# Thread: Precalculus Forum

1. From now on, I will not post questions from each chapter of the precalculus textbook. I realize now that this site is not for that purpose. I will only post questions from the textbook that are interestingly hard.

2.

3. If you have a question about any exercise in your textbook, or any question arising from your studies, please feel free to post.

Originally Posted by MarkFL
If you have a question about any exercise in your textbook, or any question arising from your studies, please feel free to post.
Thank you. I am going to continue my self-study of precalculus. I love my David Cohen textbook. I never get tired of the questions.

Like I said in another post, I took precalculus in the Spring 1993 semester at Lehman College and got an A minus. Of course, it has been many years since the last time I was part of a formal classroom setting.

5. Originally Posted by RTCNTC
Thank you. I am going to continue my self-study of precalculus. I love my David Cohen textbook. I never get tired of the questions.

Like I said in another post, I took precalculus in the Spring 1993 semester at Lehman College and got an A minus. Of course, it has been many years since the last time I was part of a formal classroom setting.
It's been 20 years since I was in a classroom. Thirteen years later I got into the online math help scene. But during that thirteen years, I kept myself active with math by formalizing my thoughts in a journal. I felt the best way to strengthen my understanding would be to investigate theorems and try to fluff them out as fully as I could, as if I was writing for a critical audience.

Then I got involved in math help forums, and eventually wound up here, where I found a site that matches my needs and has a philosophy of helping by engaging the student. I found naturally that helping others is the best way to help myself.

You will find that there are many folks here (many/most of which know a great deal more about mathematics than I do) who are quite happy and willing to enrich the understanding of others, particularly those who are motivated to learn.

So, my recommendation to anyone seeking to really learn material is to take given problems and generalize them as much as possible, and then investigate the behavior of the formulas at the boundaries. That's what I tried to do as a student, especially in physics. Once you can derive a formula from basic concepts, then you truly own it.

Originally Posted by MarkFL
It's been 20 years since I was in a classroom. Thirteen years later I got into the online math help scene. But during that thirteen years, I kept myself active with math by formalizing my thoughts in a journal. I felt the best way to strengthen my understanding would be to investigate theorems and try to fluff them out as fully as I could, as if I was writing for a critical audience.

Then I got involved in math help forums, and eventually wound up here, where I found a site that matches my needs and has a philosophy of helping by engaging the student. I found naturally that helping others is the best way to help myself.

You will find that there are many folks here (many/most of which know a great deal more about mathematics than I do) who are quite happy and willing to enrich the understanding of others, particularly those who are motivated to learn.

So, my recommendation to anyone seeking to really learn material is to take given problems and generalize them as much as possible, and then investigate the behavior of the formulas at the boundaries. That's what I tried to do as a student, especially in physics. Once you can derive a formula from basic concepts, then you truly own it.
Questions

1. What is the best way to avoid forgetting what I've learned? I find that as I study math on my own, by the time I am a few chapters into the textbook, I have forgotten most of the early chapters.

2. What is your favorite math course and why?

3. What about a math video clip reply to questions on a small white board for this site?

7. Originally Posted by RTCNTC
Questions

1. What is the best way to avoid forgetting what I've learned? I find that as I study math on my own, by the time I am a few chapters into the textbook, I have forgotten most of the early chapters.
Learn to derive the theorems presented on your own...once yo can do that, you are unlikely to forget them.

Originally Posted by RTCNTC
2. What is your favorite math course and why?
Ordinary differential equations, because it tied together all I had studied up to that point. At that point I realized I could really figure out a great deal of problems.

Originally Posted by RTCNTC
3. What about a math video clip reply to questions on a small white board for this site?
That night be possible...where would you suggest this be posted?

Originally Posted by MarkFL
Learn to derive the theorems presented on your own...once yo can do that, you are unlikely to forget them.

Ordinary differential equations, because it tied together all I had studied up to that point. At that point I realized I could really figure out a great deal of problems.

That night be possible...where would you suggest this be posted?
This site is divided into several areas of math: Precalculus, Calculus, Geometry, etc. Why not include a video section reply forum? You like ordinary differential equations. What is partial differential equations? What is the toughest math course you have ever taken? What made it hard for you?

9. Originally Posted by RTCNTC
This site is divided into several areas of math: Precalculus, Calculus, Geometry, etc. Why not include a video section reply forum?
In my opinion, responses to videos should be in the relevant topic forum. We could have a whiteboard response area, but what would really be the advantage to a traditional reply to a posted video? I mean we already have $LateX$, embedded graphs and TikZ images...what more could be offered?

Originally Posted by RTCNTC
You like ordinary differential equations. What is partial differential equations? What is the toughest math course you have ever taken? What made it hard for you?
I got all A's is every university level class I took...the only difficulty was to devote the time. The greatest difficulty in providing help was in those areas that I had not formally studied. I had to pull myself up by my bootstraps. I continue to learn by reading the posts of those here who are more educated than I am. I pretty much read all posts here, and so those are the great moments of education for me.

Originally Posted by MarkFL
In my opinion, responses to videos should be in the relevant topic forum. We could have a whiteboard response area, but what would really be the advantage to a traditional reply to a posted video? I mean we already have $LateX$, embedded graphs and TikZ images...what more could be offered?

I got all A's is every university level class I took...the only difficulty was to devote the time. The greatest difficulty in providing help was in those areas that I had not formally studied. I had to pull myself up by my bootstraps. I continue to learn by reading the posts of those here who are more educated than I am. I pretty much read all posts here, and so those are the great moments of education for me.
I want you to visit the link below. I think this site could become number one online if the tutors answer questions on the board.

Visit: mathtv.com and tell me what you think.

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