From the Preface:...Magnus has had such a profound influence on combinatorial group theory because many of his ideas, startingly and strikingly simple, have provided not only deep insights into a very difficult subject but also powerful methods for dealing with these difficulties...His ideas have also found application in topology, K-theory, the theory of Lie and associative algebras, computational complexity, and also in logic.The expert in group theory, however, will be astonished to find that this reprinting of Magnus' papers contains a very large amount of very important work on diffraction problems and related topics in analysis. Indeed Magnus is one of the very few mathematicians who has done significant work in two completely different fields. There is a large number of mathematicians who know Magnus for his work in analysis but are totally unaware of his work in group theory...His books, his teaching...his many doctoral students, his effect on the thinking of his colleagues both in private conversation and in seminars have also helped to establish him as a mathematician of the first rank and enriched the mathematical community.