Basic Mathematical Tools

In this chapter we briefly discuss some elements of differential calculus which are important for understanding the content of this book. The reader who is familiar with the theory of tensor fields, Riemannian geometry and symplectic (Poisson) geometry can skip that part, keeping in mind that all important formulas of these formalisms are collected in this chapter. The reader who is less familiar with these mathematical tools will find here necessary knowledge presented in a compact form. For a more comprehensive treatment of the subject we refer the reader to the literature.