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== Page was much more legible before the merge ==
{{FLCfailed}}


I have been using "List of mathematical symbols by subject" as a reference for several years. I have some feedback on the recent merge:
{{archive box|[[/Archive 1|Archive 1]]}}


* "Glossary of mathematical symbols" contains much less information relevant (e.g. LaTeX code). The summary of the symbols isn't all that helpful because I could always click on the hyperlink to see a summary of the symbol at the top of the relevant page.
== Phrasing ==


* The inconsistent spacing between symbols when scrolling by eye makes it much harder to visually identify a symbol about which one potentially has no information other than the visual appearance.
Possible phrasing issue at the not symbol... "A slash placed through another operator" <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/129.78.32.21|129.78.32.21]] ([[User talk:129.78.32.21|talk]]) 00:52, 6 September 2012 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->


* The typesetting of operators and symbols alongside text is very messy and the article in general does not look professional. I would recommend at least setting individual symbols in-line with their text.
== <math> \mathbb E</math> (capital E set) ==


* Entries such as:
I came across the symbol <math> \mathbb E[f(x)]</math> in another Wikipedia article on stochastic math, and came here to find it, but it was absent from the list. Could someone who knows what it means add it? Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stochastic_approximation [[Special:Contributions/167.164.3.140|167.164.3.140]] ([[User talk:167.164.3.140|talk]]) 13:47, 9 April 2012 (UTC)
{{term|functional|content={{math|□(□)}}<br>{{math|□(□, □)}}<br> {{math|□(□, ..., □)}}}}
:<math> \mathbb E</math> ([[blackboard bold]] E) means [[expected value]]. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 14:18, 15 April 2012 (UTC)
are ambiguous. Is this all one object or three examples?


* The section/sub-section structure is less useful. Why does 'calculus' have no subsections while 'brackets' does? The structure was more useable when it was more granular but with effective high-level section headings.
== X bar ==


* There is less information on the new page.
If I'm not mistaken, in programming logic a number with a horizontal line over it means 'not' of that number, similar to the use of the exclamation mark. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/124.150.95.62|124.150.95.62]] ([[User talk:124.150.95.62|talk]]) 13:05, 12 April 2011 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:UnsignedIP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->


I appreciate what this merge was attempting to do, but as it is this page seems to serve a difference purpose than that from before. Personally, I will replace my bookmark to direct me to the historical page, as that was much more useful. [[User:HyadesHoliday|HyadesHoliday]] ([[User talk:HyadesHoliday|talk]]) 17:20, 25 March 2024 (UTC)
== Top versus transpose ==


:I strongly agree with this opinion. I also have been using Symbols by Subject for the Latex codes, and after the merge, it has become much more difficult to find the code for the symbol. Additionally, I agree it is inconvenient to read which symbols were better when they were displayed on the tables. And I agree that this merged article seems to serve a different purpose than the Symbols by Subject. This became very less useful for me. [[Special:Contributions/59.7.50.242|59.7.50.242]] ([[User talk:59.7.50.242|talk]]) 01:44, 1 April 2024 (UTC)
Are these different symbols? [[User:Richard Pinch|Richard Pinch]] ([[User talk:Richard Pinch|talk]]) 13:59, 11 October 2008 (UTC)
::This article is for general use, not for Wikipedia editors or typographers. As said in the introduction, it suffices to read the source of the article to know latex codes, and this should be easy for a Wikipedia editor. Otherwise said, the article is about the mathematical meaning of the symbols, not about their typography. Possibly, the latex code and the Unicode name could be added in the {{tl|term}} fields, but I am not sure that this would be an improvement. In any case this would require a consensus here. [[User:D.Lazard|D.Lazard]] ([[User talk:D.Lazard|talk]]) 09:14, 1 April 2024 (UTC)
:I think so... top uses the down tack symbol (⊤), transpose uses the letter T. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 14:08, 11 October 2008 (UTC)
:::@[[User:D.Lazard|D.Lazard]] I am not sure what side you are coming down on here; I am a general-use user as I was using the merged page to write a thesis in computer science, not Wikipedia articles. I should not need to inspect the source of an article in order to find out relevant information. For this purpose the merged page was much more useful. We are all agreed that this article is about the mathematical meaning, not the typography - however this is why the merged page served a distinct function and should have been kept separate. In any case, legibility is the greatest part of understanding and in that regard the merged page was more useful as it was much easier to read and the links to the relevant (and complete!) descriptions, as contained within the dedicated Wikipedia pages for each symbol, were easy to identify. Not to mention that there remains many more symbols on the merged page than on the current one, so however one looks at it, information has been lost. [[User:HyadesHoliday|HyadesHoliday]] ([[User talk:HyadesHoliday|talk]]) 14:29, 2 April 2024 (UTC)
::::See [[WP:NOTGUIDE|Wikipedia is not a manual]]. The purpose of the article is to explain mathematical notation. It is not its function to tell you how to write LaTeX. There are many (better) resources for that. It is as undue to include it as it would be to derive one of the functions it describes. [[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 17:09, 2 April 2024 (UTC)
:::::"Wikipedia is not a manual" does not apply here because simply using some functionality for a practical purpose does not mean that functionality is "manual-like". There are many useful mathematical and physical articles on Wikipedia that I have used for references for equations and so on in the past, but no-one would argue that the inclusion of, for example, F=ma in an article about Newtonian force is inappropriate because "wikipedia is not a manual", because F=ma is a relevant piece of information for the subject. Likewise, in an article about a symbol it is relevant to include common encodings of that symbol. If you disagree, consider that any decent article for a mathematical symbol includes the unicode and LaTeX for that symbol, e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equals_sign#Not_equal, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turned_A, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_symbol. Should we remove the TeX from those as well?
:::::Anyway I think we agree that he article is to explain mathematical notation, which, again, is why having a separate page with LaTeX and so on was so helpful. Besides, if the merge could be undone, and the LaTeX removed, that would at least address five of my six complaints with this merged page (although, again, I don't see why such functionality should be removed). [[User:HyadesHoliday|HyadesHoliday]] ([[User talk:HyadesHoliday|talk]]) 11:47, 3 April 2024 (UTC)
::::::For the latex syntax of those Latex symbols that are available in Wikipedia, see [[Help:FORMULA#Formatting using LaTeX]]. For HTML symbols, see [[Help:FORMULA#HTML entities]]. [[User:D.Lazard|D.Lazard]] ([[User talk:D.Lazard|talk]]) 15:17, 3 April 2024 (UTC)
::::::As a holding position, the last version of the list article is [https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=List_of_mathematical_symbols_by_subject&oldid=1214703299 here], so you can at least get on with writing your thesis. I realise that this doesn't help anyone else, so a more sustainable solution is needed. Could the LaTeX article be improved instead? --[[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 15:49, 3 April 2024 (UTC)
:::::::{{ping|HyadesHoliday}} Among the external links of another article, I see [http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/symbols/comprehensive/symbols-a4.pdf The Comprehensive LaTeX Symbol List]. I don't know how "official" it is but would it help to add that to the end of this article? --[[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 20:37, 4 April 2024 (UTC)
::::::::@[[User:D.Lazard|D.Lazard]]: The issue isn't that I don't have a reference to LaTeX code, as I know I can find the code elsewhere and I can use the old page. The issue is that where once this page was a useful collection of information on the name, meaning, and typographical information of many mathematical symbols, the typical user will now only see a the name and meaning of fewer symbols with worse formatting, and I was trying to give a user (rather than an editor) perspective on this. For example, it's ridiculous to expect the average user to access [[Help:FORMULA#Formatting using LaTeX|Help:FORMULA#Formatting using LaTeX]] for LaTeX symbols. I will survive, since I have the old page bookmarked, and I think I've said my piece on the utility of this one. [[User:HyadesHoliday|HyadesHoliday]] ([[User talk:HyadesHoliday|talk]]) 11:18, 5 April 2024 (UTC)
:::::::It helps me, as I also relied on the list for my academic writing, and came to this talk page looking to find out what happened. The glossary seems to be less comprehensive than the old list (e.g., there is no section on category theory), in addition to lacking the LaTeX codes, and doesn't observe the clean subject hierarchy of the other page. If I had suggestions to add on top of putting in the LaTeX codes, they would be expanding the article to at least the comprehensiveness of the list, and to introduce a similar hierarchy that breaks up symbols by field and topic within the field, for ease of navigation. As has been mentioned earlier, it was useful that there was a page that collected the name, meaning, and typographical information of just mathematical symbols, in one place.
:::::::I am also not fond of the glossary's formatting and didn't have much trouble with the tables on mobile, but consent that a large page of just tables doesn't conform to Wikipedia's readability norms. I'm not sure what would help with readability, something to more clearly break up the subsections for individual symbols, maybe. I do like that this page contains more description than the list. [[Special:Contributions/173.206.19.146|173.206.19.146]] ([[User talk:173.206.19.146|talk]]) 16:21, 30 June 2024 (UTC)
:::In a time where more and more people are switching to digital writing tools, I'd argue that the people who need to understand mathematical notation and the people who need to be able to type it are mostly the same. It doesn't make sense to differentiate between "general users" and editors/typographers here. [[Special:Contributions/2.243.191.37|2.243.191.37]] ([[User talk:2.243.191.37|talk]]) 14:34, 12 May 2024 (UTC)
::::'''Support:''' I think the ways of typing out a symbol are quite basic information on that symbol, and are also very useful for the people looking up lists of symbols. In the same way it's sensible to include a reference table in the ASCII article, I believe it sensible to include the typographic information on an article about symbols. [[User:DIYLobotmy|DIYLobotmy]] ([[User talk:DIYLobotmy|talk]]) 09:04, 23 May 2024 (UTC)


