Mathematical Methods for Molecular Science: Theory and Applications, Visualizations and Narrative

Straub’s stunning new text is an excellent choice for a one-semester course on mathematical methods, an affordable supplement for physical chemistry courses, or a self-study guide.
This brilliant new text by John Straub (Boston University) is designed to bridge the “mathematics knowledge gap” between what is commonly known by students after completing a year of introductory calculus, and what is required for success in the physical sciences and in physical chemistry courses. Key concepts from the introductory calculus sequence are reviewed and carefully selected topics in multivariate calculus, probability and statistics, ordinary differential equations, and linear algebra are explored. Additional chapters cover advanced topics, including partial differential equations, Fourier analysis, and group theory. Engaging narratives, fully worked examples, hundreds of colorful visualizations, and ample end-of-chapter problems with complete answers combine to make this stunning new text an excellent choice for a one-semester course on mathematical methods, as a supplement for courses in physical chemistry, or as a self-study guide. Ancillaries for adopting faculty include in-class worksheets, sample exams, and an answer manual.

John E. Straub is Professor of Chemistry at Boston University.  He received his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Maryland at College Park, where he worked with Millard H. Alexander, and his Ph.D. in Chemical Physics from Columbia University, where he worked with Bruce J. Berne. He was a NIH Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University, where he worked with Martin Karplus.  He has been a visiting professor at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Nagoya University in Japan, Montana State University, and Université Grenoble Alpes. His research in theoretical and computational molecular science explores the dynamics and thermodynamics of proteins, membranes, and complex molecular assemblies, as well as algorithmic development for optimization, enhanced sampling, and long-time dynamics. He has served as President of the Telluride Science Research Center (TSRC), as Phi Beta Kappa National Visiting Scholar, and as Associate Editor of The Journal of Chemical Physics.