A man, a plan, a cat, a ham, a yak, a yam, a hat, a canal--Panama!

[Xyzzy]

So, how do you all want to work through the book?

At this point there is no plan. You can help!



PPPPPPP

A man, a plan, a canoe, pasta, heros, rajahs, a coloratura, maps, snipe, percale, macaroni, a gag, a banana bag, a tan, a tag, a banana bag again (or a camel), a crepe, pins, Spam, a rut, a Rolo, cash, a jar, sore hats, a peon, a canal--Panama!

[only_human]

Originally Posted by Xyzzy

So, how do you all want to work through the book?

At this point there is no plan. You can help!



PPPPPPP

A man, a plan, a canoe, pasta, heros, rajahs, a coloratura, maps, snipe, percale, macaroni, a gag, a banana bag, a tan, a tag, a banana bag again (or a camel), a crepe, pins, Spam, a rut, a Rolo, cash, a jar, sore hats, a peon, a canal--Panama!

At this point I bring up a sabotage manual because overplanning has curses too.
I mentioned the manual at the beginning of the fast post thread:
http://mersenneforum.org/showpost.ph...52&postcount=5

I not suggesting anyone actually go to the CIA site and download a book on sabotage but rather look at the picture of a page of it shown in this Google+ message:
https://plus.google.com/+YonatanZung...ts/W2o1VR4oMzJ

On the other hand, that won't be necessary either because it just is a lot of insidious advice on how to slow down progress in meetings through bureaucracy and excessive points of order and overly due diligence.

PS. obviously something needs to be done and some of the people here have current and former experience teaching math. I have no intent to disrupt getting a plan going. My caveat is limited to this single message.

[R.D. Silverman]

Originally Posted by Xyzzy

So, how do you all want to work through the book?

At this point there is no plan. You can help!



PPPPPPP

A man, a plan, a canoe, pasta, heros, rajahs, a coloratura, maps, snipe, percale, macaroni, a gag, a banana bag, a tan, a tag, a banana bag again (or a camel), a crepe, pins, Spam, a rut, a Rolo, cash, a jar, sore hats, a peon, a canal--Panama!

I thought that I had already started. The 1st 2 chapters lead to a proof of the FTA (with some digressions)

[only_human]

I will strongly paraphrase the author's objectives mentioned in the preface to help those who are following along without the book:

1. "First, I want to present - as clearly as possible - what I consider the core material for a one semester course in number theory, typically at the junior/senior level in a college, or university."
2. "I have made an overt effect to keep the style of the book informal"...
3. "the problem sets at the end of each section are the heart of the book."
4. "I have tried to emphasize the many recurring themes: the use of the Division Algorithm as a proof tool; integral linear combinations; applications of the principal of the least element; pairing processes; etc."
5. An important feature of this text"..."is the early introduction and subsequent reliance on p-adic valuations."
6. "I have made a strenuous attempt to have the subject material of the text flow smoothly"...
7. "mathematics in general and number theory in particular is an exciting, ongoing activity."
8. The two appendices, Basics, and Abstract Algebra are "designed to make the book as self-contained as possible" and "to point out that elementary number theory and elementary abstract algebra are intimately related subjects."

"My main suggestion is that the reader study the book 'with pencil in hand.'"..."I also think it is important to read all of the problems."..."you can pick up a lot of information quite quickly by scanning a problem set, and (with any luck at all) a certain amount of osmosis will take place."

[Spherical Cow]

Originally Posted by R.D. Silverman

I thought that I had already started. The 1st 2 chapters lead to a proof of the FTA (with some digressions)

Gnats. Apparently nothing has changed since my last university course 40 years ago...I am behind already. My textbook has been ordered, and shipped, but Amazon isn't providing tracking details. They still just say between Nov. 5 and 23.

So, my Chapter 1 homework is going to be late...

Norm

[R.D. Silverman]

Originally Posted by Spherical Cow

Gnats. Apparently nothing has changed since my last university course 40 years ago...I am behind already. My textbook has been ordered, and shipped, but Amazon isn't providing tracking details. They still just say between Nov. 5 and 23.

So, my Chapter 1 homework is going to be late...

Norm

We have not started yet! I threw out the proof of FTA as a preliminary challenge, along with a
hint.

My professors did this frequently: tossed out a challenge that was premature for the material
studied to date. Three of the best professors that I ever had were fond of this.