, but isn't necessary--from M. Artin's book 'Algebra' is more than sufficient) and some basic point-set topology from an intro real analysis course (or ch1-4 of Munkres) would be sufficient for fully appreciating the material. I think having experience in PS Topology is important for understanding parts of this book well; doing the exercises is possible if you learn it "on the fly," but I hadn't seen Urysohn's Lemma before, and even that caused me some "intuition" hangups; to fully appreciate the material, I would recommend doing a healthy number of problems in topology first.

Material:The material uses concepts from homological algebra, though in a disguised form; students with experience in category theory will find offhanded comments that recast some of the material in that language, but CT is absolutely not essential to understand the material well.It also provides exercises that lead naturally into topics from Algebraic Geometry and Algebraic Number Theory quite readily; a nice set of problems in CH1 walk a student through construction of the Zariski topology, prime spectrum, etc., and some functional properties of morphisms between spectra.Algebraic Number Theory starts showing up after chapter 4 in greater detail, and would lead comfortably into Lang's GTM on ALNT by CH9 (though I only read a bit of Lang, the first chapter felt natural).

The "details left to the reader" are usually reasonably tackled with the tools made available so far, and the book is short enough that one can cover a lot of ideas in a reasonable amount of time; the commentary made by the authors is brief, to the point, and never redundant as far as I can recall, so I consider this a highly efficient book (but not too efficient, it's self contained enough and not uncompromisingly terse).

Exercises:They are quite good, I think.Very few of them follow from "symbol-pushing" or "robotic theorem proving," and usually require some constructive argument.The exercises are mostly chosen to introduce more advanced material, and do a good job in that regard.The longer chapters have 25-30 exercises, and shorter chapters (a few pages) have maybe 10, so there are plenty of problems to do.

Hazards:The material on modules is brisk, the propositions in the first three sections on modules are mostly left without proof; however, the proofs follow from their analogues for rings, and aren't that hard, just be sure to actually do them because they are mentioned only briefly.Also, the book is not typo-free, but this only caused me one major hangup during the semester.After Chapter 3, the proofs are mostly complete, with a spattering of "left to the reader" exercises, which I usually found helpful.

Companion Material:I think Lang's 'Algebra' GTM would make a nice reference for the material on Homological Algebra and other miscellaneous things that come up in the proofs; I remember once a proof in the book required the notion of the adjoint of a matrix over a ring, and so I had to look it up in Lang, and also the basic category theory covered in CH1 of Lang would at least introduce (though in a very rapid way) the "abstract nonsense" mentioned offhandedly here and there. If you have a lot of money, or access to a good library, 'Categories for the Working Mathematician' is a slower and more thorough introduction to that language, and I would recommend at least having a look, though this isn't really central to the material from Commutative Algebra.

A baptism of fire for Algebraic Geometry
Some people believe that, for getting into algebraic geometry (by this I mean Grothendieck-like AG, with schemes and all that), one needs a monolithic training in commutative algebra (something like both volumes of Zariski-Samuel, for example). I disagree. This little book seems to be specially suited to those who want to learn AG. It's a bit too brisk, specially at the beginning - if you don't already have an acquaintance with the basics of groups, rings and ideals, you may run into trouble - but veryilluminating. Masterful choice of topics, great exercises (as a matter of fact, about half the topics of the book, and more specifically the ones that are directly related to AG, are treated in the exercises, some of them quite challenging) - like one said before, it looks like a "chapter 0" of Hartshorne's book on AG. The authors consciously estabilish relations between the commutative algebra and the modern foundations of AG over and over along the way, illuminating both topics.

For the algebra itself, it also gets on well with Rotman's "Galois Theory" and MacDonald's out-of-print introduction to AG, "Algebraic Geometry - Introduction to Schemes", besides being the perfect preamble in commutative algebra to the books of Mumford and Hartshorne. A gem.