== Templates ==
== LaTeX commands ==


One of the merged articles used to contain the Latex commands that produce each symbol. I found this very useful. Can I still find the table anywhere else? Or some table like that one...
I've been creating a template which I hope will make editing the table easier, if used.


The LaTeX commands are in the source, but it's not the same. [[User:Madhing|Madhing]] ([[User talk:Madhing|talk]]) 21:25, 21 April 2024 (UTC)
* The template: [[User:Alksentrs/Template:Row of table of mathematical symbols]]
* A short test article: [[User:Alksentrs/Table of mathematical symbols (monolithic; using template)]]


:Nevermind, this has been discussed before. [[User:Madhing|Madhing]] ([[User talk:Madhing|talk]]) 21:35, 21 April 2024 (UTC)
Should this be used in the article? (After renaming it to something like [[:Template:Row of table of mathematical symbols]].)
::For the convenience of future readers with the same question, see [http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/symbols/comprehensive/symbols-a4.pdf The Comprehensive LaTeX Symbol List]. --[[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 22:35, 21 April 2024 (UTC)


== Bullet operator ==
[[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 20:53, 15 October 2008 (UTC)


The article [[Bullet (typography)]] says {{tq|A variant, the '''bullet operator''' ({{unichar|2219|Bullet operator|html=}}) is used as a [[math]] symbol,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.rapidtables.com/math/symbols/Basic_Math_Symbols.htm#logic |title=Mathematical symbols list (+, -, x, /, =, <, >, ...) |work=RapidTables |access-date=28 October 2023}}</ref> akin to the [[dot operator]]. Specifically, in logic, {{code|x • y}} means [[logical conjunction]]. It is the same as saying "x and y" (see also [[List of logic symbols]]).}} Is it significant enough to be included here? --[[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 13:16, 20 July 2024 (UTC)
:Does anybody care? Shall I [[WP:BOLD|just do it]]? [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 13:37, 25 October 2008 (UTC)


:IMO, for being included, a symbol must be commonly used. This means that there must be textbooks that '''use''' it (the mention taht there is an author that used once the symbol is not sufficient). Clearly, [[Bullet (typography)]] is not a reliable source, not only per [[WP:USERGENERATED]], but also because this is not a mathematical article. The anonymous table given as a reference is not a reliable source either. IMO, the use of a bullet instead of <math>\land</math> is much too marginal for deserving a mention. [[User:D.Lazard|D.Lazard]] ([[User talk:D.Lazard|talk]]) 14:06, 20 July 2024 (UTC)
::I think this is a useful suggestion -- so yes, [[WP:BOLD|be bold]]. --[[User:Mietchen|Daniel Mietchen]] ([[User talk:Mietchen|talk]]) 15:58, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
::TYVM, until I saw that sentence, I had only ever heard of <math>\land</math> as a logical AND, but assumed that the fault was mine. I guess somewhere in the Unicode Consortium correspondence there is an explanation. I don't propose to pursue it further. --[[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 23:37, 20 July 2024 (UTC)


:::I've just finished the conversion (at last). Now we can think about messing with the template (rearranging columns, etc). [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 01:22, 22 November 2008 (UTC)


{{reflist talk}} [[User:JMF|𝕁𝕄𝔽]] ([[User talk:JMF|talk]]) 13:16, 20 July 2024 (UTC)
== modulo ==


== Angle brackets ==
Would it be worth noting % as the modulo operator used in comp sci? -[[User:Ravedave|Ravedave]] ([[User_talk:Ravedave|talk]]) 17:16, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
:Not really &ndash; that's a programming language operator used in C-like languages. Pascal-like languages use <code>mod</code> instead (which is closer to how it's written in mathematics). [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 11:15, 1 November 2008 (UTC)


I have seen angle brackets used with the following definition
== non-parallel ==
:<math>\langle \cdot \rangle = \mathrm{max}(\cdot, 0)</math> ,
could someone please help me find the symbol for non-parallel, if there is one. <small><span class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:HawkE65|HawkE65]] ([[User talk:HawkE65|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/HawkE65|contribs]]) 10:19, 17 October 2009 (UTC)</span></small><!-- Template:Unsigned --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
as in
:"Not parallel" is probably something like <math>\not\ \!\parallel </math> (a slash through a double vertical bar). Also, please add new sections at the ''end'' of talk pages, not the middle. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 13:40, 17 October 2009 (UTC)
:<math>\langle \mathrm{f}(x) \rangle = \mathrm{max}(\mathrm{f}(x), 0)</math> .

But not sure how common that usage is.
==TeX==
—DIV <br>''<small>Support [[WP:FAITH|good-faith]] [[WP:IP|IP editors]]: insist that Wikipedia's administrators adhere to Wikipedia's own policies on keeping [[WP:RANGE|range-block]]s as a last resort, with minimal breadth and duration, in order to reduce adverse [[WP:COLLATERAL|collateral]] effects; support more precisely targeted restrictions such as protecting only articles themselves, not associated Talk pages, or presenting pages as [[WP:SEMI|semi-protected]], or blocking only ''mobile'' edits when accessed from designated IP ranges.</small>'' <br> ([[Special:Contributions/1.145.47.43|1.145.47.43]] ([[User talk:1.145.47.43|talk]]) 10:59, 16 August 2024 (UTC))

A lot of people have complained about not being able to see the symbols; I created a test version of this article and of the row template in which both HTML and TeX can be used: [[User:Alksentrs/Table of mathematical symbols (testing)]]. Should I use this in the main article? (The idea was stolen from the [http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_des_symboles_math%C3%A9matiques French version].)

