Henryk Zoladek

This book presents the monodromy group, underlining the unifying role it plays in a variety of theories and mathematical areas. In singularity theory and algebraic geometry, the monodromy group is embodied in the Picard-Lefschetz formula and the Picard-Fuchs equations. It has applications in the weakened 16th Hilbert problem and in mixed Hodge structures. In the theory of systems of linear differential equations, one has the Riemann-Hilbert problem, the Stokes phenomena and the hypergeometric functions with their multidimensional generalizations. In the theory of homomorphic foliations, there appear the Ecalle-Voronin-Martinet-Ramis moduli. Moreover, there is a deep connection of monodromy theory with Galois theory of differential equations and algebraic functions. The material is addressed to a wide audience, ranging from specialists in the theory of ordinary differential equations to algebraic geometers. Readers will quickly get introduced to modern and vital mathematical theories, such as singularity theory, analytic theory of ordinary differential equations, holomorphic foliations, Galois theory, and parts of algebraic geometry, without searching in vast literature. This second edition has been enlarged by several sections, presenting new results appeared since the first edition.

The Qualitative Theory of Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) occupies a rather special position both in Applied and Theoretical Mathematics. On the one hand, it is a continuation of the standard course on ODEs. On the other hand, it is an introduction to Dynamical Systems, one of the main mathematical disciplines in recent decades. Moreover, it turns out to be very useful for graduates when they encounter differential equations in their work; usually those equations are very complicated and cannot be solved by standard methods.The main idea of the qualitative analysis of differential equations is to be able to say something about the behavior of solutions of the equations, without solving them explicitly. Therefore, in the first place such properties like the stability of solutions stand out. It is the stability with respect to changes in the initial conditions of the problem. Note that, even with the numerical approach to differential equations, all calculations are subject to a certain inevitable error. Therefore, it is desirable that the asymptotic behavior of the solutions is insensitive to perturbations of the initial state.Each chapter contains a series of problems (with varying degrees of difficulty) and a self-respecting student should solve them. This book is based on Raul Murillo's translation of Henryk Zoladek's lecture notes, which were in Polish and edited in the portal Matematyka Stosowana (Applied Mathematics) in the University of Warsaw.

The book reports on recent work by the authors on the bifurcation structure of singular points of planar vector fields whose linear parts are nilpotent. The bifurcation diagrams of the most important codimension-three cases are studied in detail. The results presented reach the limits of what is currently known on the bifurcation theory of planar vector fields. While the treatment is geometric, special analytical tools using abelian integrals are needed, and are explicitly developed. The rescaling and normalization methods are improved for application here. The reader is assumed to be familiar with the elements of Bifurcation and Dynamical Systems Theory. The book is addressed to researchers and graduate students working in Ordinary Differential Equations and Dynamical Systems, as well as anyone modelling complex multiparametric phenomena.