A gem of mathematical writing
This is how mathematics texts SHOULD be written. As in technical writing, the smaller text is the better written text. Everything is clean and direct, with clairity obviously a prime consideration. One never gets mireddown. The proofs are always as close to a "THE BOOK" proof aspossible, with illuminating examples, and plenty of excercises, many withoutlines for solution, which makes the book ideal for self study. This bookis a revelation. If I had to take only one math text with me to a desertisland, this would be the one. ... Read more

Book Description
This is the softcover reprint of the English translation of 1972 (available from Springer since 1989) of the first 7 chapters of Bourbaki's 'Algèbre commutative'. It provides a very complete treatment of commutative algebra, enabling the reader to go further and study algebraic or arithmetic geometry. The first 3 chapters treat in succession the concepts of flatness, localization and completions (in the general setting of graduations and filtrations). Chapter 4 studies associated prime ideals and the primary decomposition. Chapter 5 deals with integers, integral closures and finitely generated algebras over a field (including the Nullstellensatz). Chapter 6 studies valuation (of any rank), and the last chapter focuses on divisors (Krull, Dedekind, or factorial domains) with a final section on modules over integrally closed Noetherian domains, not usually found in textbooks. Useful exercises appear at the ends of the chapters. ... Read more

Book Description
Commutative Algebra is best understood with knowledge of the geometric ideas that have played a great role in its formation, in short, with a view towards algebraic geometry.The author presents a comprehensive view of commutative algebra, from basics, such as localization and primary decomposition, through dimension theory, differentials, homological methods, free resolutions and duality, emphasizing the origins of the ideas and their connections with other parts of mathematics.Many exercises illustrate and sharpen the theory and extended exercises give the reader an active part in complementing the material presented in the text.One novel feature is a chapter devoted to a quick but thorough treatment of Grobner basis theory and the constructive methods in commutative algebra and algebraic geometry that flow from it.Applications of the theory and even suggestions for computer algebra projects are included.This book will appeal to readers from beginners to advanced students of commutative algebra or algebraic geometry.To help beginners, the essential ideals from algebraic geometry are treated from scratch.Appendices on homological algebra, multilinear algebra and several other useful topics help to make the book relatively self- contained.Novel results and presentations are scattered throughout the text. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Excellent Book...very atypical for a math book, but I like it!
People tend to have strong feelings about this book.In my opinion, the people who dislike it are those who expect it to be like a typical graduate-level math book.This book is extremely atypical for a math book; it's not meant to be read linearly, and the topics in it do not follow a typical logical dependency.Personally, I find it to be outstanding; my only complaint about it is that I wish there were more books like it!

Commutative algebra and algebraic geometry are extremely difficult subjects requiring a great deal of background.This book is written as a sort of intermediary text between introductory abstract algebra books with a full and exposition of algebraic structures, and advanced, highly technical texts that can be difficult to follow and grasp on a technical level.As such, this book focuses on developing intuition, and discussing the history and motivation behind the various mathematical structures presented.It assumes that most of the other aspects of the subject, including both the elementary expositions, and the more advanced technical details, can be found elsewhere (although, believe me, this book certainly has its share of both elementary expositions and advanced technical details!)

I think this book is actually better for self-study than for use as a textbook.Most of the people I have known who have used it as a textbook have been frustrated with it.Either way, it needs to be supplemented by other books.Personally, on algebra, I like the Dummit and Foote, Isaacs, and Lang books.Those three books have very little overlap with each other, and very little overlap with this book, and they offer a very useful difference of perspectives where they do overlap!I also would recommend reading the more elementary book by Cox, Little, and O'Shea, which can help you get a feel for the subject of algebraic geometry.Many people see this book's primary purpose as preparation for Robin Hartshorne's "Algebraic Geometry".I can't say, however, how effective it is at that purpose, as no matter how far I get in this book, all but a few sections from that book still remain quite far beyond my grasp.

Not for the beginner
Well, the strength of this book lies in where it takes you. There is so much material here that when finished, you'll be prepared for a lot. Personally I think it is too wordy (my preferance is Atiyah & MacDonald) and the typesetting overall isn't all that impressive, so read up or consult other texts before/during your first encounter. M.Reids book is a better place to start.

Good book of reference
I purchased this as a book of reference.When I want to know something about Commutative Algebra (while reading Hartshorne's Algebraic Geometrry), I like a standard book of reference.But it seems a good book to learn commutative algebra aswell.

very good, but should be read slowly
Some proofs are somewhat abstract to the beginner. Although you are forced to check them on the paper, I think it is very good for the study. Also, you need a professor to instruct you, because in math, any language could only express the part of the oringins. Anyway, algebraic geometry is the course that you have to have a good professor to help you, otherwise stop study this field. In one word, it is a very very good book, so read it slowly!!!!!!

