EasyMathInput

=[|Full recording: voice, text chat, web tour, demonstrations]=

=Easy math input and math notation reform= Join Murray Bourne of IntMath in discussing the new version of MathJax and its implications for online math. Murray and a large group of volunteers recently converted thousands of pages into the new format.

The discussion will also consider math notation and how we might improve it to reduce inconsistencies and help new learners to understand concepts better.

All events in the Math Future weekly series: http://mathfuture.wikispaces.com/events Your time zone: [] media type="custom" key="17752164"

**How to join**

 * Follow this link at the time of the event: **[|http://tinyurl.com/math20event]**
 * Tuesday, May 15th 2012 we will meet online at 6:00pm Pacific, 9:00pm Eastern time.
 * Click "OK" and "Accept" several times as your browser installs the software. When you see Session Log-In, enter your name and click the "Login" button
 * If this is your first time, come a few minutes earlier to check out the technology.


 * (a) intmath.com **

My main site attracts around a million page views per month. It's called "Interactive Mathematics", but most people keep coming back (they say) because of the "clear and easy to understand explanations".

The exploratory interactive materials use jsxGraph, Flash, Java and Scientific Notebook.

The most popular pages are:

Derivatives of Sine and Cosine Basic Algebra Graphs of Sine and Cosine Graphs of Inverse Trigonometric Functions Solving Differential Equations


 * (b) [|squareCircleZ] **

The blog covers a wide range of math topics (and occasionally other things that interest me). The most popular articles have been the "how to" type (like How to draw y^2 = x – 2?) and ones that have a human connotation (where we see how math is used in the "real world")


 * (c) Newsletter **

The IntMath Newsletter goes out to over 12000 subscribers twice per month. The readers range from grade 8 (who are struggling with fractions, indices and decimals), through high school algebra and trigonometry students, those studying calculus and beyond. The "beyond" is quite a large group of math teachers, and retirees who enjoy learning math for pleasure.


 * (d) Notation **

I have a special interest in math notation and how it unnecessarily adds to students' confusion.


 * (e) Getting Math on the Web **

I'm also interested in the extra load there is when learners are trying to discuss math problems on the Web. Most will just type their algebra or matrices in a linear way which is difficult for them and almost impossible for the reader to understand.

ASCIIMathML and ASCIIsvg have been the easiest methods I've come across to publish math on the Web.

Event Host
Murray Bourne: I was a teacher in secondary schools in Australia for some years. I was in Broken Hill (outback Australia) and then Grafton (northern NSW). I then moved to Japan where I taught mathematics (in English) for 4 years in an interesting program that prepared Japanese students for college courses in the USA. The students would spend one year improving their English, followed by one year doing a typical freshman program, then off they would go to small mid-West colleges. I also taught English while in Japan. On returning to Australia, I taught in TAFE (Technical and Further Education), Bond University and Griffith University. I then moved to Singapore where I taught engineering mathematics in a polytechnic. I then conducted staff training in the same institution for a number of years. More recently I have set up my own training consultancy and I do freelance training in SE Asia.