Before diving into the text, it is worth understanding the author. Shlomo Sternberg (1936–present) is a renowned mathematician working in geometry, topology, and Lie theory. A professor at Harvard University, Sternberg is famous for his collaboration with Victor Guillemin on symplectic geometry and with David Kazhdan on representation theory. His approach is characteristically Bourbaki-esque: precise, abstract, and elegant, but never divorced from physical motivation. This unique blend makes him one of the few mathematicians who can write for physicists without condescension, and for mathematicians without irrelevance.
