The Scope and History of Commutative and Noncommutative Harmonic Analysis

This volume presents a sweeping view of the importance, utility, and beauty of harmonic analysis and its connections to other areas of mathematics and science. It attempts to unify certain themes that emerged after major discoveries in 1967 and 1968 in the areas of Lie algebras, strong interaction physics, statistical mechanics, and nonlinear partial differential equations - discoveries that may at first seem to be independent, but which are in fact deeply interrelated. This book will help specialists learn about fields other than their own and about the relationships among fields. Readers will appreciate the book for its lucid expository presentations and for its wide-ranging treatment of the subject.