Errata and Suggestions

Minking Eie and Shou-Te Chang, A Course on Abstract Algebra, 2nd ed., 2018.
2024/02/21

1 Preliminaries

1.1 Basic Ideas of Set Theory

1.2 Functions
Page 7.
The image of f is defined to be

f (A) = {f (x) | x ∈ A} ⊆ B.
(The membership of f (x) in B need (and should) not be included in the set-builder
notation, as it is already specified in the predicate to the right of the vertical bar
and the definition of f .)

1.3 Equivalence Relations and Partitions

Page 13.
Lines 1–2: The outermost curly brackets need not be in larger size, which indeed is
discouraged as inline math.
Then {{1, 3, 5}, {2, 4}, {6}} is a partition of S while {{1, 3, 5}, {2, 4}, {6, 3}} is
not.

1.4 A Note on Natural Numbers

2 Algebraic Structure of Numbers

2.1 The Set of Integers

Page 18.
Line 3b: In the footnote, the equivalence class [(n, n)] is incorrect:
The equivalence class [(n, m)] is called a negative integer and...
Page 19.
Line 2b: An incorrect verb “have”:
Since nZ is a subset of Z, inherits... and has many algebraic properties...
Page 20.
Problem 1 (a) and (b): The second sentence should end in a period, not a question
mark.
If yes, decide whether... and commutative.

1
Page 21.
Problem 3 (b) and (c): The article preceding “multiplicative” should be “a,” not
“an.”
“... a multiplicative identity...” or “... a multiplicative inverse...”

2.2 Congruences of Integers

Page 24.
Line 1b: The title in Table 2.2:
Multiplication tables for U (Z4 ) and U (Z5 )
Page 25.
Line 2b: The curly brackets should be kept in regular size, not in larger size.
{a, 2a, . . . , (p − 1)a} = {1, 2, . . . , p − 1}.

2.3 Rational Numbers

Page 31.
√ √
Lines 2b–1b: The big curly bracket to the left of Q[ 2] and Z[ 2] is unnecessary.

3 Basic Notions of Groups

3.1 Definitions and Examples

Page 39.
Example 3.1.11: As the customary notation a−1 for the inverse of a has not been
introduced until page 42, it is better to avoid this notation here. Thus:
If a ∗ a = a and let b be an inverse to the element a, then

a = e ∗ a = (b ∗ a) ∗ a = b ∗ (a ∗ a) = b ∗ a = e,

3.2 Basic Properties

3.3 Subgroups

3.4 Generating Sets

Page 49.
Line 17. The H has to be a subgroup:
“(2) To show that hSi ⊆ H for a subgroup H, it suffices...”
Line 1b:
In particular, hai = {ak | k ∈ Z}.
Page 50.
Line 17: In Corollary 3.4.4, the subset S has to be specified.
Let S = {a1 , . . . , an } be a subset of an abelian group G. Then

ha1 , . . . , an i = ak11 · · · aknn | k1 , . . . , kn ∈ Z .



2
Line 6b: Problem 2, Exercises 3.4.

ha1 , . . . , an i = {k1 a1 + · · · + kn an | k1 , . . . , kn ∈ Z}.

Page 52.
Lines 3–4: The central inverse b is unique for a given a.
Suppose that (S, ∗) is a semigroup such that for every a ∈ S there exists a unique
b ∈ S such that...

4 Cyclic Groups

4.1 Cyclic Groups

Page 54.
The first sentence is corrected as:
In §3.4 we discussed the concept of “generating sets.”

Page 62.
Line 9: In the last third line of the proof of Corollary 4.2.8, it should be an inequality
between the sumP of md and P the sum of ϕ(d):
... Since n = d|n md ≤ d|n ϕ(d), we have....
P
Also, to justify the first equality n = d|n md , we need Lagrange’s theorem
(Theorem 6.1.1), so it’s better to move this corollary in §6.1.
Page 63.
Problem 4, Review Exercises for Chapter 4: The hypothesis of G being abelian can
be weaken to the commutativity condition: ab = ba. (This can greatly shorten some
proof, for instance, that of Example 9.2.3 on p. 137.)
Page 71.
In the sixth line of Section 5.2, n-lines should be n lines.
Page 75.
Problem 1, Exercises 5.2:
Let α be a rotation of order 10 and...
Page 81.
Line 8: The article “the” and the possessive should not be used together.
This is the well-known Lagrange theorem.
Page 84.
The use of an empty subject “it” is incorrect. The sentence in the proof of Corol-
lary 6.1.5 is corrected as:
This follows from the fact that...
Page 85.
Line 3b–2b in Example 6.1.7: The assertion “However, any permutation in S must
leave one of the vertices of the tetrahedron fixed” is false because the type (2, 2)
element (1 2)(3 4) lies in S . A correction may be made by saying that:

