

Ask HN: Help Me Learn Math (Please & Thank you) - shawndumas

I made a Faustian bargain in High school. Once I figured out that I could coast all year long and supplant those bad grades with whatever I got in 3 weeks of summer school that was it.
My family was not rich enough to take summer vacations so I was home all summer anyway. My friends where all ether in summer school already, didn’t wake up until after I was home, or where rich enough to be gone all summer. So being in summer school was not a burden and never having to worry all year long about homework, tests, notes, midterms, or finials, made it all seem worth it.<p>Alas, now as an adult making a living as A Web Developer, trying to understand Mathematics, I finally realize the true costs. I lack a foundation that makes even some Algebra intelligible even with perspicuous explanation. I need an overhaul from the foundations up. Where do I start? Are there any shortcuts I can take? I’ve checked ‘Better Explained’ [1] but it seems to not be systematic enough.<p>I am also having a hard time finding a clear demarcation of what I know, what I know that I don’t know, and what I haven’t a clue exists. How much should I learn – the rabbit hole is deep – and I am unsure of how much time to put in and how far to go.<p>I would greatly appreciate any help I could get climbing out of the hole I have dug for myself. Thanks.<p>.<p>[1] http://betterexplained.com/
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tokenadult
Read here:

<http://math.berkeley.edu/~wu/>

Then read here:

[http://faculty.ccp.edu/faculty/dsantos/pages/lecture_notes.h...](http://faculty.ccp.edu/faculty/dsantos/pages/lecture_notes.html)

Also read:

<http://ms.yccd.edu/~jb2/Prealgebra/fm.pdf>

A good book series for you would be:

<http://www.singaporemath.com/New_Elementary_Math_s/47.htm>

~~~
hga
For the "Also read" book this is the directory that contains all the chapters:
<http://ms.yccd.edu/~jb2/> and it contains a link to a single PDF with the
whole book.

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emilsit
Are you looking for practical knowledge (e.g., to solve some set of specific
problems at work)? Or just want to understand capital-M Mathematics in
general?

Do you know how you learn best? Are you a visual learner? Do you like to read
explanations? Do you learn by doing? (Consider
<http://www.ldpride.net/learning-style-test.html> for example.)

I've seen this recommended as a learning resource for math related to computer
science: <http://www.rwc.uc.edu/koehler/comath/toc.html> Is that too advanced,
too simple, or just right?

~~~
shawndumas
* Capital-M Mathematics in general.

* That learning style link is a pay link (but I did it anyway cause I am trusting you.) Here are the results: <http://files.me.com/shawndumas/jxy4p0>

* I easly understand up to 'Venn Diagram Problems' but the next section says, 'You are undoubtedly familiar with graphs of functions from your experience in algebra courses...'

Thanks!

~~~
emilsit
Sorry about the pay-link; I honestly just sent the first thing that came back
from Google for learning styles.

I looked the links suggested in the other comments and they seem like a good
start. There are many resources and applets, it seems, to help you learn math.
You might also find this book interesting
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_Mathematics_Comes_From>

One concrete suggestion: maybe start a blog talking about your experiences?

~~~
shawndumas
It's all good re. the link. $9 is not alot to spend on this quest. Did you get
a chance to look at the results?

I think I have alot to go over (trying not to get overwhelmed) but I am very
glad for all the input.

Good idea about the blog, thank you.

~~~
arghnoname
About being overwhelmed:

Occasionally I look down at what I'm doing and look at all the 'mathy' symbols
and know I'd have ran away screaming before. Occasionally I look ahead a bit
and still have to fight the same impulse. Math can be ruthlessly cumulative,
but steady progress, even if slow, eventually yields results.

One thing you can do is take a placement test at a community college to see
what math class they'd place you in. Even if you don't take classes, it might
help you know where you are at.

~~~
shawndumas
Hmm... placement test... Do you know if they charge for that?

~~~
arghnoname
It's free at my local community college. Mileage may vary.

~~~
shawndumas
Excellent, thank you very much.

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jobeirne
First learn about the complex plane. Be able to tell someone why (-1)*(-1) =
1.

Buy a Schaum's on college algebra. Work through exercises you're unsure of.
Then buy an introductory, undergraduate discrete mathematics text, or a
calculus text, depending on your interests. Work through that.

If you want to continue, buy a book introducing you to basic proof mechanisms
and work through that.

After that dance, you should have a good foundation to read upper-level
mathematics texts. Remember, mathematics cannot be learned without working
exercises.

~~~
shawndumas
Helpful, thank you.

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csomar
I wish I can clone my two Math Copy-Books and send them to you; they have all
the mathematical baggage needed for a programmer. If there is something that
makes me think that my 12 years of my country-system education weren't lost is
my mathematical background. I don't have any resources, but here are the
things that you'll need most.

* Learn Limits, functions (linear, parabola, hyperbola, eclipse...), derivative , primitive.

-> How to trace a curve, asymptote, resolve an equation and also use a calculator to check the derivative

* Neperian Log, Decimal Log, Exponential, their curve and the relation in between. Also how to put points on a semi-logarithmic paper. You are going to use those functions frequently.

* Statics: It's simple. Learn also how to use a calculator, Excel and Extrapolation.

* Probability: Not as easy as it sounds. Don't jump it, I used probability a lot.

* Complex numbers: I never needed them, but they are easy to understand so it's a bonus.

* Have a mathematical sense.

~~~
mahipal
What exactly is a copy-book, and how did it teach you these things differently
than, say, a high-school or college textbook?

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arghnoname
I went back to school with only a slightly higher math background than yours.
By the time I was ready to go back, my already neglected math skills had
atrophied, but it wasn't like I never attended algebra class in high school.

For me, I read a GRE prep book (it had concise reminders for basic things I
should have known, and probably did at one point, but potentially forgot.)
Following that I worked a college textbook for Calculus and enrolled for
Calculus II at a local community college. I took all the math courses there
and I'm now at a four year considering a math double major. Go figure, I
thought I hated math.

I still hit embarrassing gaps from time to time, but I'm at the point that
filling them in isn't such an ordeal. It is strange though to be in a 400
level class and to be the only guy that gets caught up on some basic high
school thing. At this point though all that stuff seems simple once looked at.

Good luck with the mathematics. It's worth it.

~~~
shawndumas
That's an encouragement; thank you.

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tychonoff
The subject is incredibly rich, and it will take time to master basic
principles. The Chinese Remainder Theorem is a good example - it requires no
previous math but the concepts used to prove it are fundamental to the
subject. You will need to take several courses to get enough experience to do
anything useful, because you're not just learning formulas.

~~~
shawndumas
lol, thanks for givin' it to me straight-no-chaser.

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soyelmango
Take a look at Steven Strogatz's series of articles in the New York Times. He
makes learning the foundations of maths FUN and INTERESTING and accessible!

<http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/author/steven-strogatz/>

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rick_2047
I wish I could have found it earlier. Khan Academy
<http://www.khanacademy.org>

~~~
shawndumas
I have that bookmarked but was unsure where to start. It seems a bit
overwhelming.

Can you suggest an entry point?

Thanks!

~~~
BoppreH
Maybe take a guess, watch a lesson (they are just around 10 minutes) and see
if you need to go to simpler of more complex ones?

I think it depends too much on what you already know, what concepts are you
familiar with and what you really want to know. But I guess not even you could
be sure about that, so go explore some.

~~~
shawndumas
Good advice. I'll start tonight.

Thanks!

