Applied Numerical Analysis Using MATLAB

Whether you use Matlab or not, if you need information about numerical methods, this is the book for you. It makes the standard, Press, et al, "Numerical Methods In.." look like a first-grade primer by comparison.I'm writing my own book on numerical algorithms for embedded systems, so I know whereof I speak. _GOOD_ books that are both readable by ordinary mortals, and usable for serious computing, can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Most are either too pedantic and obtuse, or too simple and shallow, or directed at a small subtopic of the larger area of numerical methods. Somehow, through a combination of simple, no-snow examples, lots of exercises, and Matlab programs, author Faucett manages to include virtually every aspect of numerical methods. Not only that, but she includes them in depth, in a way that's easy to follow and exercises that drive every point home. In my travels, I've seen a lot of references to such things as Runge-Kutta and Adams-Moulton methods, solving stiff ODE's, solving for eigenvalues and eigenvectors, and Householder and QR transformations, to name a few. It's rare to find easily intelligible explanations, with derivations, for any _ONE_ of them. To find them all in one book is astonishing.Clearly, by the title, you get the impression that having Matlab will make this book more valuable to you, and it will. However, don't get the idea that the book is only for users of Matlab. Whether you have it or not, you will not find another book so loaded with gems of knowledge about numerical methods.