
Introduction to Coalgebra
Towards Mathematics of States and Observation
Bart Jacobs(Author)
Cambridge University Press
Published on 27. October 2016
Book
Hardback
494 pages
978-1-107-17789-5 (ISBN)
Description
The area of coalgebra has emerged within theoretical computer science with a unifying claim: to be the mathematics of computational dynamics. It combines ideas from the theory of dynamical systems and from the theory of state-based computation. Although still in its infancy, it is an active area of research that generates wide interest. Written by one of the founders of the field, this book acts as the first mature and accessible introduction to coalgebra. It provides clear mathematical explanations, with many examples and exercises involving deterministic and non-deterministic automata, transition systems, streams, Markov chains and weighted automata. The theory is expressed in the language of category theory, which provides the right abstraction to make the similarity and duality between algebra and coalgebra explicit, and which the reader is introduced to in a hands-on manner. The book will be useful to mathematicians and (theoretical) computer scientists and will also be of interest to mathematical physicists, biologists and economists.
Reviews / Votes
'The book is very carefully written, its many examples are discussed usually in great detail, expressing patiently the salient features to be exhibited. This applies to the usually fairly detailed proofs as well. Another treasure trove is the collection of most instructive exercises, of which there are plenty ... This admirable book sets the standard for the work on set-based coalgebras for many years to come. It can be used for reference, and it is equally usable as a textbook.' Ernst-Erich Doberkat, Zentralblatt MATHMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises; 11 Line drawings, black and white
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 31 mm
Weight
859 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-107-17789-5 (9781107177895)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
11/2016
Cambridge University Press
€133.99
Available for download

E-Book
10/2016
Cambridge University Press
€118.99
Available for download
Person
Bart Jacobs is Professor of Software and Security Correctness at Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands. His work has been supported by prestigious grants such as the Pionier grant from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research and the Advanced Investigator Grant from the European Research Council. Professor Jacobs is a member of Academia Europaea.
Content
1. Motivation; 2. Coalgebras of polynomial functors; 3. Bisimulations; 4. Logic, lifting and finality; 5. Monads, comonads and distributive laws; 6. Invariants and assertions; References; Definition and symbol index; Subject index.