Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1998 11:35:10 +0900 From: Andrzej Kozlowski Subject: Re: computer pictures On Sun, Dec 20, 1998, DON DAVIS wrote: >>From rajlakmi@hd1.vsnl.net.in Fri Dec 18 07:13:35 1998 >Return-Path: >From: TECCONS ENMAG GROUP COS R RAJGOPAL >To: >Subject: Fw: from a topology student needing help >Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1998 17:53:11 +0530 > > >Subject: from a topology student needing help > > >Hi.My name is Ambica Rajagopal.I am an undergraduate student in >mathematics at an Indian university,Birla Institute Of Technology And >Science,Pilani. >Last semester I did an introductory course in general topology.Since I >took to the subject I am doing a further course in algebraic topology >next semester. >For an upcoming academic festival I would like to do the following: >show lifting of path homotopies to a covering space pictorially on the >computer,use it to explain how spaces are topologically >different(because of difference in their first fundamental groups) and >if possible use the above ideas to prove a corollary of the Van Kampen >theorem . >the idea is to picturise on the computer what actually happens in the >above discussions making the concepts easier to grasp. >Could you suggest some software that would be the easiest to work out >the above ideas on? >looking forward to hearing from you, >Ambica. >ambiks@hotmail.com >or >fd96358@bits-pilani.ac.in >(after the 3rd of January) >=20 The best program for this purpose I know of is Mathematica, but it takes some time and effort to learn to use it. To see the sort of things that can be done take a look at the illustrations in "Three-Dimensional Geometry and Topology" by W.P. Thurston. The best way to learn Mathematica graphic programming is (probably) from "The Mathematica Graphics Guidebook" by C. Smith and N. Blachman. Andrzej Kozlowski Toyama International University JAPAN http://sigma.tuins.ac.jp/ http://eri2.tuins.ac.jp/