Superb
If one is interested in taking on a thorough study of algebraic geometry, this book is a perfect starting point. The writing is excellent, and the student will find many exercises that illustrate and extend the results in each chapter. Readers are expected to have an undergraduate background in algebra, and maybe some analysis and elementary notions from differential geometry. Space does not permit a thorough review here, so just a brief summary of the places where the author has done an exceptional job of explaining or motivating a particular concept:

(1) The history of commutative algebra and its connection with algebraic geometry, for example the origin of the concept of an "ideal" of a ring as generalizing unique factorization.

(2) The discussion of the concept of localization, especially its origins in geometry. A zero dimensional ring (collection of "points") is a ring whose primes are all maximal, as expected.

(3) The theory of prime decomposition as a generalization of unique prime factorization. Primary decomposition is given a nice geometric interpretation in the book.

(4) Five different proofs of the Nullstellensatz discussed, giving the reader good insight on this important result.

(5) The geometric interpretation of an associated graded ring corresponding to the exceptional set in the blowup algebra.

(6) The notion of flatness of a module as a continuity of fibers and a test for this using the Tor functor.

(7) The characterization of Hensel's lemma as a version of Newton's method for solving equations. The geometric interpretation of the completion as representing the properties of a variety in neighborhoods smaller than Zariski open neighborhoods.

(8) The characterization of dimension using the Hilbert polynomial.

(9) The fiber dimension and the proof of its upper semicontinuity.

(10) The discussion of Grobner bases and flat families. Nice examples are given of a flat family connecting a finite set of ideals to their initial ideals.

(11) Computer algebra projects for the reader using the software packages CoCoA and Macaulay.

(12) The theory of differentials in algebraic geometry as a generalization of what is done in differential geometry.

(13) The discussion of how to construct complexes using tensor products and mapping cones in order to study the Koszul complex.

(14) The connection of the Koszul complex to the cotangent bundle of projective space.

(15) The geometric interpretation of the Cohen-Macauley property as a map to a regular variety. ... Read more

Book Description

Some remarkable connections between commutative algebra and combinatorics have been discovered in recent years. This book provides an overview of two of the main topics in this area. The first concerns the solutions of linear equations in nonnegative integers. Applications are given to the enumeration of integer stochastic matrices (or magic squares), the volume of polytopes, combinatorial reciprocity theorems, and related results. The second topic deals with the face ring of a simplicial complex, and includes a proof of the Upper Bound Conjecture for Spheres. An introductory chapter giving background information in algebra, combinatorics and topology broadens access to this material for non-specialists.

Customer Reviews (3)

great book
Great book - just be ready to get hold of some other books to fill in the details.If you're not entirely comfortable with the stuff in chapter 0 concerning modules (projectivity, injectivity), tor and ext, and homology from topology, maybe find a quick introduction to these elsewhere - while its certainly possible to learn about these things from chapter 0 of this book, it's not exactly the most painless way to do it.It was my first book on the subject, then I got Miller and Sturmfels: it would make more sense to reverse that order.Better still, get both simultaneously, and when the Stanley becomes a bit dense refer to M+S.I really loved this book, but it was damn hard at times!

This is a research monograph!
For those looking for a thorough introduction to the theory in this book, I would suggest a look at Miller and Sturmfels recent book on combinatorial commutative algebra or the book on Cohen-Macaulay rings by Bruns and Herzog. This is a great book, but I don't think it was intended as a beginners first book . Instead its style concentrates on presenting results found in research-articles ( prior to this book, there doesn't seem to have been any texts giving an overview of the theory ). It is great for looking up results, reading the needed prerequisites without going into details and finding important references.

