Nonlinear Dynamics and Chaotic Phenomena

Bhimsen K. Shivamoggi

This book has grown out of the author's lecture notes for an interdisciplinary graduate-level course on nonlinear dynamics. The author describes in a clear and coherent way the basic concepts, language and results of nonlinear dynamical systems. In order to allow for an interdisciplinary readership, an informal style has been adopted and the mathematical formalism kept to a minimum. The book starts with a discussion of nonlinear differential equations, bifurcation theory and Hamiltonian dynamics. It then embarks on a systematic discussion of the traditional topics of modern nonlinear dynamics - integrable systems, Poincaré maps, chaos, fractals and strange attractors. Baker's transformation, the logistic map and the Lorenz system are discussed in detail. Finally, there are systematic discussions of the application of fractals to turbulence in fluids, and the Painlevé property of...