Mathematics Stack Exchange
Mathematics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [notation]

Questions on the meaning, history, and usage of mathematical symbols and notation. Please remember to mention where (book, paper, webpage, etc.) you encountered any mathematical notation you are asking about.

Before asking a question on the site, please check if you can find your answer in Earliest Uses of Various Mathematical Symbols or the book A History of Mathematical Notations.

Alternatively, a textbook or paper usually takes the time to explain the notation they're using; please remember to mention where you've seen the notation you are asking about.

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What's the meaning of $\dagger$

In some books I've seen this symbol $\dagger$, next to some theorem's name, and I don't know what it means. I've googled it with no results which makes me suspect it's not standard. Does anybody know what it means? One example I'm looking at right…
MyUserIsThis
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How to write two for loops in math notation?

I have a vector of numbers that looks like this: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] For every number the vector, I would like to multiply each number by every other number and find the sum: 1*1 + 1*2 + 1*3 + 1*4 + 1*5 + 2*1 + 2*2 + 2*3 + 2*4 + 2*5 + ... + 5*5 How…
user1728853
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Calculus Leibniz' notation

I'm currently doing integration by parts, and I'm finding that the notation is what makes it tough for me. So I looked it up and found that: $$\int u(x)v'(x)dx= u(x)v(x) - \int u'(x)v(x)dx$$ But the wikipedia said that this above equality is the…
tomtit
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What is the notation for calculating the mode?

Question: What is appropriate notation for calculating the mode of a function? In this case, I use the mode of a Gamma(a,b) distribution in a cost-function. I am looking for something analogous to $\bar{x}$ or $\tilde{x}$ notation that is commonly…
David LeBauer
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Naming variables with same number of subscripts

I have a very stupid question. I am writing a LaTeX document with a complex mathematical model and I'm running out of letters and symbols. I also don't want to keep adding more and more \hat{}'s and \tilde{}'s if it's unnecessary, as those also have…
Conrad314159
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Three dot ∴ symbol meaning

Whats the meaning of this symbol? Its a three dot symbol: ∴ I read a book, im could not find any definition of this symbol. This is about continuum property of the natural numbers and the archimedean property: for some $n\in\mathbb{N}$, $n>B-1$ ∴…
user366820
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Regarding usage of $\pm$ sign

I want to say that $x=1$ or $x=-1$, but we don't know which one (or we could possibly calculate it, but it is complicated). Anyhow, for my future proof all I need to know is that $x$ is either $1$ or $-1$. Is it OK to write it as $x=\pm 1$ ? I am…
Sunny88
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I've been told that the use of ellipsis in "$S = x_1 + x_2 + x_3 + x_4 + \dots$" is ambiguous and meaningless. Is it?

What else can the definition of the ellipsis symbol, "$\dots$", mean in this context? $$S = x_1 + x_2 + x_3 + x_4 + \dots$$ All I can see is that you have an infinite sum of $x$s, where the first one is $x_1$, the next is $x_2$, then $x_3$, and so…
Ivan Hieno
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How to interpret this $(\bigcap)$ mathematical symbol?

I came across this symbol $(\bigcap)$ and I do not know what it means. I have tried to check this list but I haven't gotten any clue. I am well aware that the small $\cap$ denotes intersection in set theory. I have checked all similar questions with…
Abdulhameed
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What is the meaning of a notation of upward or downward arrow in Math?

I'm not a student with a math background. I don't understand the meaning of a notation of upward or downward arrow, i.e. $\downarrow$ or $\uparrow$, and in which way are these notations different from $\rightarrow$ or $\leftarrow$? For example, in…
jsxs
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Notation for modulo

Is there a established notation for the remainder of integer division? For example, I want a function gives zero for non-negative even integers and one for non-negative odd integers. In computer code I would write: i % 2 But if I want to do…
a06e
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What does the Greek "E"-like symbol mean?

I have a simple question: what does the following mean? $$\displaystyle\sum_{k=0}^n$$
user483856
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How to propose new notation

Perhaps an odd question, but something I often wonder hypothetically. If an individual, without connection to a professional mathematical environment, were to devise a convenient and clear notation for a certain mathematical discipline, to where…
DWD
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What does the symbol described below mean? (looks like: sideway u with a line through the middle)

The symbol kind of looks like this: ε, but it's more like a sideways u with a line through the middle.
Jessica
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Math objects with properties

I'm trying to write a simple formula based on some work I've had to do with programming. In programming, I have the ability to write a class with certain properties. For example: A coordinate with x & y values. I can then access these values like...…
Dan
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