3
 Obviously, the permutation (1 2) that only swaps vertices 1 and 2 and leaves the
other two vertices fixed does not lie in S .
Page 87.
Line 4b: No dash.
We first check that ϕ is well defined.
Page 92.
The statement of Corollary 6.2.8:
If G is a finite group of order pn where p is a prime and n ≥ 1, then...
The proof of Corollary 6.2.8 begins with:
The assertion is certainly valid for an abelian group G of order pn . Assume that
G is not abelian. For each a ∈ G\Z(G), ...
Page 93.
Problem 3, Exercises 6.2: The restriction of the conjugates being belonging to G is
unnecessary when defining the subset gHg −1 . Thus,

gHg −1 = {ghg −1 | h ∈ H}.

Page 93.
Problem 2, Review Exercises for Chapter 6: The condition bp = e should be changed
to o(b) = p. It’s better to specify that k and r are integers, not elements of G.
2. In a group G, let aba−1 = bk , ar = e, o(b) = p, where a, b ∈ G, k, r ∈ Z, and
p ∈ N. Show that k r ≡ 1 (mod p).
Page 93.
Problem 4, Review Exercises for Chapter 6: Drop the hypothesis that G is abelian
and give the result a name (for example, HK-Lemma) for easy reference later
on. This strengthened version will not only make some proofs shorter (for example,
Lemma 9.2.2, p. 136 and Example 9.2.3, p. 137), but also be needed in Corol-
lary 11.1.7, p. 168, and Example 11.2.7, p. 172.
4. Let H and K be subgroups of a finite group G. Suppose that

HK = {hk | h ∈ H, k ∈ K}.

Page 94.
Line 1b: The index of a subgroup without absolute value.

|HaK| = |H| [K : a−1 Ha ∩ K].

Page 95.
Line 3b: The period at the end of the sentence should be enclosed by the quotation
marks.
... what it means for two groups to be “the same.”
Page 96.
Line 6b: The codomain of the function ψ should be R+ .
Line 2b: In Example 7.1.4, avoid using the letter n, already reserved for the
codomain Zn , for an arbitrary element in the domain Z.

4
 ϕ(m + k) = m + k = m + k = ϕ(m) + ϕ(k).

Page 98.
In the 3rd line of Proposition 7.1.8:
be a cyclic group of order n and let G be a group.
In the 3rd line of the proof:
Conversely, let b ∈ G be such that...
In the 6th line of Example 7.1.9:
have that b4k = e0 and thus...
Page 101.
Lines 16–17: Rephrase “isomorphic class” as “isomorphism class.”
Page 102.
Line 4: Rephrase “isomorphic class” as “isomorphism class.”
Page 102.
Line 8: The definiton of ker ϕ is corrected as:
by ker ϕ to be the preimage of e0 , that is, ker ϕ = {g ∈ G | ϕ(g) = e0 }.
Page 103.
Problem 1, Exercises 7.2: The sentence ends at a period, not a question mark.
Determine whether... are isomorphic.
Page 105.
Line 7:
When G is a group and a ∈ G, the function La : G → G defined by...
Page 114.
Line 9b: No dash.
... such an operation is well defined.
Page 116.
Line 3: The assumption in Corollary 8.2.3 that K be finite is unnecessary.
In particular, if G is finite, then...
Line 8b: Both sides are cosets of K, not composition.
It follows that KLa,b = KLa,0 .
Page 117.
Line 5b: In the proof of Theorem 8.2.9:
... for all H ∈ B, ...
Page 118.
Line 3: In the proof of Theorem 8.2.9:
... for all H ∈ B.
Line 7: In the proof of Theorem 8.2.9:
Finally, let H ∈ A and H C G.
Page 119.

