Hailed by the Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society as "a very welcome addition to the mathematical literature," this text is appropriate for advanced undergraduates and graduate students. Written by two internationally renowned mathematicians, it offers an accessible treatment that requires no previous knowledge of algebraic topology. 1963 edition.
Anonymous
Posted August 5, 2012
Yes, it was written long ago, and a lot has changed since, but this book is SO well written, it is well worth it. Especially since it covers the basic core concepts of knot theory, the ideas of how to use topological invariants to study knots, very well.
This book is also a great introduction to the fundamental group and the other homotopy groups. It even has a simple introduction to the idea of a dual cover and a covering group.
So it is really not a serious handicap that the Jones polynomial had not been discovered yet, nor the relevance of the skein relation. Indeed, learning the significance of these is a lot simpler after reading Crowell's book.
Overview
Hailed by the Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society as "a very welcome addition to the mathematical literature," this text is appropriate for advanced undergraduates and graduate students. Written by two internationally renowned mathematicians, it offers an accessible treatment that requires no previous knowledge of algebraic topology. 1963 edition.