A course in enumeration

Includes index

Includes bibliographical references

Introduction
Basics
1 Fundamental coefficients
2 Formal series and infinite matrices
3 Methods
4 Generating functions
5 Hypergeometric summation
6 Sieve methods
7 Enumeration of patterns
8 Topics
9 The Catalan connection
10 Symmetric functions
11 Counting polynomials
12 Models from statistical Physics

This book leads the reader from the basic notations to a variety of topics in combinatorial enumeration, ranging from algebra to statistical physics. Its aim is to introduce the student to a fascinating field, and to be a source of information for the professional mathematician who wants to learn more about the subject. There are 666 exercises, and as a special feature every chapter ends with a highlight, discussing a particularly beautiful or famous result.