The Proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem

Boston N.

This book will describe the recent proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem by Andrew Wiles, aided by Richard Taylor, for graduate students and faculty with a reasonably broad background in algebra. It is hard to give precise prerequisites but a first course in graduate algebra, covering basic groups, rings, and fields together with a passing acquaintance with number rings and varieties should suffice. Algebraic number theory (or arithmetical geometry, as the subject is more commonly called these days) has the habit of taking last year’s major result and making it background taken for granted in this year’s work. Peeling back the layers can lead to a maze of results stretching back over the decades.