5
Lines 4–5: In Problem 3:
Let w1 and w2 be nonzero complex numbers such that...
complex plane are not collinear in the...
Page 120.
Line 4: In the proof of Theorem 8.3.1:
have ϕ(g) = ϕπ(g) = ϕ(g).
Line 10b: A missing period for the last sentence in the proof of Theorem 8.3.1.
This shows that ϕ is one-to-one.
Page 122.
In the 5th line of Example 8.3.9:
This is equivalent to saying...
Page 123.
In the 2nd line of the proof of Theorem 8.3.10:
... straightforward verification that H ∩ K is...
Lines 1–2 of Theorem 8.3.11:
Let ϕ be a group epimorphism from a group G onto a group G0 .
Lines 9, 11, & 13: Unnecessary parentheses look awkward and should be removed.
The notation for the quotient group (HK)/K should be HK/K.
Line 5b: Unnecessary parentheses should be removed:

G ∼ G/K
= .
H H/K

Page 129.
In the 2nd line of Example 9.1.2, a comma is missing:
... the l.c.m. of 24, 36 and 60, which is 360.
Page 130.
Line 5b:
ai = (e1 , . . . , ei−1 , ai , ei+1 , . . . , en ) ∈ Gi
Page 131.
Line 8: Missing bars in item (4):

Gi ∩ G1 · · · Gi−1 Gi+1 · · · Gn = {e}.

Line 10b: A missing comma and a redundant word “of”:
... Gn , which are isomorphic copies of its components...
Page 132.
Line 4b–3b: See Exercise 7.
Page 133.
Line 1: The preposition “above” is better changed to “preceding”:
However, from the discussion preceding Proposition 9.1.4, we can...
Page 134.
In the condition (i) of Exercise 7: Use the plural form of a verb:
(i) the elements of Hi commute with the elements...

6
Page 135.
In the 2nd and 3rd lines of the proof of Theorem 9.2.1, the initial step of induction
is |G| = p, not |G| = 1, because the trivial group does not satisfy the hypothesis of
p being a divisor of |G|. Thus:
Note that |G| > 1. If |G| = p, then by Corollary 6.1.6, G contains an element of
order p.
Page 135.
Line 10b: Replace “If” by “Suppose that”:
(3) Suppose that H is a proper subgroup... to |H|.
Page 136.
Lines 13b–12b: Correct the statement of Lemma 9.2.2:
Lemma 9.2.2. Let G be a group of order pq where p is a positive prime integer
and p > q. Then G contains a normal subgroup of order p. More precisely, every
element of order p generates a normal subgroup of order p.
(The last statement will be needed in the proofs of Example 9.2.3 and Proposi-
tion 9.2.4.)
Page 136.
Lines 5b–3b: One can use the HK-Lemma (Problem 4, Review Exercise for Chap-
ter 6, p. 93) to give a shorter proof of the claim that AB has p2 elements if
A ∩ B = {e}. This is immediate since |AB| = |A||B|/|A ∩ B| = p · p/1 = p2 .
Note that we need the stronger version of the HK-Lemma (without assuming the
group AB to be abelian).
Page 137.
Lines 3–5: The same remark on the HK-Lemma (Problem 4, p. 93) as above applies
here, because one does not know in advance whether haihbi is abelian or not.
Page 138.
Line 14:
Corollary 6.2.8... the center of any finite nontrivial p-group is nontrivial.
Page 139.
In the 2nd and 3rd lines of Proposition 9.3.2, there is no point of stating p1 < p2 <
· · · < pk in the hypothesis:
... where the pi ’s are distinct positive prime integers. Then...
Page 140.
Line 6: It’s better to drop the redundant parentheses in the exponent of g:
where g mj qj ∈ Gpj since...
Line 19: A singular form for the noun “component”:
into the p-component. Once we decompose...
Page 142.
Line 3: In the end of Theorem 9.3.5, the word “factors” seems more appropriate
than “summands” as the groups involved are multiplicative.
unique except for different orderings of the factors.
Line 7:
Example 9.3.6. Let Cn be the cyclic group of order n.

