Nonlinear equations arise in essentially every branch of modern science, engineering, and mathematics. However, in only a very few special cases is it possible to obtain useful solutions to nonlinear equations via analytical calculations. As a result, many scientists resort to computational methods.

This book contains the proceedings of the Joint AMS-SIAM Summer Seminar, “Computational Solution of Nonlinear Systems of Equations,” held in July 1988 at Colorado State University. The aim of the book is to give a wide-ranging survey of essentially all of the methods which comprise currently active areas of research in the computational solution of systems of nonlinear equations. A number of “entry-level” survey papers were solicited, and a series of test problems has been collected in an appendix. Most of the articles are accessible to students who have had a course in numerical analysis.