Post: #26

It's cool that you want to learn it and expand your mind. You probably won't have any practical use for it in real life though. I enjoyed my classes though.

My professor had us calculating the surface area of weird 3 dimensional shapes spinning through space at different speeds at each other. Then he had us figure out the shared area at different points in time as they collide. Crazy stuff. It'll blow your mind.

Post: #27

Yeah, its the cool 3d stuff that makes calculus come alive.

Once you "get" what a double or triple integral is "doing", its just... really cool. I dunno why. I think because you get this kind of kinesthetic feel for this infinite sum of infinitesmal slivers of this abstract shape... makes my brain happy.

Or when you do integrals in polar co-ordinates, and you realise the integral is adding up these tiny elements of surface area, rotated around a point on the axis, and then that happening for every point on the axis and being summed along the shape... haha. It's like a weird brain massage.

It's that marrying of the hard analytical solution with the "aha!" of visualising the dynamics and the geometry. Something about that is cool.

Then again, I think lots of things can give you that same "aha!" kick. Visualising data flows/transforms in programming too. Also, human languages... once you've grafted a nice base of 1000+ words and basic grammar, and your brain starts just soaking up more and more meaning as you hear it spoken, it's delicious.

Post: #28

Personally, I think you should go for it. Who cares if it helps you get laid, you should try to improve yourself for your own sake anyway.

Post: #29

I just don't get the "improving yourself" value out of it unless you are going to implement it. When would you ever use calculus if you don't use it at work? It's not even fun. Learning a language is hard, but also mad rewarding and I find it fun to speak a second or third language with people. Learn guitar, do something that will be beneficial. It doesn't have to get you laid, it just has to be worth learning.

Post: #30

"... those who have a natural talent for calculation are generally quick-witted at every other kind of knowledge; and even the dull, if they have had an arithmetical training, although they may derive no other advantage from it, always become much quicker than they would have been."
Plato, The Republic

Noble pursuit by the OP. It is difficult for one to be considered intelligent if they aren't well versed or at least competent in mathematics.

Post: #31

If you want to impress people with math skills, then just learn how to do multiplications and divisions reallz fast

Post: #32

(04-29-2013 09:43 AM)RioNomad Wrote:  Learning calculus for fun? You motherfuckers sure know how to party.

+1 for IP above though, learning a language is a better use of your time unless you are dead set on calculus.

Working on my Portuguese too for a trip to Brazil.

Post: #33

(04-29-2013 03:35 PM)RichieP Wrote:  Yeah, its the cool 3d stuff that makes calculus come alive.

Then again, I think lots of things can give you that same "aha!" kick. Visualising data flows/transforms in programming too. Also, human languages... once you've grafted a nice base of 1000+ words and basic grammar, and your brain starts just soaking up more and more meaning as you hear it spoken, it's delicious.

Beautifully said.

I am a tutor for technical subjects (Calculus, Physics, SAT) and Calculus is surprisingly my favorite subject to teach. It's just so damn fun! Funny considering I was one of the "dumb kids" (albiet in the highest-level math courses).

Try https://www.udemy.com/
They have several calculus courses, many of which are free. Definitely my #1 pick though used Khanacademy in the past.

Post: #34

(04-28-2013 05:58 PM)Ace Wrote:  I'm just planning on learning for the fun of it.

Consider learning Discrete Mathematics instead. Start with elementary Set Theory and Logic. Learn about set operations, ordered pairs, cartesian products, relations, functions, etc. Then learn some Combinatorics: problems that are easy to state, but sometimes very hard. Graph Theory, for example, can be a lot of fun.

Post: #35

(04-26-2013 11:57 AM)Ace Wrote:  I am out of school now and one of my biggest regrets was not learning calculus. Is there any free site that I could use to do self study and learn?

I wish a lot more people in this world would take your approach to learning. Autodidacticism is sadly lacking in modern society.

Post: #36

Is anyone good at calculus on this forum? I urgently need help with some exams, I'll pay for help. Please PM me.

Post: #37

learn statistics instead, more practical

Post: #38

(07-01-2013 01:05 PM)InternetMarketer Wrote:  Is anyone good at calculus on this forum? I urgently need help with some exams, I'll pay for help. Please PM me.

what kind of money we talking?

Post: #39

I am not big into all the online stuff. Does anyone have a recommendation to an introductory text on calculus? Preferably an easy read but also rigorous.

Post: #40

(12-23-2015 12:16 PM)TigerMandingo Wrote:  I am not big into all the online stuff. Does anyone have a recommendation to an introductory text on calculus? Preferably an easy read but also rigorous.

Calculus, by Michael Spivak.



Many consider Linear Algebra to be a more important subject than calculus. For that, I recommend Gilbert Strang's Linear Algebra and Its Applications.



In addition to their own merits, MIT OCW has courses which follow their material.

Post: #41

^ Storm, thanks. I've heard good things about the Spivak text. Do you think it's doable for someone with no calc experience?

Post: #42

(12-23-2015 12:40 PM)TigerMandingo Wrote:  ^ Storm, thanks. I've heard good things about the Spivak text. Do you think it's doable for someone with no calc experience?

Absolutely. It starts with solving equations for x.

I looked at it briefly just now. While the mathematical rigor will give you some trouble if you are not used to it, it is balanced. For example: when it defines a continuous function it writes a paragraph on the intuition behind it , the motivation for making such a definition, and has some drawings to illustrate the point.

Post: #43

MIT's Gilbert Strang also taught Calculus and the lecture videos are available online, courtesy of MIT OCW:

Quote:Highlights of Calculus

by MIT OpenCourseWare
18 videos
121,128 views
Last updated on Jul 1, 2014

Highlights of Calculus is a series of short videos that introduces the basic ideas of calculus — how it works and why it is important. The intended audience is high school students, college students, or anyone who might need help understanding the subject.

In addition to the videos, there are summary slides and practice problems complete with an audio narration by Professor Strang. You can find these resources to the right of each video

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...EA64E2C318

Post: #44

(12-23-2015 12:40 PM)TigerMandingo Wrote:  ^ Does anyone have a recommendation to an introductory text on calculus? Preferably an easy read but also rigorous. I've heard good things about the Spivak text. Do you think it's doable for someone with no calc experience?

No. Spivak would be good for someone who already has 'mathematical maturity'. If I'm not mistaken, MIT no longer uses this text for its accelerated course (for the brightest freshman math students in the US). It was deemed too abstract for a first course. The focus in Spivak is putting everything on a solid footing, much in the same way that a foundations course in Real Analysis would do.

For self-study, a better place to start might be How To Ace Calculus: The Streetwise Guide, by Colin Adams. The approach is breezier, theoretical details are skipped, but no outright lies are told. It's a good place to develop intuition, which is ideally what a first course should be doing. Then, if you're still interested, you can tackle a text with more rigor. At that point, you'll better appreciate the motivations for all the i-dotting and t-crossing.

Post: #45

Buying school books for calculus is good, because it's really simplified and has lots of good questions which progress you through the chapters.

Post: #46

I studied mathematics in college and have the good fortune to have a job where I get to use such tools on a daily basis. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me!

This site is a great resource for learning: http://math.stackexchange.com/

Like anything else, the only way to become good is to actually do the exercises, over and over again until you recognize the patterns.

Mathematics is not a spectator sport.