Subject Portal » Mathematics » Course Guides »

Need Help?

Terri Freedman, Head, Collier Science Library (BMC)
Dora Wong, Science Librarian (HC)
Meg Spencer, Science Librarian (SC)

Sections:

Browsing - for idea generation
Search - to find information on a known topic
Reserve Books for Math 399

Databases A-Z:

Other:

Math 399 : Library Resources for Math Thesis Writers (HC)

Browsing - for idea generation:

Books

Browsing is most useful when there is a finite number of items to sort through. For example, by going to the right section of the books stacks, you can browse books grouped together by the same subject. All math works fall under the general LC class QA. Some rough divisions as follows:

QA5 Dictionaries and encyclopedias
QA95 Mathematical recreations
QA150-255 Algebra
QA241-246 Number Theory
QA273 -280 Probabilities. Mathematical Statistics
QA299.6 - 433 Analysis
QA440 - 699 Geometry. Trigonometry. Topology.
QA801 -939 Analytic Mechanics

Journals

Here are some fun, accessible journals that publish insightful expositions written to inform readers who are new to a topic. Some titles will have current developments in math research, history of math, cultural connections with math and math education and learning. Many book reviews are found here, as well as humor, puzzles and art.

The Mathematical Intelligencer

Print only. Current and bound issues: QA1 .M42

American mathematical monthly

Holdings:
(Bryn Mawr College) Available from 1894-2007.
(Haverford College) Available from 1894-2007.
(Swarthmore College) Available from 1894-2007.

Publisher: Kidder, Mo. : Chubbock Bros.,

Bulletin (new series) of the American Mathematical Society

Holdings:
(Bryn Mawr College) Available from 1891-present.
(Haverford College) Available from 1891-present.
(Swarthmore College) Available from 1891-present.

Publisher: [Providence, R.I.] : American Mathematical Society,

Mathematics magazine

Holdings:
(Bryn Mawr College) Available from 1947-present.
(Haverford College) Available from 1947-2007.
(Swarthmore College) Available from 1947-2007.

Publisher: Pacoima, Calif. : Mathematics Magazine,

Notices of the American Mathematical Society

Lots of information useful to the mathematics major - from accessible articles to state of math education to doctoral program information. Also information on upcoming conferences and career news on this site.

Search - to find information on a known topic:

Encyclopedias, Handbooks and Dictionaries

Many handbooks serve as overviews of a topic and are available for checkout. For example, individual volumes of the Encyclopedia of mathematics and its applications series are listed as individual volumes and are shelved in regular stacks. To find these, do a keyword search in Tripod, using the expression: (encyclopedia or handbook or dictionary) and mathematics. Substitute your own topic keyword as appropriate, e.g. for a handbook on combinatorics, do a keyword search with (encyclopedia or handbook or dictionary) and combinatorics. Browse through the list. While examining particularly good hits, click on the subject heading to see more in the same classification.

MathWorld

Official Description: "MathWorld^TM is the web's most extensive mathematical resource, provided as a free service to the world's mathematics and internet communities as part of a commitment to education and educational outreach by Wolfram Research, makers of Mathematica." Many interactive and animated pages for numerous math topics.

The Online Encyclopaedia of Mathematics

From official description: "Terms alphabetically. This online edition comprises more than 8,000 entries and illuminates nearly 50,000 notions in mathematics. The Encyclopaedia of Mathematics is updated on a regular basis.

Wikipedia

Quite a useful collection. Use as springboard for inspiration but corroborate with authoritative sources with known authors with proper credentials and affiliation.

Britannica online

Including Britannica's entire encyclopaedic database, articles not yet in the print Britannica encyclopedia. Current Coverage. Math topics cover related ideas and mathematicians.

Databases - to find articles & books

MathSciNet

Provider: AMS

This is the web interface to access the database Mathematical Reviews. It provides citations to the world's mathematical literature including journal articles, conference proceedings, and books. Topics covered include all aspects of mathematics, statistics, and related areas. Cover 1940-present.

JSTOR

Provides full-text and page images from many of the top journals in most academic disciplines. Coverage is from the inception of the journal through three to five years ago.

Front for the Mathematics ArXiv

Excerpted from the site iFAQ :"The mathematics arXiv was formed from a number of smaller mathematical archives, with some in the arXiv system and some elsewhere, at the beginning of 1998. The system as a whole has over 200,000 articles in physics, over 20,000 in mathematics, and over 2,000 in computer science. The ultimate goal is to distribute all new research literature in all three disciplines worldwide, to store it permanently, and to keep it freely available...This includes not only formal new results, but also summaries, survey articles, expositions, informal notes, and software, as long they are somehow useful for other research mathematicians."

Search Engines

Google Scholar

This taps scholarly resources such as referreed math journals, preprints, society websites and faculty websites. The results are ranked by the number of citations and the reputation of the citing source. You can configure the preference to link to Tripod so that you can immediately link to the full text of the article or find the call number of a book if we have it. Often if you see another link that says something like "Group of 5", it offers you more ways to find the same item. See search tips from Google - a few minute can save you lots of time.

Google Books

Search full text of books, old and new, to see images of the pages. Then borrow the trico copies or ask for a copy through EZ Borrow or Interlibrary Loan.

Reserve Books for Math 399:

Find out what have been set aside for Thesis Writers

Haverford Math Theses Archive

This is a list of math theses through the years, sorted in reverse chronological order. The theses are available for use in the library. They are shelved behind the Z call number in the journals compact shelving.