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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How can I represent simple percentage calculation in mathematical notation?

I want to show my calculation/logic using mathematical notation but have no experience of this other than seeing them in research papers I have read. In my example I have three values 90, 11, 57 and I want to show using mathematical notation how…
Andrew HB
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Why is ${6 \choose 2} - 1=14$?

$${6 \choose 2} - 1=14$$ I found this in a quantum computing paper and I cannot understand why the result is $14$. This looks like a vector, and I do not know how to properly treat a problem like this.
G.Chri
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Are there rules for omitted bracket use?

In older work I often came across a somewhat inconsistent use of brackets. Specifically, I am readings the following paper: Self-inductance of air-core circular coils with rectangular cross section (https://doi.org/10.1109/TMAG.1987.1065777).…
Nihilistic_Physicist
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Notation to represent constants as variables and solve for them in a function

I have a classic probability density function in the literature of the form $$ f(x) = \frac{4x}{\left(a^2b^2\right)} \Sigma(x, a, b) $$ where $\Sigma(x, a, b)$ is a complicated function full of arithmetic operations and $a$, $b$ are originally…
Milardo
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Typesetting a covector

I understand the notation of upper and lower indices for components of vectors and covectors, but when I write a vector not in component form I use an over-arrow notation e.g. $\vec r$. Is there a standard notation for covectors? An under-arrow? …
Kieran Mullen
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Notation for equivalence relations

Equivalence relations typically use the notation $\sim$. But say that I am trying to introduce a relation and prove that it is an equivalence relation. Is it incorrect to use this notation? Does it require that I already know that a relation…
user861776
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Notation to say "this set is closed for all defined operations"

Is there a notation to express "this set is closed for all it's operations", in the sense of, given a set with it's defined operations, after a change in the set, the set retains the "closedness" of the operations it previously had, either by just…
Guilherme A C Zaluchi
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Questions about regarding a representation of an object as the object itself

I'd like to know, for instance, why we write '$(G, *)$' as opposed 'the set $G$ regarded as a group with $*$ as the operator'. There is an obvious answer, namely, that '$(G, *)$' is more concise. Are there other reasons? When speaking of a group $G$…
user832339
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"For no element" symbol

The symbol $\forall$ is known to account every element on given set. Is there such symbol as "for no element", something like a crossed $\forall$?
Bruno Lobo
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Length of nested tuples

Assume we have the following tuple of tuples: S = ((1,2), (2,3,4,5), (4,5,6,7,8)). There are three nested tuples. To write the length of S (the number of nested tuples), is it correct notation to write $\lvert S \rvert = 3$? How do one then write…
Christian
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What's For Multiplication...

As summation symbol ($\sum$) is for summing up terms, is there a similar notation for multiplication (except factorial notation)?
Some 1
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Standard notation for tuples with named entries?

Mostly I've seen people use the following notation: If $s=(3,\emptyset, i)$ is some arbitrary tuple, then we have $s_1=3, s_2=\emptyset$ and so forth. However, sometimes in a tuple, the different entries have distinct ideas belonging to them and it…
user56834
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Is there a difference in meaning between the notations here?

I was going over notes today on properties and proofs of random variables, in particular the proof that $E(cX_{n}) = \lim_{n \to \infty}E(cX_{n})$. In the definition, it states that $X$ is a non-negative random-variable and this is denoted as $0…
Hamish Gibson
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Correct use of $\rightarrow$ "tends to" relation.

Which of the following two examples is the correct use of the $\rightarrow$ "tends to" relation? Example 1 $$ \lim_{n \rightarrow \infty} \frac{\pi(n)}{n/\ln(n)} = 1 $$ Example 2 $$ \lim_{n \rightarrow \infty} \frac{\pi(n)}{n/\ln(n)} \rightarrow 1…
Penelope
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On Landau notations

How common it is to write e.g. $1-o(1)$ for a function that eventually approaches $1$ from below (or eventually equals $1$)? Would a better notation be $1-|o(1)|$ or what is meant is already obvious from $1-o(1)$ ? Obviously, precisely defining…
Lord Soth
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