Numerical Analysis using Matlab and Spreadsheets * H y. Z$ p7 _; z' z& UThis book is written primarily for students/readers who have a good background of high-school$ v8 m3 L* n; a# d- I
algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and the fundamentals of differential and integral calculus.* A, r) {4 A. c: S+ C( k2 h4 I- I q. P
prior knowledge of differential equations is desirable but not necessary; this topic is reviewed in& c3 b ]6 X V% V! J
Chapter 5. : }: \6 a- L5 u6 Z7 a* K. A" XOne can use Fortran, Pascal, C, or Visual Basic or even a spreadsheet to solve a difficult problem. 7 Y: b) M5 N ], qIt is the opinion of this author that the best applications programs for solving engineering3 ~" R8 z6 ^$ k, n- Q0 ^
problems are 1) MATLAB which is capable of performing advanced mathematical and . O- U# Z3 ^' | j+ T* R8 L0 O% C, xengineering computations, and 2) the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet since the versatility offered by) U4 I& R$ Y$ c3 i8 R
spreadsheets have revolutionized the personal computer industry. We will assume that the reader. ?( o( w; P4 t
has no prior knowledge of MATLAB and limited familiarity with Excel.