7
Page 146.
Line 10: A pair of missing parentheses for Sym S.
Conversely, a group homomorphism ϕ : G → Sym(S) also...
Page 147.
Line 10: The end-sentence period should be inside the quotation marks:
... and it is extremely “effective.”
Line 9b: An overflow in the expression S = {aH : a ∈ G} at the end of the line.
Page 152.
Line 4: In Theorem 10.2.1, replace the quotient |G|/| StabG xi | by the index [G :
StabG xi ] as G is not assumed to be a finite group.
s
X
(10.2.2) |S| = |SG | + [G : StabG xi ]
i=1
Lines 7 and 10: Similar consideration as above. Either change the statement of
Corollary 10.2.2 to “...let a finite p-group G act on...” or change |G|/| StabG xi | in
the proof to [G : StabG xi ].
Lines 2b–1b: the order |Z(G)| and CG (xi ).
s
X |G|
|G| = |Z(G)| +
|CG (xi )|
i=1

where CG (xi ) is a proper...

Page 153.
Line 1: In Corollary 10.2.4, G must be assumed to be finite and nontrivial.
... and let G be a nontrivial finite p-group,
Page 154.
Line 12: An adjective “trivial.”
... K is clearly seen to be the trivial subgroup, the
Page 156.
Lines 2–3: In Exercise 10.2, Problem 4, delete the sentence, “Show that they are all
isomorphic to the Klein 4-group V ” since this assertion is false.
Line 5: In Problem 5, change “on” to “in.”
... all the normal subgroups in S5 and...
Page 163.
Line 1: Delete the possessive “’s” in “Lagrange’s” as there is already a definite
article “the”:
The well-known Lagrange Theorem tells us that...
Page 171.
Line 9: In Example 11.2.5, replace the sentence “Find subgroups H, K, L..., re-
spectively” by
Let L be the Sylow 17-subgroup of G.
Lines 13 and 23: The order of the group should be 255, not 225.
Line 3b: In Solution to Example 11.2.7, cross out the article “the”:
By Sylow’s Third Theorem, there...
Page 172.

8
Line 9: In Solution to Example 11.2.6, cross out the article “the”:
By Sylow’s Third Theorem, ...
Page 177.
Line 2b: form, not from.
form a basis for the abelian...
Page 181.
Line 14b:
The ai ’s are called the generators for...
Line 6b:
Customarily, one simply uses a...
Line 4b:
Can you see that h∅ : ∅i as well as ha : ai are both...
Page 182.
Line 12: In Solution to Example 12.2.4:
hence the trivial group.
Page 183.
Line 3:
... there is a group homomorphism ψe from Z to G...
Line 9b:
Let G be the group presented above.
Pages 184 and 185.
Lines 4b and 2b, p. 184 and line 1, p. 185: Capitalize the first letter of the sentence
following the colon.
Is there an algorithm...?
Page 186.
Line 6:
... are positive primes: If q - p − 1 then...
Line 12:
..., there exist an element a of... and an element b of...
Page 187.
Line 2b:
Hence bab−1 = a3 = a−1 .
Page 188.
Line 5:
D4 = hx, y : x4 = y 2 = 1, yxy −1 = x−1 i
Line 12b: Start (and indent) a new paragraph. Change “homomorphic” to “homo-
morphism.”
On the other hand, there is a group homomorphism ϕ from...
Page 192.
Problems 8, 9, and 10, Exercises 12.3: The definite article “the” is unnecessary.
Classify groups of order... up to isomorphism.
Page 197.

9
Line 1:
C[0, 1] becomes... with the unit function 1(x) = 1 as...
Line 15: In Proposition 13.1.10, the parentheses for ab is unnecessary.
(b) a(−b) = (−a)b = −ab;
Lines 10b–9b:
(b) ... It follows that a(−b) = −ab. We can similarly show that (−a)b = −ab.
Page 201.
Problem 13, Exercises 13.1:
Show that in a commutative ring R with unity,
Page 204.
Lines 7b & 2b:
... brute force...
Page 205.
Line 1:
This is the well-known Lagrange Theorem which...
Line 9:
... real quaternions a + bi + cj + dk ∈ H can also be...
Page 208.
Problem 2, Review Exercises for Chapter 13:
If a2 = 0 in a ring R, show that...
Problem 9: The zero divisors are only defined for nonzero elements.
Show that a nonzero matrix A ∈ Mn (F ) is...
———————————————————————————————————–
(2021/02/18)

Page 213.
Problem 3, Exercises 14.1:
Show that a ring R with identity is a division ring if... the only left ideals of R.
Page 214.
Problem 7, Exercises 14.1:
... Show that kZ + `Z = dZ and... where d is a g.c.d. of...
Section 14.2:
Let I be a two-sided ideal...
Page 216.
Line 9: Incorrect article “the.”
(1) A proper ideal P is called a prime ideal...
Line 11:
(2) A proper ideal M is called a maximal ideal...
Page 218.
Line 1: Unnecessary symbols “I =”.
On the other hand, 5Z[i] = ...

