I am starting IT studies. As someone always interested in computers I have paths in my head how to get needed information. There is also a luxury of testing anything learn in practice by for ex. contributing to open source or creating a server.
Math was always interesting for me too, but I haven’t spend time on learning it much, I have many lacks from middle school and there are topics I know about but can’t use them in practice or have no intuition or forgot how to formally write them.
So I started to try to learn, as a self-learner most time I spend on Wikipedia and forums, but those turned out to be death end when it comes to understanding whole topic and not just reminding one thing.
So question to you that are learning math: how do you do so? And I also never learned anything in a typical “school” way, I always need to feel interest or have a goal in something.
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This. A thousand times this. Khan Academy is an incredible free resource.
Khan Academy is amazing.
I’m using it to fill in math gaps too.
Sal Kahn is the reason I passed linear algebra and differential equations. Clear explanations, worked examples and the ability to rewatch as often as needed. Can’t beat that IMO
Seconding Khan Academy, it’s much better than whatever paid alternative resources you might find, and what’s indeed cool is that everything there has amazing structure and you just can trust its curriculum without having to think too much about what to watch next.
I dropped out of high school because it was interfering with my smoking pot and skateboarding schedule. A skatepark opened up by me (this was before concrete parks were the norm) and I managed to get a job building and maintaining ramps there. My friend and I had always built little kickers and quarter pipes but this was on a larger scale. So I went out and bought a book on geometry and taught myself circles and domes and stuff like that. Being interested in the outcome, not just the problem, was the thing that clicked for me. Once the interest was there, the work and study was fun. Since then, I’ve become a finish carpenter and specialize in odd trim details and complicated builds. So I guess my advice is to find a reason to learn it. Find that thing that makes it more than rote memorization and turns it into something more than that.
Were you able to keep up your smoking pot hobby?
Nah. I had several bad acid trips in a row and getting high was never fun after that. I’m at a point now where I enjoy being sober so much I don’t even take heavy duty cold meds. But I did fight in the war on drugs and now it’s legal where I live. So at least I fought the good fight for, and with, others.
I talked to marijuana recently, and it misses you, but hopes you’re doing well.
Khan Academy, Numberphile, and 3Blue1Brown
Wikipedia is rough for math. Anything remotely complex isn’t really explained well to a layperson. What kind of math do you want to learn, and why? I can also recommend numberphile. Project euler is a cool way to teach yourself some math/programming concepts. I also can highly recommend the book “shape” by Jordan ellenberg to help build interest in geometry
Mathematics major here who is also a part-time mathematics tutor.
This is a question that plagues me too. Math is an absolutely gigantic subject! There’s statistics (probability, etc), combinatorics (counting things), calculus, differential geometry, topology, linear algebra, number theory. The list goes on. And what’s interesting is that they’re all connected! Knowing calculus, for example, can lead you to solve recurrence problems in combinatorics using generating functions, which i always thought was pretty neat. The idea of using the infinite to prove something finite.
My purpose here is not to overwhelm you, but to invite you to a whole new world. I’ve been obsessed with learning about everything in mathematics! I am actually in the opposite problem as you, as a math major transitioning into the tech field. I’ve always thought that learning computers is so much more interactive and hands-on, since you can make and build a project that you can show people. I think this is where you can focus on learning math: making something or building a project that interests you. That, and puzzles. Mathematics is not a spectator sport. You have to read some information, close your book, and put some pen into paper and fill in the gaps. Right now I’m going through Cryptohack puzzles to brush up on my number theory and learn its applications in cryptography.
Book learning is straightforward , but it has to be supplemented with exercises and putting pen into paper. Also, pick one field you’re interested in and stick with it. I hope this helps.
Thank you for such an respond 😄.
I’m also half-math and half-IT person. I’d recommend you to start Competitive Programming, try to participate in the contests, solve Codeforces (https://codeforces.com/?locale=en) or Kattis (https://open.kattis.com) tasks, grasp Asymptotic notation, etc.
Math (and academical) formalism is a thing, Wikipedia also shows it. You just need to get used to it.
What you will probably learn in the University:
- Calculus (matrices, limits, derivatives, integrations)
- Discrete Math (sets, graphs, etc.)
