Intuitive Concepts in Elementary Topology

Classroom-tested and much-cited, this concise text offers a valuable and instructive introduction for undergraduates to the basic concepts of topology. It takes an intuitive rather than an axiomatic viewpoint, and can serve as a supplement as well as a primary text. A few selected topics allow students to acquire a feeling for the types of results and the methods of proof in mathematics, including mathematical induction. Subsequent problems deal with networks and maps, provide practice in recognizing topological equivalence of figures, examine a proof of the Jordan curve theorem for the special case of a polygon, and introduce set theory. The concluding chapters examine transformations, connectedness, compactness, and completeness. The text is well illustrated with figures and diagrams.