10
Page 219.
Problem 2: It’s better to assume that R has a unity. The unnecessary condition for
ij or st belonging to R should be avoid.
Let I, J and K be ideals of a commutative ring R with unity.
(a) Show that {ij : i ∈ I, j ∈ J} is not...
(b) Suppose... IJ is generated by {st : s ∈ S, t ∈ T }.
Page 220.
Problem 4: It’s better to assume that R has a unity.
... we say an ideal I is a radical...
Page 223.
Line 8:
(5) We say a ring R is isomorphic to a ring S, ...
Example 15.1.5:
Let C[0, 1] be the ring... functions on [0, 1].
Page 224.
Line 9b:
Let I be a two-sided ideal of R.
Line 1b:

ϕ(ab) = · · · = ϕ(a)ϕ(b)

Page 227.
Problem 4, Exercises 15.1: An unnecessary symbol R.
Show that every... into a ring is a monomorphism.
Page 228.
Theorem 15.2.1 (Chinese Remainder Theorem). Let I and... in a commutative
ring R with identity.
Page 230.
Line 10: A missing article “the.”
As an application of the Chinese Remainder Theorem, ...
Line 6b: A missing period.

ϕ(n) = |U (Zn )| = · · · = ϕ(pα1 1 )ϕ(pα2 2 )ϕ(pαs s ).

Page 232.
Line 8b: A missing “that”:
It follows that
Line 1b: An unnecessary “that”:
... we do have bd 6= 0.
Page 234.
Line 1:

11
 Define a map i from D to Q by letting i(a) = a/1.
Line 14:
Lemma 15.3.6. Let ϕ be a nontrivial ring homomorphism from...
(or change the statement (a) as ϕ(1) = 1 if ϕ(1) 6= 0;)
Page 235.
Line 1:
Of course, ψ is one-to-one since...
Lines 5–6: A missing condition:
Let ψ 0 be any ring homomorphism from Q to F such that ϕ = ψ 0 i.
Page 236.
Lines 1–2: A singular form of “field”:
... clearly shows that Q is the quotient field of Z.
Page 237.
√
Problem 2, Exercises 15.3: Delete √ condition a + b 2 ∈ Q.
√ the incorrect
Find the quotient field of Z[ 2] = {a + b 2 : a, b ∈ Z}.
Problem 4: Cross out the unnecessary condition ab−1 ∈ F ; this is automatically
fulfilled.
Let Q = {ab−1 : a, b ∈ D, b 6= 0}.
Page 238.
Problem 1, Review Exercises for Chapter 15: Correct part (b) as follows.
(b) Since Ra is an ideal of R, it is also an R-submodule of R. Show that
R ∼
= Ra (as R-modules).
annR (a)

Problem 3:
Show that the only nontrivial ring homomorphism of R into R is...
Problem 7: Delete the condition ap ∈ F , which is unnecessary. The elements ap are
certainly in F .

F p = {ap : a ∈ F } and K = {a ∈ F : ap = a}

Page 240.
Line 6b:
Our main interest lies in the case when R is commutative with unity, ...
Page 241.
Line 14: A missing preposition “in”:
addition and multiplication are defined in the same way.
Page 243.
Line 7:
Define ηe : R[x] → S by sending... to ni=0 η(ai )ui .
P

Page 228.
Problem 7, Exercises 16.1:

12
 ... The field F (x) is called the rational function field of x over F .
... Show that Q(x) is the...
Page 246.
Line 1: The last statement in Proposition 16.2.3:
In particular, if F is a field, the units...
Lines 13–14: The polynomial f (x) has to be given in Theorem 16.2.4:
Let R be a commutative ring with identity and f (x) ∈ R[x].
Page 250.
Line 4:
We call an integral domain in which every ideal is a principal ideal a principal
ideal domain or simply a PID.
Line 9:
Proposition 15.3.1. Let F [x] be a... over a field F .
Line 3b: Give condition (i) a name for future reference, for example, in the proof of
Theorem 16.3.4.
(i) (Division Algorithm) for all a, b ∈ D, b 6= 0, there exist q and r in D...
Page 251.
Line 7: An awkward equality sign is replaced by “is”:
Remember that the norm of a + bi ∈ C is N (a + bi) = a2 + b2 .
Page 252.
Line 3: The case of r = 0 must be included:

b = aq + r, r=0 or v(r) < v(a).