PS: I can see every HTML symbol except ∧ (U+2227: Logical And, <math>\and</math>), which appears like this: ∘ (U+2218: Ring Operator, <math>{}^{^\circ}</math>). Bizarrely, it ''does'' appear properly in the edit box. I'm using Firefox 3 on WinXP and have Code2001 installed (but the culprit may be “MS Reference Sans Serif”). Does anyone else have this problem?

[[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 00:04, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

:There was no response, so I'm adding a TeX column. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 15:12, 5 December 2008 (UTC)

::Finished. Comments? [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 16:25, 5 December 2008 (UTC)
:::Hello, I am from romanian wikipedia. Please tell me, is it obvious to add a column with TEX-CODE, or should I look elsewhere ?? Bogdan[[Special:Contributions/188.25.53.122|188.25.53.122]] ([[User talk:188.25.53.122|talk]]) 20:52, 6 September 2010 (UTC)

I second that. Please include a column of TeX (or, better yet, LaTeX code).[[Special:Contributions/66.90.218.114|66.90.218.114]] ([[User talk:66.90.218.114|talk]]) 03:30, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

== Euclidean Vector symbols ==
In the wikipedian article [[Euclidean_vector]], the "Representation of a vector
paragraph" shows the following symbols that are not mentioned in this [[table of mathematical symbols]] wikipedian article.<bR>
Maybe a vector is not considered a "mathematical symbol"?
[[Image:Notation for vectors in or out of a plane.svg|right|200px]]
:(...) A circle with a dot at its centre (Unicode U+2299 ⊙) indicates a vector pointing out of the front of the diagram, toward the viewer (...).<br>
:(...) A circle with a cross inscribed in it (Unicode U+2297 ⊗) indicates a vector pointing into and behind the diagram. (...)<br>
Thanks for your attention.<br>
[[User:Maurice Carbonaro|Maurice Carbonaro]] ([[User talk:Maurice Carbonaro|talk]]) 11:38, 16 January 2009 (UTC)
:This article is mostly limited to the symbols used in mathematical formulas. In [[Euclidean vector#Representation of a vector]], ⊙ and ⊗ could be described as “mathematical symbols”, but for vector diagrams.
:What do you mean by ''Maybe a vector is not considered a "mathematical symbol"?'' A vector is an object which combines a direction and a length. A symbol is just a picture which represents something. You can ''represent'' a vector with a symbol, but that won't make the vector ''into'' a symbol. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 16:49, 16 January 2009 (UTC)

== What is [[mathematics]] then?==
Hi Alksentrs!<br>
thanks for answering me!<br>
That's a good point you made: <br>
:'''You can ''represent'' a vector with a symbol, but that won't make the vector ''into'' a symbol'''.<br>
Well I wonder what do we universally mean for [[mathematics]] then... because in ancient ages mathematics was strictly connected with [[astrology]] and [[cosmology]] (please also see [[Astrology and astronomy]] article).<br>
According to the wikipedian article...:<br>
:''(...)The word "mathematics" comes from the [[ancient Greek language|Greek]] μάθημα (''máthēma''), which means ''learning'', ''study'', ''science'', and additionally came to have the narrower and more technical meaning "mathematical study".(...)''<br>
Talking about "learning", "studying" etc. we should then take a look to who was [[Pythagoras]].<br>
According to the wikipedia article...:<br>
:'' '''Pythagoras of Samos''' (...); born between 580 and 572 BC, died between 500 and 490 BC) was an [[Ionians|Ionian]] [[Ancient Greeks|Greek]] [[mathematician]] and founder of the religious movement called [[Pythagoreanism]]. He is often revered as a great mathematician, [[mystic]] and [[scientist]];
Pythagoras made influential contributions to [[philosophy]] and [[religion|religious]] teaching in the late 6th century BC.''<br>
:''(...) He was the first man to call himself a [[philosopher]], or lover of wisdom. (...)''<br>
:''(...) In pythagorean cosmology it was used the monad symbol. Please take a look at right picture please. (...)''<br>
[[Image:Monad.svg|thumb|The [[Monad (symbol)|Monad]] was a symbol referred by the Greek philosophers as "The First," "The Seed," "The Essence," "The Builder," and "The Foundation"]].<br>
Said that I noticed that there are astounding similarities with:<br>
:''The [[sun (astrology)|sun symbol]] ([[Image:Sun symbol.svg|22px]]) which is considered a very important part of [[astrology]]''.<br>
And it could also be interesting to see the [[Circled dot]] and [[Sun cross]] wikipedia articles.<br>
Thanks for your attention.<br>
[[User:Maurice Carbonaro|Maurice Carbonaro]] ([[User talk:Maurice Carbonaro|talk]]) 11:09, 19 January 2009 (UTC)

== What is this K? ==

Not sure how to do the font, but in the sections on R (reals), Z (integers), etc., there is a K which is described as being the union of the reals and the complex numbers. Well excuse me but the set of complex numbers (C) is the union of the reals and the complex numbers. The real line is part of the complex plane and 3 (for example) is a complex number, 3 + 0i. Put simply, ''R is a subset of C!''

I haven't heard of K before and I'm not necessarily disputing its existence but if it is a mathematical symbol then its definition/explanation is clearly wrong. Perhaps the person who wrote it in was confusing the complex numbers {a + bi | a, b real} with the imaginary numbers {ai | a real}? <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/81.159.20.37|81.159.20.37]] ([[User talk:81.159.20.37|talk]]) 16:04, 8 April 2009 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:UnsignedIP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

:I believe <math>\mathbb{K}</math> is used in linear algebra to mean “either <math>\mathbb{R}</math> or <math>\mathbb{C}</math>”. That is, if you make a statement about <math>\mathbb{K}</math>, then this statement is true if you substitute either <math>\mathbb{R}</math> or <math>\mathbb{C}</math> instead. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 17:52, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

::From my minor experience with [[algebraic geometry]], the "field k" is often used. [[Special:Contributions/67.158.43.41|67.158.43.41]] ([[User talk:67.158.43.41|talk]]) 19:58, 4 November 2010 (UTC)

==The One True list of missing symbols==
There were (until I archived them) many requests for missing symbols above, so I'm grouping them all together here. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 14:43, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

