Lectures on the h-Cobordism Theorem (Princeton Legacy Library)

Important lectures on differential topology by acclaimed mathematician John Milnor These are notes from lectures that John Milnor delivered as a seminar on differential topology in 1963 at Princeton University. These lectures give a new proof of the h-cobordism theorem that is different from the original proof presented by Stephen Smale. Milnor's goal was to provide a fully rigorous proof in terms of Morse functions. This book remains an important resource in the application of Morse theory.