Kummer's Quartic Surface

R. W. H. Hudson (Author), W. Barth (Foreword by), H. F. Baker (Preface by)

9780521397902, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 11 October 1990

252 pages
22.8 x 15.2 x 2.3 cm, 0.38 kg

"This famous book is a prototype for the possibility of explaining and exploring a many-faceted topic of research, without focussing on general definitions, formal techniques, or even fancy machinery. In this regard, the book still stands as a highly recommendable, unparalleled introduction to Kummer surfaces, as a permanent source of inspiration and, last but not least. as an everlasting symbol of mathematical culture." Werner Kleinert, Mathematical Reviews

The theory of surfaces has reached a certain stage of completeness and major efforts concentrate on solving concrete questions rather than developing further the formal theory. Many of these questions are touched upon in this classic volume: such as the classification of quartic surfaces, the description of moduli spaces for abelian surfaces, and the automorphism group of a Kummer surface. First printed in 1905 after the untimely death of the author, this work has stood for most of this century as one of the classic reference works in geometry.

1. Kummer's configuration
2. The quartic surface
3. The orthogonal matrix of linear forms
4. Line geometry
5. The quadratic complex and congruence
6. Plucker's complex surface
7. Sets of nodes
8. Equations of Kummer's surface
9. Special forms of Kummer's surface
10. The wave surface
11. Reality and topology
12. Geometry of four dimensions
13. Algebraic curves on the surface
14. Curves of different orders
15. Weddle's surface
16. Theta functions
17. Applications of Abel's theorem
18. Singular Kummer surfaces
Index
Plate.

Subject Areas: Geometry [PBM]