Mathematics Stack Exchange
Mathematics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [soft-question]

For questions whose answers can't be objectively evaluated as correct or incorrect, but which are still relevant to this site. Please be specific about what you are after.

For questions whose answers cannot be objectively evaluated as correct or incorrect, but which are still relevant to mathematics.se.

12079 questions
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Is a Quotient the number of times one value fits inside another, or the value of one of the groups produced by the operation

My question is a simple one, but one I haven't been able to figure out through research. When a simple division is performed suppose 10/2 = 5, is that 5 classified as the frequency or the number of times the value of 2 "fits" into 10? In other words…
HDE K
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Why is the decimal number system so popular?

This probably isn't a great question, but I was just wondering that why is the decimal number system used around everywhere( not talking about machine languages). My first thought was that it appears to be the most "natural"; but couldn't really…
GRrocks
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Can one cite REU papers written by students?

I am writing my Master thesis right now. Two arguments in the proofs are based on REU papers written by students. As those are not officially published but made available on the universities' websites I am not sure if I am allowed to cite…
Sven Pistre
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Documentaries about mathematics and mathematicians

Possible Duplicate: List of Interesting Math Videos/ Documentaries I have watched "Fermat's last theorem" a documentary about Andrew Wiles proof of the theorem, it was a great show. and i am asking if there is some other good documentaries about…
mohamez
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What kind of magic would math correspond to?

Lets pretend for a moment that magic actually exists. Say there is a machine which could turn on your magic "abilities". Say furthermore that proficiency in non-magic skills corresponds to proficiency in certain "schools of magic". What would math…
CrazyIvan
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On motivation, focus and mental state

I have a bit of a meta-question, but first let me give you some background. I used to be a very inquisitive kid, interested a many disciplines, in particular mathematics, computer science and physics. I have never been hard-working, or never had…
M. Cian
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Who determines if a mathematical proof is valid?

I'm studying mathematics and as you all know the most important things in mathematics are proofs. My question is, who determines if a proof that someone invents in mathematics is valid? Is there some mathematics professors who check all people's…
bodacydo
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How to get a more intuitive/and motivated understanding of a solution?

Math is a deductive science, that one starts from basic premises to prove more complicated results. From doing questions and reading solutions (at least at the elementary level eg: Olympiad questions), I find that there is always a dichotomy between…
Mat.S
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How to generate sample problems

How do professors and authors generate problems for their exams and textbooks? To what extent are problems inspired by problems from existing texts? And how does someone who understands the material thoroughly gauge the difficulty of the questions…
logert
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Math without algebra?

Often when I'm working on a math problem, there comes a point when I've set everything up and what remains is to expand some expression, substitute something in, solve an equation, or otherwise enter the domain of algebra. I find that I usually…
Eli Rose
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Why do books say $\sqrt{xy}=\sqrt x\sqrt y$

My question is simple. I'm teaching in a college (pre-calculus course) and I'm asking myself why high school books say $\sqrt{xy}=\sqrt x\sqrt y$. This is false (counterexample is $x=y=-1$). How can I state this rule in a more general and correct…
Rafael Chavez
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What solution would you come up with for this problem?

So the question is: put numbers $1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13$ and $15$ into gaps in the following expression: $$\_\_ + \_\_ + \_\_ = 30$$ The most naive approach to use summation in the group of integers will fail, since given numbers are odd, and when…
nakajuice
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Recognizing genuine proof obstructions

This is a meta question about mathematics. It is not inspired by an actual problem. Also, I'm not sure to what extent the distinction I'm drawing makes sense. Question: How can I decide if an obstruction encountered while trying to prove a…
vuur
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Which course should I take to be well-prepared for PHD in OR or Financial Math?

I'm currently a 2nd-year MS student in Mathematics at a mediocre state school. I'm planning to apply for the PHD programs in Operation Research/Financial Mathematics at schools like Columbia, Cornell, CMU, Georgia Tech, etc. I got straight As in…
ghjk
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Struggling to Bridge the Gap (to Rudin's Principles of Mathematical Analysis)

After taking an introductions to proofs course and abstract algebra, I have been trying to study from Rudin's Principles of Mathematical Analysis. Unfortunately, I still find it very very difficult to read through Rudin let alone do the exercises.…
Student
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