* complex infinity - the infinity symbol with a tilde above it <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/66.41.43.172|66.41.43.172]] ([[User talk:66.41.43.172|talk]]) 19:29, 20 July 2012 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
* the gamma function [[Special:Contributions/137.219.45.156|137.219.45.156]] ([[User talk:137.219.45.156|talk]]) 02:46, 11 February 2011 (UTC)
* the vector "harpoon" arrow
* the colon used in ratios and odds
* [[irrational numbers]] ?::<math>\mathbb{Q}=\{p/q | p,q \in \mathbb{N}\}</math>;
* <s>[[imaginary numbers]] <math>\mathbb{I}</math> ?</s>:: <math>Im \{ \overrightarrow{z }\in \mathbb{C}\}=\{ \overrightarrow{z} = x + i \cdot y | y=0 \} </math>; l.e. please read |x=0\}. Imaginary is Im(z)=0+i*y;
* [[field (algebra)|field]] <math>\mathbb{F}</math>
* <s>the delta as used in "change-in" Δ</s>
* <s>path integral symbol (<math>\textstyle \int</math>)</s>
* the [[forcing (logic)|forcing]] symbol <math>\Vdash</math>
* <s>multiplication star (* instead of ×)</s>
* almost/approximately equal: equals with dots centred on top and beneath (≑), or just on top (≐), or possibly offset from centre (≒ or ≓)
* differentiate d/dx <math>\tfrac{d}{dx}</math>
* "a not-infinitesimally small" increment, in calculus derivations, δ
* addition of vector spaces <math>U + V := \{ u+v : u \in U, v \in V \}</math>
* identity permutation ()
* concatenation? ||
* [[subgroup]]/[[subfield]]/[[Linear_subspace|subspace]] <s> < > ≤ ≥ </s> <math>\subseteq \supseteq \supset</math>
* such/so that: | (or less commonly??) ϶
* [[multivalued function|multifunctions]] <math>[\![</math> and <math>]\!]</math>
* image of a path (suffix *)
* generic group theory operator
* horseshoe commonly used for [[entailment]]
* division {{overline|)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;}}
* [[dual space]] <math>\mathbb{X}^2; \mathbb{X} \subseteq \mathbb{F}^A </math>. The equal sign should be placed above the inclusion sign, and not below it.
* [[unit vector]] <small><span class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:Tracorn|Tracorn]] ([[User talk:Tracorn|talk]]
[[Special:Contributions/Tracorn|contribs]]) 01:01, 25 May 2009 (UTC)</span></small><!-- Template:Unsigned --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->: <math>unit{k}</math>
::<math>\hat{i}</math> or <math></math>
:I also couldn't find the usage of <math>\Delta</math> as the [[Laplace operator]]...? --[[User:Ichbinder|Ichbinder]] ([[User talk:Ichbinder|talk]]) 23:36, 11 October 2009 (UTC)
:<math>S^\circ</math> for the [[interior (topology)]] of the set {{math|''S''}}.<small>(It's just taken me nearly an hour to find out what that notation means…)</small> [[User:Qwfp|Qwfp]] ([[User talk:Qwfp|talk]]) 21:47, 30 June 2010 (UTC)
* I saw an X with sub and super-script that seemed to indicate a product of a sequence of matrices, similar to the E for addition and the capitol pi for multiplication, but I'm not sure -- does anyone know?•
* Omega (upper case) Ω is used to represent the last element of a list, presumably because it is the last letter in the greek alphabet. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega: "Omega (the last letter of the Greek alphabet) is often used to denote the last, the end, or the ultimate limit of a set, in contrast to alpha, the first letter of the Greek alphabet." . It is apparently also used for:
In complex analysis, the Omega constant, a solution of Lambert's W function
A variable for a 2-dimensional region in calculus, usually corresponding to the domain of a double integral.
In topos theory, the (codomain of the) subobject classifier of an elementary topos.
In combinatory logic, the looping combinator, (λ x. x x) (λ x. x x)
In group theory, the omega and agemo subgroups of a p-group, Ω(G) and ℧(G)
In statistics, it is used as the symbol for the sample space, or total set of possible outcomes.
In number theory, Ω(n) is the number of prime divisors of n.[[User:FreeFlow99|FreeFlow99]] ([[User talk:FreeFlow99|talk]]) 09:58, 11 March 2013 (UTC)

== symbols used in early 20th century quantum mechanics ==

Looking at ''Sources of Quantum Mechanics'' by B. L van der Waerden, there are symbols that I have not seen explained/interpreted:
v with a single dot over it, p. 262
other letters with double dots over them

Somewhere we need to collect and explain these elements of discourse that may otherwise be or become unknown to readers. [[User:Patrick0Moran|P0M]] ([[User talk:Patrick0Moran|talk]]) 03:31, 30 May 2009 (UTC)
:I found it. A single "dot accent" indicates the derivative with respect to time, so x-dot is the first derivative and it gives the x component of velocity. A double dot accent indicates the second derivative with respect to time, so x-dot is the x component of acceleration. It looks like this convention goes back to Newton. [[User:Patrick0Moran|P0M]] ([[User talk:Patrick0Moran|talk]]) 14:28, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

== Dirac notation ==

I dispute the claim that the notation of <|> for an inner product originates in computer science. This is Dirac's notation, invented in the early 20th century. I am pretty confident that this precedes any computer science usage by a considerable interval. [[Special:Contributions/128.223.231.9|128.223.231.9]] ([[User talk:128.223.231.9|talk]]) 22:14, 31 July 2009 (UTC) Justin
:The page doesn't claim that. The reference is just to show that the description (i.e. <math>\langle\ |\ \rangle</math> is the inner product in Dirac notation) is true. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 22:39, 31 July 2009 (UTC)
:: You are correct. The article does not necessarily claim the origin of the notation. I also didn't take much care to distinguish between angle brackets and less-than/greater-than symbols (<math>\langle\ |\ \rangle</math> rather than < | >). I guess what I should have said is that I find this text a bit confusing:
::<blockquote>There are many variants of the notation, such as 〈u | v〉 and (u | v), which are described below. The less-than and greater-than symbols are primarily from computer science; they are avoided in mathematical texts.</blockquote>
::If the statement regarding computer science is meant to apply only to inner product notation framed by less-than/greater-than symbols (which also commonly appears in physics documents typeset in HTML) perhaps this should be more carefully distinguished from the angle bracket form. If the two notations are considered synonymous then the phrase "are primarily from computer science" appears to imply one of two things; either that computer science is the primary source of this notation (i.e. that it originated in this field) or that it contains the primary usage of such notation (i.e. that it can be shown that this notation occurs with greater relative frequency in this field than in any other). I find either implication a bit troubling without further support. Wouldn't this be better avoided by simply saying "less-than and greater-than symbols are commonly used in computer science"? [[Special:Contributions/71.236.215.87|71.236.215.87]] ([[User talk:71.236.215.87|talk]]) 18:13, 4 August 2009 (UTC) Justin
:::I have removed < and > from the symbol column, and have changed the wording slightly:
:::<blockquote>As 〈 and 〉 can be hard to type, the more “keyboard friendly” forms < and > are sometimes seen. These are avoided in mathematical texts.</blockquote>
:::This should be better. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 00:37, 6 August 2009 (UTC)

== rowspan with template ==

Removed: replaced with divs because rowspan is annoying when selecting the text on it (it would go: name, explanation, example, row below name...) revert if there was a reason to have it (assuming not) -- [[User:6Sixx|6Sixx]] ([[User talk:6Sixx|talk]]) 07:05, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

== Irrational's symbol ==
so ya see wat is irrational's symbol <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/64.150.215.120|64.150.215.120]] ([[User talk:64.150.215.120|talk]]) 22:59, 9 September 2009 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:UnsignedIP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
:There's no standard symbol for the set of irrational numbers. You could use <math>\mathbb{I}</math>, <math>\mathbb{J}</math>, <math>\mathbb{Q}'</math> or <math>\bar{\mathbb{Q}}</math>, but make sure you state which notation you are using. Or just use <math>\mathbb{R} \setminus \mathbb{Q}</math>. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 01:32, 28 September 2009 (UTC)

