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Does anyone have adequate resources to share on learning Math "from scratch"? I must shamefully admit that anything beyond the basic symbols is entirely foreign to me.
It may not seem obvious to everyone, but the value is taking the notes (helps learning significantly), not reading them without context after the fact. People who are interested in learning a subject without attending lectures would be better served by a textbook in the field.
If I had had the foresight to bring along a cassette recorder, that would have been the context. But I didn't, and neither did anyone else. Of course, there's no way I could have afforded the large number of cassette tapes, either, so the point is moot.
It's too bad all those lectures are lost to history.
Does anyone have adequate resources to share on learning Math "from scratch"? I must shamefully admit that anything beyond the basic symbols is entirely foreign to me.
It might help to clarify what type of Math you want to learn. E.g., right now I'm learning discrete math to improve my understanding of algorithms.
Does anyone have adequate resources to share on learning Math "from scratch"? I must shamefully admit that anything beyond the basic symbols is entirely foreign to me.
I got a few of them and whilst they may have gathered some dust... They seem great! Also obliged to recommend Khan Academy and the 3Blue1Brown youtube channel - but they are probably best for fun/inspiration
[0] 'Mathematics for the adventurous self-learner' -https://www.neilwithdata.com/mathematics-self-learner
[1] If I knew zero maths I'd probably check out the basics on Khan Academy or maybe get a tutor
From the authors website... "These notes are of pretty poor quality, since with I was lost with high probability when I wrote them"
That does raise the question though as to why the notes have garnered enough attention to necessitate such a comment from the author. Maybe it isn't a good idea to use these notes as reference, but they are of some value. At the very least it is interesting to see that such a large repository of notes of this form exists. The only other collection that is similar to this that I know of is https://dec41.user.srcf.net/…
1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_term#United_Kingdom
Does anyone have adequate resources to share on learning Math "from scratch"? I must shamefully admit that anything beyond the basic symbols is entirely foreign to me.
The other piece of general advice is to define what it means to learn math. You only learn math by solving problems with it. Do the exercises. The theory is only there to enable you to do the exercises/problem sets.
preferably on paper and pencil (yes even for sets of differential equations where you have to track 14 complex variables over multiple steps and you fuck up your answer because you mis-copied an exponent on line 12 of 35 lines. It is slow and difficult on paper, and that is an advantage when you are learning).
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It might help to clarify what type of Math you want to learn. E.g., right now I'm learning discrete math to improve my understanding of algorithms.
You're right, I'm a developer so anything that could help me with algorithms is welcomed. I also have a growing interest in 3D so I suppose linear algebra?
If you want to review math fundamentals (high school math), the No Bullshit Guide to Mathematics will be good for you—condensed material for adult learners. Preview: https://minireference.com/static/excerpts/noBSmath_v5_previe... Concept map: https://minireference.com/static/conceptmaps/math_concepts.p...
For linear algebra, check No Bullshit Guide to Linear Algebra. Preview: https://minireference.com/static/excerpts/noBSLA_v2_preview.... Concept map: https://minireference.com/static/conceptmaps/linear_algebra_...
You can find them in print on the amazons and in digital form on gumroad.
Oh and as a general tip: make sure to do some problems while studying/reviewing. It's super important to put things into action, otherwise it's very easy to read and think you understand despite not having integrated the new knowledge. A few problems here and there though, and you can make very fast progress and remember things in the long term. As they say, math is not a spectator sport.
It may not seem obvious to everyone, but the value is taking the notes (helps learning significantly), not reading them without context after the fact. People who are interested in learning a subject without attending lectures would be better served by a textbook in the field.
There are some great notes on Mathematics taken from a former student at Cambridge (now doing a PhD at Harvard). They are ridiculously good quality and lecturers had to ask Dexter to take down notes a term at a time to ensure students weren't skipping lectures. The notes cover a lot more than what a standard student would do over 3 years undergrad + 1 year graduate (masters). http://dec41.user.srcf.net/notes