Overview of and topical guide to discrete mathematics
Discrete mathematics is the study of mathematical structures that are fundamentally discrete rather than continuous. In contrast to real numbers that have the property of varying "smoothly", the objects studied in discrete mathematics – such as integers, graphs, and statements in logic[1] – do not vary smoothly in this way, but have distinct, separated values.[2] Discrete mathematics, therefore, excludes topics in "continuous mathematics" such as calculus and analysis.
Included below are many of the standard terms used routinely in university-level courses and in research papers. This is not, however, intended as a complete list of mathematical terms; just a selection of typical terms of art that may be encountered.
Logic – Study of correct reasoning
Modal logic – Type of formal logic
Set theory – Branch of mathematics that studies sets
Number theory – Mathematics of integer properties
Combinatorics – Branch of discrete mathematics
Finite mathematics – Syllabus in college and university mathematics
Graph theory – Area of discrete mathematics
Digital geometry – Deals with digitized models or images of objects of the 2D or 3D Euclidean space
Digital topology – Properties of 2D or 3D digital images that correspond to classic topological properties
Algorithmics – Sequence of operations for a taskPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
Information theory – Scientific study of digital information
Computability – Ability to solve a problem in an effective manner
Computational complexity theory – Inherent difficulty of computational problems
Probability theory – Branch of mathematics concerning probability
Probability – Branch of mathematics concerning chance and uncertainty
Markov chains – Random process independent of past history
Linear algebra – Branch of mathematics
Functions – Association of one output to each input
Partially ordered set – Mathematical set with an ordering
Proofs – Reasoning for mathematical statements
Relation – Relationship between two sets, defined by a set of ordered pairs
^Richard Johnsonbaugh, Discrete Mathematics, Prentice Hall, 2008; James Franklin, Discrete and continuous: a fundamental dichotomy in mathematics, Journal of Humanistic Mathematics 7 (2017), 355-378.
^Weisstein, Eric W. "Discrete mathematics". MathWorld.
and 28 Related for: Outline of discrete mathematics information
Discretemathematics is the study ofmathematical structures that are fundamentally discrete rather than continuous. In contrast to real numbers that have...
Discretemathematics is the study ofmathematical structures that can be considered "discrete" (in a way analogous to discrete variables, having a bijection...
year of university. Outlineof arithmetic Outlineofdiscretemathematics List of calculus topics List of geometry topics Outlineof geometry List of trigonometry...
Mathematics is a field of study that investigates topics such as number, space, structure, and change. Definitions ofmathematics – Mathematics has no...
of mathematics topics Mathematical constant Mathematical sciences Mathematics and art Mathematics education Outlineofmathematics Philosophy of mathematics...
following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to chemistry: Chemistry is the science of atomic matter (matter that is composed of chemical...
Combinatorics is a branch ofmathematics concerning the study of finite or countable discrete structures. Matroid Greedoid Ramsey theory Van der Waerden's...
Computer-assisted research in various areas ofmathematics, such as logic (automated theorem proving), discretemathematics, combinatorics, number theory, and...
topics List of mathematics articles Philosophy List of basic philosophy topics List of philosophy topics Outlineofdiscretemathematics – for introductory...
one of the principal objects of study in discretemathematics. Definitions in graph theory vary. The following are some of the more basic ways of defining...
theory – Useful in artificial intelligence and cybernetics. Discretemathematics - Study ofdiscrete structures. Used in digital computer systems. Graph theory...
branch ofmathematics concerned with questions of shape, size, relative position of figures, and the properties of space. Geometry is one of the oldest...
Many of these are issued in themed series, such as "Advances in design and control", "Financial mathematics" and "Monographs on discretemathematics and...
analysis Combinatorial game theory Combinatorial group theory Discretemathematics List of combinatorics topics Phylogenetics Polynomial method in combinatorics...
Applied mathematics is the application ofmathematical methods by different fields such as physics, engineering, medicine, biology, finance, business,...
Pure mathematics is the study ofmathematical concepts independently of any application outside mathematics. These concepts may originate in real-world...
areas ofmathematics, dynamical systems and number theory. Classically, discrete dynamics refers to the study of the iteration of self-maps of the complex...
applied to approximate discrete problems by continuous ones. In the 18th century, Euler introduced the notion of a mathematical function. Real analysis...
mathematics, the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) converts a finite sequence of equally-spaced samples of a function into a same-length sequence of equally-spaced...
In mathematics, physics, electronics, control systems engineering, and statistics, the frequency domain refers to the analysis ofmathematical functions...
include discrete and continuous random variables, probability distributions, and stochastic processes (which provide mathematical abstractions of non-deterministic...
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to cryptography: Cryptography (or cryptology) – practice and study of hiding information...
statistics, mathematics, science and philosophy to draw conclusions about the likelihood of potential events and the underlying mechanics of complex systems...
Mathematical and theoretical biology, or biomathematics, is a branch of biology which employs theoretical analysis, mathematical models and abstractions...
and its more abstract analogues, often using techniques of real analysis and discretemathematics. It has close connections to convex analysis, optimization...
"The Unreasonable Effectiveness ofMathematics in the Natural Sciences" is a 1960 article written by the physicist Eugene Wigner, published in Communication...