- Algorithmic complexity and asymptotic notation
- Probabilities
- If you’re lucky, you’ll get Algebraic Structures (a.k.a Group Theory) that teaches the essential foundations of Math.
I’ve always been more interested in discrete part of math where real numbers do not exist (only rational numbers do).
Alternatively, if you’re as mad as me, you can try doing side projects, like creating your own Computer Algebra System or Ray tracing algorithm from scratch. It is a good brain exercise.
Go to your Campus library, look for some books. My University library was a goldmine for me. Take notes. If you have a genius idea, don’t hesitate to talk with your lecturers or the Dean, they can offer you scientific work.
Khan academy
Just walk into a college class and start attending
Tbh just buy the textbook and work through it. That’s what a lot of my college courses ended up consisting of
Either go with working through textbooks on your own, as has been stated by others, but that approach requires tons of discipline as the subject matter can get quite dry and frustrating at times. Or, I’d say ideally, enroll in courses at a local community college. The one I went to had four calculus classes, linear algebra and differential equations, along with statistics and I believe some kind of math programming course (my have just been part of other classes). So you cab get into fairly advanced stuff going that route.
If you want to learn even more after that, you’ll have a solid basis to continue self study. Hell, you might even have a good start towards a bachelor’s in math.
Take a look at Engineering Mathematics by KA Stroud. It has a step-by-step approach with worked examples that might be useful to you. Even if you don’t like the structure, it’ll at least give you a comprehensive list of topics.
Regardless of how you end up getting your information (whether textbooks or Khan academy or local school or what), the most important thing is that you have to do exercises. Learning math, especially more advanced stuff, is a lot of work. You just have to grind until you git gud, and it definitely will feel like a grind at times
Depending on what you want to do in IT, you may not really need any math. If you are going to do programming, then yes, you’ll need some advanced math.
You don’t need to be good at math for programming… It all depends on what you want to do. Even if you do want to do math heavy things like graphics or dealing with any formulas for any reason, you can learn as you go… However, wanting to jump ahead is never a bad idea. Most of the time, basic understanding of math is absolutely fine in programming.
I took one semester of Java, and I was expected to know a bunch of math I’d never taken before. Trigonometry and I forget what else. I’d love to know some programming, but I just don’t have the brain for it.
For math, it really depends on what you’re doing. The overwhelming majority of software simply uses conditionals (if this, then that), and it also structures and consumes data. If you’re working on stuff like calculating stress of physical structures, then some math may be involved. But even then, unless you’re innovating in a specific field, you’ll often use prior art from solved problems.
For example, if you want to write some math to create a reverb on sound, we’ve done that before. If you want to forecast trends, we’ve done that, too. Machine learning and AI is accompanied by a lot of open source libraries, so you can just install a lib and use it.
You don’t need advanced math IMO for programming.
Binary stuff and complexity is like the worst thing you’ll ever need, except if you do scientific software or 3D videogame engines.
You definitely don’t need advanced maths for most programming, especially the usual enterprise/web development. I have worked for almost 35 years as a programmer, the last 25 years as a senior developer, and my math skills are not great. My formal maths education finished at age 16, and I only scored an average grade in the exam. Programming is a distinct skill from maths, and if you have some natural aptitude and a real interest in it, then you can make a career as a developer, mostly learning as you go. Some formal computer science education may be useful too, although I did not have much of that either.
I agree but I’ll take it a step further. I’ve been in IT for almost 20 years. I never took a math class after high school (age 18). I took math up through calc 2 in high school.
I’ve never used a single lick of anything beyond basic math for my work. None. And I don’t know anyone else who has either over the course of 4 different employers and working with hundreds of people.
In my opinion it’s the logical thinking and the process of problem solving that are the parts of math that translate to IT. Doing proofs, understanding all the reasons why something is the way that it is. So in that regard sure, math is important. But I feel like OP is implying that actually knowing how to do complex math problems is important for a career in IT, and it really isn’t.
In addition to online options, taking courses at your local community college would be helpful. They often have remedial classes like this in the evening as well.
If you start studying at an university: They sometimes offer extracurricular maths courses. For people who need to brush up on their maths skills before the semester starts. At least where I live, they do.