== ♯ ==

Is ♯ really used for #? I've never seen that and it is not explained. Cheers, —&nbsp;[[User:sligocki|sligocki]] ([[User talk:sligocki|talk]]) 02:12, 4 December 2009 (UTC)
:In mathematics and computer science, ♯ and # are often used interchangeably. I think # is more popular though, as it's easier to type. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 03:29, 4 December 2009 (UTC)
::Do you know of an example in which the sharp symbol is intentionally used? The only example I know of is actually the opposite, the [[C sharp]] programming language is usually spelled C#. Thanks, —&nbsp;[[User:sligocki|sligocki]] ([[User talk:sligocki|talk]]) 03:44, 4 December 2009 (UTC)
:::I believe a (19-century?) mathematician used ♯ and ♭ to mean maximum and minimum, but this didn't catch on. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 04:18, 4 December 2009 (UTC)
::::But this article implies that ♯ is synonymous with # for [[cardinality]] and [[connected sum]] which I don't believe. Cheers, —&nbsp;[[User:sligocki|sligocki]] ([[User talk:sligocki|talk]]) 04:48, 4 December 2009 (UTC)
:::::(Re: your [citation needed]s) When ⊃ is used instead of ⇒, I think it is describing the relationship between the associated models. That is, if <math>\phi \Rightarrow \psi</math>, <math>\mathcal{M} \models \phi</math> and <math>\mathcal{N} \models \psi</math>, then <math>\mathcal{M} \supset \mathcal{N}</math>. Or something like that (I'm not a logician). [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 13:34, 4 December 2009 (UTC)

Shouldn't pi also have the value for pi? I.e., 3.141592653589793 . . . ?
[[User:Geometrian|Geometrian]] ([[User talk:Geometrian|talk]]) 03:25, 14 December 2009 (UTC)Geometrian
:Originally, the article did have pi, but then it was removed (see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Table_of_mathematical_symbols/Archive_1#Inclusions] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Table_of_mathematical_symbols/Archive_1#Physics_quantities_and_symbols]), and recently a different meaning for π was added. Really, the meaning(s) of symbols like π, e, d, δ etc shouldn't be in this article, but be in the [[Greek letters used in mathematics]] and [[Roman letters used in mathematics]] articles. But, by this logic, we'd have to remove ℕ, ℤ, O, ∑, ∏, Δ, <sup>T</sup>, etc as well, so I'm not sure how strict this should be. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 23:29, 15 December 2009 (UTC)

==Common and Tex/HTML==
"This is a listing of common symbols found within all branches of mathematics" Which it more or less is. However is the intention to give the universal or near universal uses? Or all uses? Or common uses? Because the article seems a little confused, mentioning Heyting algebra, but otherwise only talking about very large and general fields (in most cases almost equivalent in reality to "everywhere").


In terms of typography, the distinctions between HTML and TeX are doubtless important, this oes not seem to be the right article to bring them up.

''[[User:Rich Farmbrough|Rich]]&nbsp;[[User talk:Rich Farmbrough|Farmbrough]]'', 19:47, 14 December 2009 (UTC).
:The intention is to give all uses. But to do so would probably require splitting the table up a bit. I added the TeX column for people using MSIE or with dodgy fonts installed. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 23:39, 15 December 2009 (UTC)

== Why is the equivalent symbol not here....??? ==

Top half is [[omega]] and the bottom minus....???--[[Special:Contributions/222.64.27.154|222.64.27.154]] ([[User talk:222.64.27.154|talk]]) 01:35, 20 March 2010 (UTC)

If this convention is replaced by a new standard, please show the history of the edition--[[Special:Contributions/222.64.27.154|222.64.27.154]] ([[User talk:222.64.27.154|talk]]) 01:43, 20 March 2010 (UTC)
:Its unicode U+224F &#x224f; see [[Unicode mathematical operators]]. I'm not sure if its very common in mondern mathematical notation, "≈" is more common see [[Approximation]].--[[User:Salix alba|Salix]] ([[User talk:Salix alba|talk]]): 09:11, 20 March 2010 (UTC)

== *needs to also mention it's used for multiplication ==

I mean heck it's on the number pad, this is how you get it in excel, on the number pad, on my graphing calculator, within google's calculator. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/74.72.44.116|74.72.44.116]] ([[User talk:74.72.44.116|talk]]) 18:58, 17 April 2010 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:UnsignedIP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
: Agreed. This should definitely be added. [[User:Adammanifold|Adammanifold]] ([[User talk:Adammanifold|talk]]) 04:47, 11 November 2010 (UTC)
::Done. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 16:27, 13 December 2010 (UTC)

== !congruence not included ==

negative of congruence is not included <small><span class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:Userdce|Userdce]] ([[User talk:Userdce|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/Userdce|contribs]]) 18:03, 19 June 2010 (UTC)</span></small><!-- Template:Unsigned --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Add "action" to \cdot ? ==

It's rather common to denote any kind of actions by [latex]\cdot[\latex] (let it be group actions on spaces, ring/algebra actions on modules, or any other kind). Maybe this should be added? --[[User:Roman3|Roman3]] ([[User talk:Roman3|talk]]) 10:06, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

==Such That Symbol==

Doesn't the symbol: ϶ also mean "such that" which I don't see listed?[[Special:Contributions/70.170.26.14|70.170.26.14]] ([[User talk:70.170.26.14|talk]]) 08:09, 9 July 2010 (UTC)

== ISO 31-11 standard ==

Should notations that adhere to the [[ISO 31-11]] standard be mentioned specifically? I.e. mentioning that ''{ ∣ }'' is a standardized notation while ''{ : }'' is not. --[[User:BiT|BiT]] ([[User talk:BiT|talk]]) 23:08, 29 October 2010 (UTC)

== Canonically isomorphic ==

The symbol "=" is - at least in algebraic and analytic geometry - often used to denote objects which are canonically isomorphic. I imagine the same is true in other disciplines which use algebraic objects as a tool of classification (e.g. cohomology groups in algebraic geometry), where the actual algebraic object in question doesn't matter as much as its isomorphism class.

One also quite regularly abuses "=" to mean isomorphic in the sense of manifolds (e.g. differential, complex, algebraic).

Actually, a fun article might be written about all the different ways in which the symbol "=" is abused. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">—Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/81.220.155.201|81.220.155.201]] ([[User talk:81.220.155.201|talk]]) 22:37, 21 November 2010 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:UnsignedIP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Plus-Minus ==

The statement "x=7 and x=3" is false from the logical point of view and thus it should be changed into "x=7 or x=3". <small><span class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:Bcserna|Bcserna]] ([[User talk:Bcserna|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/Bcserna|contribs]]) 14:12, 11 January 2011 (UTC)</span></small><!-- Template:Unsigned --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Linking to pages about the symbol? ==

I propose we add links to pages about the symbols themselves, rather than just about the concepts they represent. This is both interesting, as well as helpful to learn more about the symbol itself and its origins. The HTML symbols themselves could easily be made into a link:
:[[Equals sign|=]]
This would also help to alleviate the problem of people being unable to see the symbols, as most of the pages about symbols themselves have pictures of the symbol. A great many of the symbols do have pages exclusively about them. [[User:Scientific29|Scientific29]] ([[User talk:Scientific29|talk]]) 22:12, 11 January 2011 (UTC)
:Done! Thanks whoever did the first half![[User:Scientific29|Scientific29]] ([[User talk:Scientific29|talk]]) 04:48, 27 January 2011 (UTC)


::How about making the first usage of any symbol on many or all mathematics articles an HTML version linking to that symbol's page? Or a link to its representation in this table? I can't think of a good reason why most or all of the symbols used in the articles are non-hyperlink versions.