I dont read this book yet!
I dont read this book yet! ... Read more

Book Description
This introductory account of commutative algebra is aimed at students with a background only in basic algebra. Professor Sharp's book provides a good foundation from which the reader can proceed to more advanced works in commutative algebra or algebraic geometry. This new edition contains additional chapters on regular sequences and on Cohen-Macaulay rings. ... Read more

Book Description
In this well-written introduction to commutative algebra, the author shows the link between commutative ring theory and algebraic geometry.In addition to standard material, the book contrasts the methods and ideology of modern abstract algebra with concrete applications in algebraic geometry and number theory. Professor Reid begins with a discussion of modules and Noetherian rings before moving on to finite extensions and the Noether normalization. Sections on the nullstellensatz and rings of fractions precede sections on primary decomposition and normal integral domains. This book is ideal for anyone seeking a primer on commutative algebra. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

"Undergraduate" in the best way
The material in this book is not usually considered "undergraduate": Noether normalization, spectra of rings, discrete valuation rings, and more. But this book makes them very clear. It is more geometrical, and has more motivation, than Atiyah and MacDonald INTRODUCTION TO COMMUTATIVE ALGEBRA. It is briefer and more surveyable than Eisenbud COMMUTATIVE ALGEBRA. If you go on in the subject you will certainly need Eisenbud's book. This is a very good starter, and a good companion to Eisenbud if you are learning the material on your own. ... Read more

Book Description
This introduction to commutative algebra gives an account of some general properties of rings and modules, with their applications to number theory and geometry. It assumes only that the reader has completed an undergraduate algebra course. The fresh approach and simplicity of proof enable a large amount of material to be covered; exercises and examples are included throughout the notes. ... Read more

Book Description
An Introduction to Commutative Algebra and Number Theory is an elementary introduction to these subjects. Beginning with a concise review of groups, rings and fields, the author presents topics in algebra from a distinctly number-theoretic perspective and sprinkles number theory results throughout his presentation. The topics in algebra include polynomial rings, UFD, PID, and Euclidean domains; and field extensions, modules, and Dedekind domains.In the section on number theory, in addition to covering elementary congruence results, the laws of quadratic reciprocity and basics of algebraic number fields, this book gives glimpses into some deeper aspects of the subject. These include Warning's and Chevally's theorems in the finite field sections, and many results of additive number theory, such as the derivation of LaGrange's four-square theorem from Minkowski's result in the geometry of numbers.With addition of remarks and comments and with references in the bibliography, the author stimulates readers to explore the subject beyond the scope of this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Poor Quality Production
This book is a fair short treatment of algebra and number theory at the graduate level. I am not writing a review of its pedagogical or mathematical merits. My problem with the book is its sells for about [$$$] bucks for 153 pages but the quality of printing is so poor it makes the book hard to read. The pages are not opaque which means print from other pages appears through. The line spacing is narrow and the inner margins are very small. The hard cover seems to me to be of inferior quality as well. ... Read more

Book Description

From the reviews:

Book Description
This book will be particularly valuable to the American student because it covers material that is not available in any other textbooks or monographs. The subject of the book is not restricted to commutative algebra developed as a pure discipline for its own sake, nor is it aimed only at algebraic geometry where the intrinsic geometry of a general n-dimensional variety plays the central role. Instead, this book is developed around the vital theme that certain areas of both subjects are best understood together. This link between the two subjects, forged in the nineteenth century, built further by Krull and Zariski, remains as active as ever.In this book, the reader will find as the same time a leisurely and clear exposition of the basic definitions and results in both algebra and geometry, as well as an cxposition of the important recent progress fue to Quillen-Suslin, Evans-Eisenbud, Szpiro, Mohan Kumar and others. The ample exercises are another excellent feature. Professor Kunz has filled a longstanding need for an introduction to commutative algebra and algebraic geometry that emphasizes the concrete elementary nature of objects with which both subjects began. ... Read more

Book Description

From the reviews of the first edition:

Book Description

Combinatorial commutative algebra is an active area of research with thriving connections to other fields of pure and applied mathematics. This book provides a self-contained introduction to the subject, with an emphasis on combinatorial techniques for multigraded polynomial rings, semigroup algebras, and determinantal rings. The eighteen chapters cover a broad spectrum of topics, ranging from homological invariants of monomial ideals and their polyhedral resolutions, to hands-on tools for studying algebraic varieties with group actions, such as toric varieties, flag varieties, quiver loci, and Hilbert schemes. Over 100 figures, 250 exercises, and pointers to the literature make this book appealing to both graduate students and researchers.

