Advanced Algebra

By Cyrus Hettle
232
2026

Description

This book's organizing principle is the interplay between groups and rings, where "rings" includes the ideas of modules. It contains basic definitions, complete and clear theorems (the first with brief sketches of proofs), and gives attention to the topics of algebraic geometry, computers, homology, and representations. More than merely a succession of definition-theorem-proofs, this text put results and ideas in context so that students can appreciate why a certain topic is being studied, and where definitions originate. Advanced Algebra systematically develops concepts and tools in algebra that are vital to every mathematician, whether pure or applied, aspiring or established. The book aims to give the reader a global view of algebra, its use, and its role in mathematics as a whole. The idea is to explain what the young mathematician needs to know about algebra in order to communicate well with colleagues in all branches of mathematics. The book is written as textbooks, and the primary audience is students who are learning the material for the first time and who are planning a career in which they will use advanced mathematics professionally. Much of the material in the book, including nearly all of Basic Algebra and some of Advanced Algebra, corresponds to normal course work, with the proportions depending on the university. The books include further topics that may be skipped in required courses but that the professional mathematician will ultimately want to learn by self-study. This book can be used as a text for the first year of graduate algebra, but it is much more than that. It can also serve more advanced graduate students wishing to learn topics on their own; while not reaching the frontiers, the book does provide a sense of the successes and methods arising in an area. Finally, this is a reference containing many of the standard theorems and definitions that users of algebra need to know. Thus, the book is not only an appetizer, but a hearty meal as well.

About Author

Professor Cyrus Hettle School of Mathematics Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, is a mathematician known for his work in areas like abstract algebra, combinatorics, and the history of mathematics, particularly his research on Diophantus. He has explored the symbolic and mathematical influence of Diophantus's Arithmetica, bridging the gap between ancient and modern mathematical notation. His mathematical research lies at the interface between number theory, algebraic geometry, complex dynamics, and combinatorics. He completed PhD in Mathematics in December 2000. Thesis: Computational Complexity of Generalized Pattern Matching. Advisor: John Rhodes from University of California at Berkeley. He holds, BS with Highest Distinction in Mathematics, Magna Cum Laude, May 1994 from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Table of Content

Preface
Chapter 1. Fundamental Algebraic Structures

Groups: Definition and Examples
Subgroups and Cosets
Normal Subgroups and Quotient Groups
Group Homomorphisms and Isomorphisms

Chapter 2. Advanced Group Theory
Cyclic Groups and Generators
Permutation Groups and Symmetric Groups
Group Actions and Orbit-Stabilizer Theorem
Sylow Theorems

Chapter 3. Ring Theory
Integral Domains and Zero Divisors
Ideals and Quotient Rings
Prime and Maximal Ideals
Ring Homomorphisms and Isomorphisms

Chapter 4. Field Theory and Galois Theory
Algebraic and Transcendental Extensions
Splitting Fields and Normal Extensions
Separable and Inseparable Extensions
The Fundamental Theorem of Galois Theory

Chapter 5. Modules and Vector Spaces
Modules over a Ring: Definitions and Examples
Submodules and Quotient Modules
Linear Independence and Bases of Vector Spaces
Dimension Theorem and Rank-Nullit

Chapter 6. Advanced Linear Algebra
Inner Product Spaces and Orthogonality
Diagonalization and Jordan Canonical Form
Bilinear and Quadratic Forms
Spectral Theorem for Normal Operator

Chapter 7. Commutative Algebra
Localization of Rings and Modules
Noetherian Rings and Hilbert’s Basis Theorem
Primary Decomposition of Ideals
Krull Dimension and Height of Prime Ideals
Cohen-Macaulay Rings

Chapter 8. Homological Algebra
Exact Sequences and Short Exact Sequences
Projective and Injective Modules
Chain Complexes and Homology
Derived Functors: Ext and Tor

Chapter 9. Algebraic Number Theory
Algebraic Integers and Number Fields
Class Groups and Class Number
Units in Number Fields and Dirichlet’s Unit Theorem
Quadratic Forms and Representation of Integers

Chapter 10. Polynomial Algebra
Polynomial Factorization Over Various Fields
Resultants and Discriminants
Symmetric Polynomials and Newton’s Identities
Polynomial Interpolation and Applications

Bibliography