==This is the wrong place, but==
Where do I go to talk about the MATH markup in the wiki? I simply can't get it to look nice, and I'm wondering if it's my browser, my markup, or something else. [[User:Maury Markowitz|Maury Markowitz]] ([[User talk:Maury Markowitz|talk]]) 19:55, 18 January 2011 (UTC)

== Requested move ==
*Moved. [[User:Courcelles|Courcelles]] 02:15, 31 March 2011 (UTC)
[[Table of mathematical symbols]] → {{No redirect|1=List of mathematical symbols}} — Per [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (stand-alone lists)#Naming conventions]], the standard naming convention is '''List of ____'''. The change would also make it more consistent with [[List of logic symbols]]. --[[User:Cosmopolitan|Cosmopolitan]] ([[User talk:Cosmopolitan|talk]]) 04:32, 26 March 2011 (UTC)
*'''Support''': If we are not using the 'table' nomenclature anywhere else we should get rid of it here for consistency. –[[User:CWenger|CWenger]] ([[User talk:CWenger|talk]]) 17:22, 27 March 2011 (UTC)
*'''Support''': [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 13:23, 28 March 2011 (UTC)

== Criteria for order ==

How can Karp reduction be listed before addition? - Anonymous [[Special:Contributions/190.31.128.203|190.31.128.203]] ([[User talk:190.31.128.203|talk]]) 22:19, 4 April 2011 (UTC)

I agree. How the list is sorted <del>must</del> should be explicitly stated. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/80.99.93.173|80.99.93.173]] ([[User talk:80.99.93.173|talk]]) 08:27, 4 July 2012 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Deletion of DeTeXify link. ==

If someone opens DeTeXify a JavaScript will be activated which will take 100% CPU power for Bitcoin mining.
This is not something a visitor would expect and should probably be deleted or at least a warning should be included. [[Special:Contributions/91.67.56.182|91.67.56.182]] ([[User talk:91.67.56.182|talk]]) 18:32, 31 May 2011 (UTC)

After the German Blogger [[Felix_von_Leitner|Felix von Leitner]] Blogged about DeTeXify and Bitcoin JS Miner, the Script was removed from the Site. But they might include the script again. --[[Special:Contributions/91.67.56.182|91.67.56.182]] ([[User talk:91.67.56.182|talk]]) 12:05, 1 June 2011 (UTC)

== Pedantry ==

Shouldn't multiplication use &sdot; sdot instead of &middot; middot?

183 middot · middle dot = Georgian comma = Greek middle dot

8901 sdot ⋅ dot operator

dot operator is NOT the same character as U+00B7 middle dot

http://www.htmlcodetutorial.com/characterentities_famsupp_69.html <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/96.224.64.67|96.224.64.67]] ([[User talk:96.224.64.67|talk]]) 16:15, 7 June 2011 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:UnsignedIP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->


== Links to LaTeX commands ==

This page would be much more useful if there were also links to the related LaTeX commands in the LaTeX Wikibook! I cannot do it since I am unable to find many of the symbols in the Wikibook :-( <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/131.212.12.225|131.212.12.225]] ([[User talk:131.212.12.225|talk]]) 21:54, 30 July 2011 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Tilde - please check on discussion on [[Tilde]], [[Talk:Tilde]] pages ==

Hi. The [[Tilde]] article is currently internally contradictory regarding the meaning of ~ in mathematics, as discussed in [[Talk:Tilde]]. Could someone please check on this? Thanks! [[User:Allens|Allens]] ([[User talk:Allens|talk]]) 14:33, 5 November 2011 (UTC)
:The article lists more than one meaning for the symbol. That's not the same as a "contradiction". [[User:Jowa fan|Jowa fan]] ([[User talk:Jowa fan|talk]]) 00:27, 6 November 2011 (UTC)
::For the information of others - the difficulty isn't it meaning multiple things; it's that someone was claiming in the article that some of the established uses of ~, including ones specified in the article, were incorrect. [[User:Allens|Allens]] ([[User talk:Allens|talk]]) 02:28, 6 November 2011 (UTC)


== Semidirect Product - strange symbol, not defined ==
"N ⋊φ H is the semidirect product of N (a normal subgroup) and H (a subgroup), with respect to φ."
<p>This last character before the period really confused me until I went into edit mode and saw the 'lowercase letter O overstruck with a vertical bar' (<strong>which, by the way, is not defined in this list</strong>). It looks totally different (albeit a little prettier) in most fonts, including Times New Roman and Arial; it looks normal (like a symbol I recognize) in Symbol and most monospaced fonts. Another argument for images rather than fonts? <small><span class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User: AFbrat1972-MN| AFbrat1972-MN]] ([[User talk: AFbrat1972-MN|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/ AFbrat1972-MN|contribs]]) 24 Nov 11</span></small><!-- Template:Unsigned -->
:φ is the Greek letter [[phi]]. [[User:Alksentrs|Alksentrs]] ([[User talk:Alksentrs|talk]]) 15:20, 27 November 2011 (UTC)

== Another use of the symbol # ==

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primorial . <small><span class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:Reddwarf2956|Reddwarf2956]] ([[User talk:Reddwarf2956|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/Reddwarf2956|contribs]]) 14:44, 13 February 2012 (UTC)</span></small><!-- Template:Unsigned --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

: Done (on 2012-03-03). — [[User:Quondum|Quondum]][[User_talk:Quondum|<sup>☏</sup>]] 14:17, 9 April 2012 (UTC)

== \[[bigcup]] ==
Needs an entry. -[[User:Stevertigo|Stevertigo]] ([[User_talk:Stevertigo|t]] | [[Special:Contributions/Stevertigo|c]]) 23:06, 27 May 2012 (UTC)

== ⊕ Overriding union ==

Overriding union, mentioned in the article on Functions, is missing {{main|Function (mathematics)}}.

== Truth and Falsity symbols ==

⊤ and ⊥ mean "Truth" (or tautology) and "Falsity" (or contradiction) in logic.
--[[User:AndreRD|AndreRD]] ([[User talk:AndreRD|talk]]) 15:47, 23 January 2013 (UTC)

== Aloud ==

Some indication as to the way the symbols are read aloud should be given. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/46.65.2.139|46.65.2.139]] ([[User talk:46.65.2.139|talk]]) 13:21, 18 March 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Edit request on 21 March 2013 ==

{{edit semi-protected|answered=yes}}
<!-- Begin request -->
The question mark symbol is also used for IF following a logic statement and the first option is true, second is false... <Logic equation> ? <True>:<False>
<!-- End request -->
[[Special:Contributions/70.39.231.44|70.39.231.44]] ([[User talk:70.39.231.44|talk]]) 18:00, 21 March 2013 (UTC)

:{{ESp|rs}}. The fact that it's part of [[Java (programming language)|Java's]] syntax is not quite the same as saying that it's a mathematical symbol. [[User:Favonian|Favonian]] ([[User talk:Favonian|talk]]) 19:43, 31 March 2013 (UTC)