Customer Reviews (1)

Coherent and Useful
This book does a good job at introducing some of the most interesting combinatorial problems in monomial resolutions.Although their chapter on toric varieties is somewhat weak, most of the other chapters (square-free monomial ideals, Borel-fixed ideals, staircases associated to monomial ideals in three variables, etc.) are very well written with challenging and revealing exercises at the end. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is the natural continuation of Computational Commutative Algebra 1 with some twists.

Customer Reviews (1)

Not much to say, really.
I bought this to have a matching set with my Volume II.
Decent enough for reference, but that's about it.
Yeah...that's about it. ... Read more

Book Description
The already broad range of applications of ring theory has been enhanced in the eighties by the increasing interest in algebraic structures of considerable complexity, the so-called class of quantum groups. One of the fundamental properties of quantum groups is that they are modelled by associative coordinate rings possessing a canonical basis, which allows for the use of algorithmic structures based on Groebner bases to study them. This book develops these methods in a self-contained way, concentrating on an in-depth study of the notion of a vast class of non-commutative rings (encompassing most quantum groups), the so-called Poincaré-Birkhoff-Witt rings. We include algorithms which treat essential aspects like ideals and (bi)modules, the calculation of homological dimension and of the Gelfand-Kirillov dimension, the Hilbert-Samuel polynomial, primality tests for prime ideals, etc. ... Read more

Book Description

Algebraic Geometry often seems very abstract, but in fact it is full of concrete examples and problems. This side of the subject can be approached through the equations of a variety, and the syzygies of these equations are a necessary part of the study. This book is the first textbook-level account of basic examples and techniques in this area. It illustrates the use of syzygies in many concrete geometric considerations, from interpolation to the study of canonical curves. The text has served as a basis for graduate courses by the author at Berkeley, Brandeis, and in Paris. It is also suitable for self-study by a reader who knows a little commutative algebra and algebraic geometry already. As an aid to the reader, the appendices provide summaries of local cohomology and commutative algebra, tying together examples and major results from a wide range of topics.

Book Description
This book is an expanded text for a graduate course in commutative algebra, focusing on the algebraic underpinnings of algebraic geometry and of number theory. Accordingly, the theory of affine algebras is featured, treated both directly and via the theory of Noetherian and Artinian modules, and the theory of graded algebras is included to provide the foundation for projective varieties. Major topics include the theory of modules over a principal ideal domain, and its applications to matrix theory (including the Jordan decomposition), the Galois theory of field extensions, transcendence degree, the prime spectrum of an algebra, localization, and the classical theory of Noetherian and Artinian rings. Later chapters include some algebraic theory of elliptic curves (featuring the Mordell-Weil theorem) and valuation theory, including local fields.

One feature of the book is an extension of the text through a series of appendices. This permits the inclusion of more advanced material, such as transcendental field extensions, the discriminant and resultant, the theory of Dedekind domains, and basic theorems of rings of algebraic integers. An extended appendix on derivations includes the Jacobian conjecture and Makar-Limanov's theory of locally nilpotent derivations. Gröbner bases can be found in another appendix.

Exercises provide a further extension of the text. The book can be used both as a textbook and as a reference source. ... Read more

Book Description
This work is based on the lectures presented at the International Conference of Commutative Algebra and Algebraic Geometry held in Messina, Italy. It discusses developments and advances in commutative algebra, algebraic geometry, and combinatorics - highlighting the theory of projective schemes, the geometry of curves, determinantal and stable ideals, and free resolutions. ... Read more

Book Description

Algebraic Geometry is the study of systems of polynomial equations in one or more variables, asking such questions as: Does the system have finitely many solutions, and if so how can one find them? And if there are infinitely many solutions, how can they be described and manipulated?

Customer Reviews (1)

Careful about production error
This is the 3rd edition of a popular reference on the subject. There was some production error with earlier version of the book. Even with the latest version, the authors have provided 14-page worth of correctionsfor the 1st printing of the 3rd edition. See www.cs.amherst.edu/~dac/iva/3ed1.pdf.
So buyers may be better off waiting for a corrected later version from the publisher. ... Read more