Since I began this blog, and from the time when the first of its posts started to grow in popularity, I’ve simultaneously received numerous emails from people who are deeply interested in math. If we exclude entirely nonsensical and almost comical rants from folks whose sanity is, at best, questionable, the overwhelming majority of emails are heart warming letters from people who’ve either just discovered, or rediscovered their love of math, and have found this blog to be inspirational. Receiving these letters has helped me think about my editorial line and the overall aim of this blog.
It started as a personal blog and evolved into a site which openly welcomes contributions. This much is certainly true, yet I couldn’t help but ask myself, where is Math-Blog really going? There are plenty of mathematical resources out there on the web, if you know where (and how) to search for them. What’s the point then of this blog’s existence, I couldn’t help but ponder. Aside from my own desire to speak about my great passion for mathematics, I found in these letters all the motivation and reason I needed to make Math-Blog even more prominent amongst online math resources. For you see, there is, in fact, a little known world of people who secretly – or admittedly – have a deep fascination with mathematical subjects, though for one reason or another, didn’t actually end up becoming professional mathematicians. These people have all sorts of skill levels, but more often than not, they’re in need of some catching up (or refreshing) when it comes to the basics of mathematics.
Math can be a lifelong journey of discovery, even for those whose day job has nothing to do with mathematics or who may have fared poorly in an academic math setting. I know people who’ve spent the last 10 years studying Calculus, Real and Complex Analysis, Algebra and Number Theory on their own from advanced university textbooks, purely for the pleasure of learning, and now they’re highly skilled mathematicians – despite their lack of formal mathematical certification (or having never published a single math paper in a peer reviewed journal). This world of mathematicians who approach math out of love, not as a profession, like to be inspired, guided, and helped, especially at the beginning of their journey.
Thinking about all of these points helped me to realize that Math-Blog is capable of becoming an important reference point, a place that is essentially a world of “math for the rest of us”. This is the direction that I’d like to give to Math-Blog, and while I’m aware of the fact that it’ll require more frequent posting on my part and also the creation of introductory material (which I intend to prepare/do from now on), I’m happy to produce such a mathematical environment out of this site. And for those readers who may actually be studying to become, or currently are, a mathematician, or if you’re on the other end of the spectrum and are a high school student, don’t worry, just hang in there and I assure that there’ll be plenty of mathematical fun to be had by all.
I’d really love to find out what I can learn from you… especially since I’ve lost all faith in the public school system.
They’ve gone over the same stuff over and over for THREE WEEKS already… The only thing keeping me sane is Calculus by Michael Spivak.
spivak’s awesome.
math handbook by bronstein and semendaev is also something along those lines.
What you’re explaining sounds completely brilliant! I’m a CS student and with that comes about a full year of math (summed up) before i graduate. For some reason i have a real problem motivating myself with math, even though there’s a lot I would like to know, and I do see the need. I’ve found your blog to be both a both interesting and educational read.
Keep up the good work!
Great job!
Unfortunately after some years spent on learning mathematics a lot of students of CS (Engineering..) forgive about that when doing day-to-day job or more “IT oriented” subject… with the result of finding correct answer to bad-formed questions… 🙂
I would be pleased to read more on that blog!
Keep up the good work!Your blog is very interesting, but this is math blog, you should add more math problems.
On jeka-math.blogspot.com you can find a lot of problems to discuss, check them out.
I Feel that MATHEMATICS makes our career. No living beings survive with out it. I am trying to search classical mathematics which is our (people’s)founndation of civilization and development. In this context this mathematical blog as seed of inspiration in mathematical world. If possible lets form a plate form to share our experiences to each other and move forward. Thank all lovers of mathematics.
We are working in local mathematical communities such as Nepal Mathematics Centre, Council for Mathematics Education and Nepal Mathematical Society etc. Lets share our mathematical creations