The goal of this book is to introduce the reader to some of the most frequently used techniques in modern global geometry. Suited to the beginning graduate student willing to specialize in this very challenging field, the necessary prerequisite is a good knowledge of several variables calculus, linear algebra and point-set topology.

The book’s guiding philosophy is, in the words of Newton, that “in learning the sciences examples are of more use than precepts”. We support all the new concepts by examples and, whenever possible, we tried to present several facets of the same issue.

While we present most of the local aspects of classical differential geometry, the book has a “global and analytical bias”. We develop many algebraic-topological techniques in the special context of smooth manifolds such as Poincaré duality, Thom isomorphism, intersection theory, characteristic classes and the Gauss–Bonnet theorem.

We devoted quite a substantial part of the book to describing the analytic techniques which have played an increasingly important role during the past decades. Thus, the last part of the book discusses elliptic equations, including elliptic L^p and Hölder estimates, Fredholm theory, spectral theory, Hodge theory, and applications of these. The last chapter is an in-depth investigation of a very special, but fundamental class of elliptic operators, namely, the Dirac type operators.

The second edition has many new examples and exercises, and an entirely new chapter on classical integral geometry where we describe some mathematical gems which, undeservedly, seem to have disappeared from the contemporary mathematical limelight.

Contents:

• Manifolds
• Natural Constructions on Manifolds
• Calculus on Manifolds
• Riemannian Geometry
• Elements of the Calculus of Variations
• The Fundamental Group and Covering Spaces
• Cohomology
• Characteristic Classes
• Classical Integral Geometry
• Elliptic Equations on Manifolds
• Dirac Operators

Reviews of the First Edition

“… the greatest virtue of the book, is its presentation of a large number of interesting, significant, and up-to-the-minute examples … In all, this would be an excellent text and reference for an introductory course or series of courses in this active area of mathematics.”

“The book is marked by its clear presentation, contains many exercises and is illustrated by numerous detailed examples.”