Line 6:
Corollary 16.3.5. Let D be a Euclidean domain...
Line −2: In the footnote, the issue number of the article is missing.
... Mathematics Magazine, 46 (1973), no. 1, 34–38.
Page 253.
Problem 6, Exercises 16.3: An incorrect article:
Show that F [x, y], the polynomial ring... over a field F , is not...
Page 254.
Problem 5, Review Exercises for Chapter 15: An incorrect article:
(a) ... Show that one can find an infinite sequence of proper ideals
Page 255.
Line 2:
... he could prove that there were no positive integer solutions to...
Line 3:
However he lamented, “I have discovered...
Line 6:
... referred to as “Fermat’s last problem.”
Line 2b:
... (1962–) in September 1994.

13
Line 1b:
... is now referred to as “Fermat’s Last Theorem.”
Page 256.
Line 10: Insert the definition of a | b preceding Lemma 17.1.1.
Suppose a and b are elements in a commutative ring R and a 6= 0. We say a
divides b, denoted a | b, if b = ar for some r in R.
Line 11: Insert the assumption that a 6= 0 and b 6= 0 in the hypothesis.
Lemma 17.1.1. Let D be an integral domain and a and b be nonzero elements.
Then...
Line 15:
... if b | a then a = bu for some..., and if a | b then b = av for some...
Page 257.
Line 1:
Proof. Let f (x) ∈ F [x] be a linear polynomial.
Line 6:
By Corollary 16.2.7, ...
Line 7b:
... polynomials of degree 2 over Z2 are x2 , x2 + 1 = (x + 1)2 , ...
Page 258.
Line 9b:
If 2 = xy is reducible in Z[i], then...
Line 3b: √
If 3 = xy is reducible in Z[i 5], then...
Page 259.
Line 6:
Let p be a prime element in an integral domain D.
Page 260.
Line 6:
between the points a in C and...
Lines 9–10:
between the points (a1 , a2 , . . . , an ) in Cn and...
Page 262.
Line 13: Spacing between pi and ’s is too wide.
where the pi’s are distinct irreducible elements. Then
Page 263.
Line 4: Incorrect punctuation marks: three dots, not six dots.

(a1 ) ⊆ (a2 ) ⊆ (a3 ) ⊆ · · · ,

Line 10b:

a2 | a1 , a3 | a2 , a4 | a3 , a5 | a4 , a6 | a5 , . . .

14
Page 264.
Line 3:

a2 | a1 , a3 | a2 , a4 | a3 , a5 | a4 , a6 | a5 , . . . .

Page 265.
Line 14: Use “an” before l.c.m.
We call m a least common multiple, or simply an l.c.m.,
Line 18:
When m is an l.c.m.,
Page 267.
Lines 3–4: In Lemma 17.2.10:
If (a, b) is a principal ideal (d), then...
Line 11: Delete the remark “(or Corollary 17.1.11)”, since here in the whole argu-
ment we are using the gcd condition instead of the primeness condition.
Line 14:
(a1 ) ⊆ (a2 ) ⊆ (a3 ) ⊆ · · · ,

Line 8b: In Corollary 17.2.12:

In a principal ideal domain D, such as F [x]...
Page 269.
Problem 8, Exercise 17.2:
Let R = {a0 + a1 x + · · · + an xn ∈ Q[x] : a0 ∈ Z}.
Line 11:
Rings such as Z[x] are more difficult...
Page 272.
Line 10: In the proof of Theorem 17.3.1:
primitive polynomial f over D such that fi = c(fi )f for all i ≥ N .
Line 13:
fN +M ∼ fN +M +1 ∼ · · · over D. Thus, D[x] satisfies...
Page 273.
Line 13b: In the proof of Theorem 17.3.11:
Mapping this relation into (D/pD)[x], we have
Page 274.
Line 16: Incorrect exponents of y.
p  
X p
f (y) = ... = y j−1 .
j
j=1

Lines 18–19:
... by Eisenstein’s criterion (or by the Eisenstein criterion).

