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Newcomb's problem is a controversial paradox of decision theory. It is easily explained and easily understood, and there is a strong chance that most of us have actually faced it in some form or other. And yet it has proven as thorny and intractable a puzzle as much older and better-known philosophical problems of consciousness, scepticism and fatalism. It brings into very sharp and focused disagreement several long-standing philosophical theories on practical rationality, on the nature of free will, and on the direction and analysis of causation. This volume introduces readers to the nature of Newcomb's problem, and ten chapters by leading scholars present the most recent debates around the problem and analyse its ramifications for decision theory, metaphysics, philosophical psychology and political science. Their chapters highlight the status of Newcomb's problem as a live and continuing issue in modern philosophy.
The purpose of this book is to give a thorough introduction to the most commonly used methods of numerical linear algebra and optimisation. The prerequisites are some familiarity with the basic properties of matrices, finite-dimensional vector spaces, advanced calculus, and some elementary notations from functional analysis. The book is in two parts. The first deals with numerical linear algebra (review of matrix theory, direct and iterative methods for solving linear systems, calculation of eigenvalues and eigenvectors) and the second, optimisation (general algorithms, linear and nonlinear programming). The author has based the book on courses taught for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students and the result is a well-organised and lucid exposition. Summaries of basic mathematics are provided, proofs of theorems are complete yet kept as simple as possible, and applications from physics and mechanics are discussed. Professor Ciarlet has also helpfully provided over 40 line diagrams, a great many applications, and a useful guide to further reading. This excellent textbook, which is translated and revised from the very successful French edition, will be of great value to students of numerical analysis, applied mathematics and engineering.