== Many unicode mathematical symbols not covered in this article. ==

There are three sets of mathematical symbols contained in the Unicode character set. Presumably each of these characters had to have a justification presented to be accepted for inclusion in unicode. It would be nice if all of these symbols, with an explanation of their use, perhaps based on the unicode submission, were included in this article. I often need new symbols for my own use, and if an exiting symbol for that use exists I'd rather use that than invent something new; it would be nice if this article were a comprehensive list. [[User:FreeFlow99|FreeFlow99]] ([[User talk:FreeFlow99|talk]]) 15:27, 2 April 2013 (UTC)
:[[Mathematical operators and symbols in Unicode]] does show all the symbols without explanation. Unicode.org does give each symbol a specific name and use,[http://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U2200.pdf] but I've not found details of inclusion criteria. Some pages like [[Miscellaneous Technical (Unicode)]] do go into greater detail which might be an idea for the mathematical unicode pages, but it is quite a bit of work to do. --[[User:Salix alba|Salix]] ([[User talk:Salix alba|talk]]): 16:41, 2 April 2013 (UTC)


== Special arrows missing ==

What about the arrow symbols meaning injection, surjection and bijection? <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/2.33.16.227|2.33.16.227]] ([[User talk:2.33.16.227|talk]]) 16:25, 13 August 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->

== Suggested addition ==

I suggest that someone who knows how might want to add ≶, ≷, ⋚, and ⋛. Thanks. [[User:Duoduoduo|Duoduoduo]] ([[User talk:Duoduoduo|talk]]) 16:10, 31 October 2013 (UTC)
:I would suggest that those aren't single symbols, although they are in [[TeX]] and [[UNICODE]], but are shorthand for stacked cases. — [[User:Arthur Rubin|Arthur Rubin]] [[User talk:Arthur Rubin|(talk)]] 21:13, 31 October 2013 (UTC)
::But the list here already includes the stacked symbols ≤ and ≥. [[User:Duoduoduo|Duoduoduo]] ([[User talk:Duoduoduo|talk]]) 21:47, 31 October 2013 (UTC)
:::Those are stacked ''symbols'', but they don't represented stacked ''cases''. The usage:
:::: ''A'' ≶ ''B'' if ''A''<sup>&minus;1</sup> ≷ ''B''<sup>&minus;1</sup>
:::is shorthand for the two statements:
::::# ''A'' < ''B'' if ''A''<sup>&minus;1</sup> > ''B''<sup>&minus;1</sup>
::::# ''A'' > ''B'' if ''A''<sup>&minus;1</sup> < ''B''<sup>&minus;1.</sup>
::: There is no similar referent for ≤ or ≥. — [[User:Arthur Rubin|Arthur Rubin]] [[User talk:Arthur Rubin|(talk)]] 22:01, 31 October 2013 (UTC)
:::::I really don't care that much -- it was just a suggestion. But ≶, ≷, ⋚, and ⋛ are used not only for stacked cases, but also as either-or statements. For example, the expression for the slope of a curve can be followed by ⋚0 to show that it can be any of them depending on the parameters or the value of ''x''. It doesn't have to be followed by "as" or "if". [[User:Duoduoduo|Duoduoduo]] ([[User talk:Duoduoduo|talk]]) 13:29, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:::::As another example, when a model is being specified the modeler can say "where the parameter ''a''⋚0", to show that it is unrestricted on the real line, or "where the parameter ''a''≶0 but not =0." [[User:Duoduoduo|Duoduoduo]] ([[User talk:Duoduoduo|talk]]) 13:48, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
::::::Your first note is wrong: They '''are''' only used for stacked cases. The second note is confusing; when it isn't used for stacked cases, "≶" should be replaced by "≠". — [[User:Arthur Rubin|Arthur Rubin]] [[User talk:Arthur Rubin|(talk)]] 17:18, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

:::::::Occasionally (but admittedly seldom) in applied math contexts people use "''a''≶0 but not =0" when they are trying to emphasize the fact that ''a'' is not restricted in sign as much as the fact that it is non-zero. As for your comment ''Your first note is wrong: They '''are''' only used for stacked cases.'', that's wrong; perhaps you've never seen it, but in economics "⋚0." appears whenever a comparative static derivative, usually from an ''n''×''n'' system, is given explicitly in terms of a variety of parameters and it can be positive, negative, or zero depending on parameter combinations. In that context there's no point in saying "as ... ⋚ ,,," because that would simply repeat the same information. [[User:Duoduoduo|Duoduoduo]] ([[User talk:Duoduoduo|talk]]) 19:04, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
::::::::I'd like to see an example of use in economics, to see whether it is really a ''mathematical'' symbol which does not represent stacked cases. (As an aside, ≶ or ⋚ may make sense in cases of partial orderings, and might be used in [[Winning Ways]], although it doesn't seem to be. It does use the symbol that may look like. <math>\vartriangleleft \shortmid</math> or <math>< \!\shortparallel.</math> — [[User:Arthur Rubin|Arthur Rubin]] [[User talk:Arthur Rubin|(talk)]] 03:52, 2 November 2013 (UTC)

:::::::::Sorry I can't be of any help with references -- way back when I retired I trashed my entire collection of photocopied papers, and where I live now I have no access to a good library. [[User:Duoduoduo|Duoduoduo]] ([[User talk:Duoduoduo|talk]]) 17:34, 2 November 2013 (UTC)

== Another "such that" symbol ==

I saw my math professor using this symbol for "such that": [http://stranica.net63.net/such%20that.png Link here] <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/31.147.119.182|31.147.119.182]] ([[User talk:31.147.119.182|talk]]) 09:55, 8 November 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
:I can't say I've ever seen that. Ever seen it in a published paper? — [[User:Arthur Rubin|Arthur Rubin]] [[User talk:Arthur Rubin|(talk)]] 06:10, 9 November 2013 (UTC)
::I see that the list already includes a similar symbol ∋ from mathematical logic with this meaning (which it says is declining in use). Perhaps it is a distortion of this? — [[User_talk:Quondum|''Quondum'']] 06:44, 9 November 2013 (UTC)
:::I've never seen it in a published paper. I've only seen it from that math professor, but she didn't explain that symbol, so maybe only she use it to distinguish it from ∋ (which can also mean "contains"), but its also possible that somebody else use it also (but until now, I didn't see other math professor using it). --[[Special:Contributions/31.147.105.41|31.147.105.41]] ([[User talk:31.147.105.41|talk]]) 15:14, 10 November 2013 (UTC)

Latest revision as of 20:13, 14 November 2024

Page was much more legible before the merge

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I have been using "List of mathematical symbols by subject" as a reference for several years. I have some feedback on the recent merge:

  • "Glossary of mathematical symbols" contains much less information relevant (e.g. LaTeX code). The summary of the symbols isn't all that helpful because I could always click on the hyperlink to see a summary of the symbol at the top of the relevant page.
  • The inconsistent spacing between symbols when scrolling by eye makes it much harder to visually identify a symbol about which one potentially has no information other than the visual appearance.
  • The typesetting of operators and symbols alongside text is very messy and the article in general does not look professional. I would recommend at least setting individual symbols in-line with their text.
  • Entries such as:
□(□)
□(□, □)
□(□, ..., □)

are ambiguous. Is this all one object or three examples?

  • The section/sub-section structure is less useful. Why does 'calculus' have no subsections while 'brackets' does? The structure was more useable when it was more granular but with effective high-level section headings.
  • There is less information on the new page.