15
Page 275.
Problem 1, Exercises 16.3: Associate, not equal.
Show that c(f g) ∼ c(f )c(g).
Problem 2, Exercises 16.3: Change the polynomial to
p(x) = x4 − 2x2 + 8x − 1
Page 330.
Line 3b:
... the rational function field F (x).
Page 331.
Line 10b: In the proof of Proposition 21.1.1:
... polynomial over F by Theorem 17.1.10.
Page 334.
Line 13b:
Theorem 21.2.2. Let D be an integral domain containing a field F .
Line 6b:
... that F (α) = F [α] ⊆ D. Hence α−1 ∈ D.
Page 335.
Line 11: The condition vi wj ∈ L is unnecessary to impose.

B = {vi wj | 1 ≤ i ≤ m, 1 ≤ j ≤ n}

Page 336.
Line 2: It should be “This.”
This implies that cij = 0 for all...
Line 7:
Then Fn /F0 is a finite extension and
Line 10b: It should be
√ “This.”
This means that 3 =...
Line 4b: An extra pair of parentheses is placed on the far left side, and should be
discarded.

a2 + 2b2 − 3 = 2ab = 0.

Page 337.
Lines 9–10: √ √ √
we have [Q[ 2 + 3] : Q] ≥ [Q[ 6] : Q] = 2.
Page 338.
Line 16: Boldfaced Q for the rational numbers.
In fact, Q is countable...
Page 340.

16
Line 10:
... be the union of Sr and
Page 341.
Line 13b:
numbers z1 , . . . , zn where z1 = 0 and z2 = 1.
Lines 13b–12b:
The complex numbers in the set C(z1 , . . . , zn ) which corresponds to...
Page 342.
Lines 11–12: An incorrect punctuation mark:
A number in C(z1 , . . . , zn ) ∩ R is called a constructible real; it is easy...
Page 345.
Line 11b: In the second statement of Lemma 21.3.6:
(b) The field C is closed under taking square roots, that is,...
Page 346.
Lines 8–9:
Proposition 21.3.7. Let n ≥ 2, z1 = 0, z2 = 1, z3 , . . . , zn ∈ C. Then the set
C(z1 , . . . , zn ) is the smallest subfield... and taking square roots.
Line 11:
closed under conjugation and taking square roots.
Lines 6b–5b:
Numbers in Si+1 are simultaneous solutions to such...
Page 347.
Line 13b:
where all the ik ’s and jk ’s are integers and i1 , j1 ≥ 0.
Line 11b:
Let F be the union of all square root towers in C over K.
Line 9b:
conjugation and taking square roots.
Page 348.
Line 1:
where all the ik ’s are integers.
Lines 7–8:
...under taking square root.
Line 12:
... containing K and closed under taking square roots.
Line 17:
Let z belong in a square root tower...
Page 349.
Problem 5, Exercises 21.3:
(a) Show that Φ5 (x) = ....
Page 350.

17
Lines 5 and 6: The concurrence of an article and a possessive case (’s) is not gram-
matically justified. Thus:
A prime integer is called a Fermat prime if...
So far, 3, 5, 17, 257 and 65537 are all the Fermat primes...
Page 353.
Line 13:
over Q[α]. The splitting field...
Lines 3b–2b:
... by the Eisenstein criterion.
Page 356.
Lines 8–9:
Theorem 22.2.1. Let η be a nontrivial ring homomorphism from a field F to...
Line 6b:
If η : K → L is a nontrivial ring homomorphism...
Page 357.
Lines 9 & 17: The problems in fact ask for nontrivial ring endomorphisms.
Example 22.2.3. How many nontrivial ring endomorphisms of...
Example 22.2.4. How many nontrivial ring endomorphisms of...
Page 358.
Line 4: Change a’s to α’s.
E = F (α1 , . . . , αn ). It follows that E = K(α1 , . . . , αn ) since F ⊆ K ⊆ E.
Line 16:
... homomorphism η 0 : F [α] → E 0 sending...
Page 360.
Line 8:
By the Factor Theorem, ...
Page 364.
Line 2:
... the only non-vanishing terms in f (x) are those...
Page 365.
Line 5:
... by Eisenstein’s criterion.
Page 367.
Line 13b:
... any α ∈ F ∗ by Lagrange’s Theorem (see Corollary 6.1.4). This then implies
that αp = α for...
Page 373.
Line 9b:
... any of its conjugates over Q in F , that is, to α or to ±iα. The coefficients...
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