Numerical Analysis using Matlab and Spreadsheets+ l5 c) U9 J& p
This book is written primarily for students/readers who have a good background of high-school : S& P$ y2 ~- _2 a) @algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and the fundamentals of differential and integral calculus.* A a' k$ i, S7 Y7 A- U* _prior knowledge of differential equations is desirable but not necessary; this topic is reviewed in 9 S8 N6 c; M* _! b) c& GChapter 5.* ]. ~/ z/ h( k; d, h
One can use Fortran, Pascal, C, or Visual Basic or even a spreadsheet to solve a difficult problem. + f* o( Q! g5 f) \& jIt is the opinion of this author that the best applications programs for solving engineering0 j# i& c/ w6 S& S7 G( ]: L- v
problems are 1) MATLAB which is capable of performing advanced mathematical and " x& S0 S7 U) F1 a. p* zengineering computations, and 2) the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet since the versatility offered by0 d" P- m; S6 X, d
spreadsheets have revolutionized the personal computer industry. We will assume that the reader- c+ N( q o0 X) }" k1 P
has no prior knowledge of MATLAB and limited familiarity with Excel.