Mathematics is a fascinating field. The ancient Greeks were so mesmerized by it that they formed a religion around the worship of numbers. Today, mathematics is used all around us in everything from baking to electrical engineering. There's no reason not to be totally in love with it, right? Well, not exactly. Despite its usefulness, math can be very difficult. Many people find this to be both frustrating and discouraging, especially when they first encounter algebra. This mathematics guide is aimed towards helping you understand-and hopefully enjoy-the fundamentals of algebra. The topics covered include algebraic expressions, equations and inequalities, relations and functions, polynomial and rational functions, exponential and rational functions, and systems of equations and inequalities. I know that sounds like a lot, but we're going to cover every topic at a gentle pace, showing how all of these topics are related and how they can be understood with just a little bit of work. (Sorry, but there's no way around doing work if you want to understand algebra.) By the time you finish reading this guide, you should love math as much the Greeks who worshipped it - well, you'll at least come out of it understanding the basics of algebra