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OCW2 Maths - Version 1

This is the first of a series of academic subjects being developed for the OCW2 project. Comments and suggestions are welcome - even if you have no particular interest in maths your comments on form and structure would be of value in developing OCW2 material for other academic areas.

Note that a "linear" rather than the "book" version can be obtained by clicking on Printer-friendly version. There is also an e-book version with clickable links but no embedded video.

A good way to start OCW2 Maths is by reading the FAQ.

What is Mathematics?

Mathematics is the study of quantity, structure, space, relation, change, and various topics of pattern, form and entity. Mathematicians seek out patterns whether found in numbers, space, natural science, computers, imaginary abstractions, or elsewhere. Mathematicians formulate new conjectures and establish truth by rigorous deduction from axioms and definitions.

Through the use of abstraction and logical reasoning, mathematics evolved from counting, calculation, measurement, and the systematic study of the shapes and motions of physical objects. Knowledge and use of basic mathematics have always been an inherent and integral part of individual and group life. Today, mathematics is used throughout the world as an essential tool in many fields, including natural science, engineering, medicine, and the social sciences such as economics and psychology.

Applied mathematics, the branch of mathematics concerned with application of mathematical knowledge to other fields, inspires and makes use of new mathematical discoveries and sometimes leads to the development of entirely new disciplines. Mathematicians also engage in pure mathematics, or mathematics for its own sake, without having any application in mind, although practical applications for what began as pure mathematics are often discovered later.

- Based on "Mathematics" in Wikipedia