This textbook is an introduction to Scientific Computing. We will
illustrate several numerical methods for the computer solution of cer-
tain classes of mathematical problems that cannot be faced by paper
and pencil. We will show how to compute the zeros or the integrals
of continuous functions, solve linear systems, approximate functions by
polynomials and construct accurate approximations for the solution of
differential equations.
With this aim, in Chapter 1 we will illustrate the rules of the game
that computers adopt when storing and operating with real and complex
numbers, vectors and matrices.
In order to make our presentation concrete and appealing we will adopt
the programming environment MATLAB @ 1 as a faithful companion.
We will gradually discover its principal commands, statements and con-
structs. We will show how to execute all the algorithms that we intro-
duce throughout the book. This will enable us to furnish an immediate
quantitative assessment of their theoretical properties such as stability,
accuracy and complexity. We will solve several problems that will be
raised through exercises and examples, often stemming from specific ap-
plications.