I appreciate what this merge was attempting to do, but as it is this page seems to serve a difference purpose than that from before. Personally, I will replace my bookmark to direct me to the historical page, as that was much more useful. HyadesHoliday (talk) 17:20, 25 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I strongly agree with this opinion. I also have been using Symbols by Subject for the Latex codes, and after the merge, it has become much more difficult to find the code for the symbol. Additionally, I agree it is inconvenient to read which symbols were better when they were displayed on the tables. And I agree that this merged article seems to serve a different purpose than the Symbols by Subject. This became very less useful for me. 59.7.50.242 (talk) 01:44, 1 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
This article is for general use, not for Wikipedia editors or typographers. As said in the introduction, it suffices to read the source of the article to know latex codes, and this should be easy for a Wikipedia editor. Otherwise said, the article is about the mathematical meaning of the symbols, not about their typography. Possibly, the latex code and the Unicode name could be added in the {{term}} fields, but I am not sure that this would be an improvement. In any case this would require a consensus here. D.Lazard (talk) 09:14, 1 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
@D.Lazard I am not sure what side you are coming down on here; I am a general-use user as I was using the merged page to write a thesis in computer science, not Wikipedia articles. I should not need to inspect the source of an article in order to find out relevant information. For this purpose the merged page was much more useful. We are all agreed that this article is about the mathematical meaning, not the typography - however this is why the merged page served a distinct function and should have been kept separate. In any case, legibility is the greatest part of understanding and in that regard the merged page was more useful as it was much easier to read and the links to the relevant (and complete!) descriptions, as contained within the dedicated Wikipedia pages for each symbol, were easy to identify. Not to mention that there remains many more symbols on the merged page than on the current one, so however one looks at it, information has been lost. HyadesHoliday (talk) 14:29, 2 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
See Wikipedia is not a manual. The purpose of the article is to explain mathematical notation. It is not its function to tell you how to write LaTeX. There are many (better) resources for that. It is as undue to include it as it would be to derive one of the functions it describes. 𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 17:09, 2 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
"Wikipedia is not a manual" does not apply here because simply using some functionality for a practical purpose does not mean that functionality is "manual-like". There are many useful mathematical and physical articles on Wikipedia that I have used for references for equations and so on in the past, but no-one would argue that the inclusion of, for example, F=ma in an article about Newtonian force is inappropriate because "wikipedia is not a manual", because F=ma is a relevant piece of information for the subject. Likewise, in an article about a symbol it is relevant to include common encodings of that symbol. If you disagree, consider that any decent article for a mathematical symbol includes the unicode and LaTeX for that symbol, e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equals_sign#Not_equal, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turned_A, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_symbol. Should we remove the TeX from those as well?
Anyway I think we agree that he article is to explain mathematical notation, which, again, is why having a separate page with LaTeX and so on was so helpful. Besides, if the merge could be undone, and the LaTeX removed, that would at least address five of my six complaints with this merged page (although, again, I don't see why such functionality should be removed). HyadesHoliday (talk) 11:47, 3 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
For the latex syntax of those Latex symbols that are available in Wikipedia, see Help:FORMULA#Formatting using LaTeX. For HTML symbols, see Help:FORMULA#HTML entities. D.Lazard (talk) 15:17, 3 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
As a holding position, the last version of the list article is here, so you can at least get on with writing your thesis. I realise that this doesn't help anyone else, so a more sustainable solution is needed. Could the LaTeX article be improved instead? --𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 15:49, 3 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
@HyadesHoliday: Among the external links of another article, I see The Comprehensive LaTeX Symbol List. I don't know how "official" it is but would it help to add that to the end of this article? --𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 20:37, 4 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
@D.Lazard: The issue isn't that I don't have a reference to LaTeX code, as I know I can find the code elsewhere and I can use the old page. The issue is that where once this page was a useful collection of information on the name, meaning, and typographical information of many mathematical symbols, the typical user will now only see a the name and meaning of fewer symbols with worse formatting, and I was trying to give a user (rather than an editor) perspective on this. For example, it's ridiculous to expect the average user to access Help:FORMULA#Formatting using LaTeX for LaTeX symbols. I will survive, since I have the old page bookmarked, and I think I've said my piece on the utility of this one. HyadesHoliday (talk) 11:18, 5 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
It helps me, as I also relied on the list for my academic writing, and came to this talk page looking to find out what happened. The glossary seems to be less comprehensive than the old list (e.g., there is no section on category theory), in addition to lacking the LaTeX codes, and doesn't observe the clean subject hierarchy of the other page. If I had suggestions to add on top of putting in the LaTeX codes, they would be expanding the article to at least the comprehensiveness of the list, and to introduce a similar hierarchy that breaks up symbols by field and topic within the field, for ease of navigation. As has been mentioned earlier, it was useful that there was a page that collected the name, meaning, and typographical information of just mathematical symbols, in one place.
I am also not fond of the glossary's formatting and didn't have much trouble with the tables on mobile, but consent that a large page of just tables doesn't conform to Wikipedia's readability norms. I'm not sure what would help with readability, something to more clearly break up the subsections for individual symbols, maybe. I do like that this page contains more description than the list. 173.206.19.146 (talk) 16:21, 30 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
In a time where more and more people are switching to digital writing tools, I'd argue that the people who need to understand mathematical notation and the people who need to be able to type it are mostly the same. It doesn't make sense to differentiate between "general users" and editors/typographers here. 2.243.191.37 (talk) 14:34, 12 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Support: I think the ways of typing out a symbol are quite basic information on that symbol, and are also very useful for the people looking up lists of symbols. In the same way it's sensible to include a reference table in the ASCII article, I believe it sensible to include the typographic information on an article about symbols. DIYLobotmy (talk) 09:04, 23 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

LaTeX commands

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One of the merged articles used to contain the Latex commands that produce each symbol. I found this very useful. Can I still find the table anywhere else? Or some table like that one...

The LaTeX commands are in the source, but it's not the same. Madhing (talk) 21:25, 21 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Nevermind, this has been discussed before. Madhing (talk) 21:35, 21 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]
For the convenience of future readers with the same question, see The Comprehensive LaTeX Symbol List. --𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 22:35, 21 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Bullet operator

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The article Bullet (typography) says A variant, the bullet operator (U+2219 ∙ BULLET OPERATOR) is used as a math symbol,[1] akin to the dot operator. Specifically, in logic, x • y means logical conjunction. It is the same as saying "x and y" (see also List of logic symbols). Is it significant enough to be included here? --𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 13:16, 20 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

IMO, for being included, a symbol must be commonly used. This means that there must be textbooks that use it (the mention taht there is an author that used once the symbol is not sufficient). Clearly, Bullet (typography) is not a reliable source, not only per WP:USERGENERATED, but also because this is not a mathematical article. The anonymous table given as a reference is not a reliable source either. IMO, the use of a bullet instead of is much too marginal for deserving a mention. D.Lazard (talk) 14:06, 20 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]
TYVM, until I saw that sentence, I had only ever heard of as a logical AND, but assumed that the fault was mine. I guess somewhere in the Unicode Consortium correspondence there is an explanation. I don't propose to pursue it further. --𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 23:37, 20 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]


References

  1. ^ "Mathematical symbols list (+, -, x, /, =, <, >, ...)". RapidTables. Retrieved 28 October 2023.

𝕁𝕄𝔽 (talk) 13:16, 20 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Angle brackets

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I have seen angle brackets used with the following definition

,

as in

.

But not sure how common that usage is. —DIV
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