Number theory has a long and distinguished history and the concepts and problems relating to the subject have been instrumental in the foundation of much of mathematics. In this book, Professor Baker describes the rudiments of number theory in a concise, simple and direct manner. Though most of the text is classical in content, he includes many guides to further study which will stimulate the reader to delve into the great wealth of literature devoted to the subject. The book is based on Professor Baker's lectures given at the University of Cambridge and is intended for undergraduate students of mathematics.
Alan Baker was an English mathematician, known for his work on effective methods in Number theory, in particular those arising from transcendence theory. He was awarded the Fields Medal in 1970, at age 31. His academic career started as a student of Harold Davenport, at University College London and later at Cambridge. He was a visiting scholar at the Institute for Advanced Study in the fall of 1970. He is a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. His interests were in number theory, transcendence, logarithmic form, effective methods, Diophantine geometry and Diophantine analysis. In 2012 he became a fellow of the American Mathematical Society.