Soldato
Teaching myself maths
- Thread starter Cromulent
- Start date
Associate
Before spending any money I suggest trying Khan Academy and also the A-Level e-books available for free here:
https://ebooks.papacambridge.com/eb...dvanced-cambridge-as-a-level-mathematics-9709
Start with Pure Maths 1, then Pure 2 and 3 and do all the practice problems at the end of each section.
Stroud Engineering Maths is a bible, but it is a massive book. For an electronics degree (2nd/3rd year +) you'll need a good understanding of vector algebra which isn't covered on Khan Academy, but comes much much later in your maths journey and is covered in Stroud Further Engineering. Certainly don't buy all 3 together at the start, you'll just blow your mind and you might eventually find you can't be bothered, at which point you'll have wasted your money. In any case you will probably never need even half of the material in Stroud Further Maths.
If you are starting from GCSE level maths, it'll take about 1-2 years of fairly regular study (~5hrs+ per week) to get to where you have a decent understanding to A-Level/Pre-University standard.
I did a lot of complex maths at university, and 16 years later have forgotten almost all of it, because I never really use it in my day to day job, and to be honest, I never really understood half of it in the first place!
https://ebooks.papacambridge.com/eb...dvanced-cambridge-as-a-level-mathematics-9709
Start with Pure Maths 1, then Pure 2 and 3 and do all the practice problems at the end of each section.
Stroud Engineering Maths is a bible, but it is a massive book. For an electronics degree (2nd/3rd year +) you'll need a good understanding of vector algebra which isn't covered on Khan Academy, but comes much much later in your maths journey and is covered in Stroud Further Engineering. Certainly don't buy all 3 together at the start, you'll just blow your mind and you might eventually find you can't be bothered, at which point you'll have wasted your money. In any case you will probably never need even half of the material in Stroud Further Maths.
If you are starting from GCSE level maths, it'll take about 1-2 years of fairly regular study (~5hrs+ per week) to get to where you have a decent understanding to A-Level/Pre-University standard.
I did a lot of complex maths at university, and 16 years later have forgotten almost all of it, because I never really use it in my day to day job, and to be honest, I never really understood half of it in the first place!
I'm curious why you'd need Engineering Maths for electronics?
Wouldn't that be more for building bridges and stuff?
Also, mechanics is evil. Pure evil. I'd pretty much choose my career around being able to avoid doing that type of maths. Pure and stats were fine.
Soldato
- Joined
- 25 Nov 2005
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- 12,451
This should help you - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFt_ar31D2E8T1kACn_Y9akyObmH2GHP6
Soldato
- Joined
- 4 Feb 2018
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- 13,162
Racist! (only joking)
Soldato
Pro tip: Do not start thinking about infinities. It'll drive you mad.
You seem to start a lot of threads about things you're planning to do yet you don't seem to actually do them so perhaps just start slowly and try to stick with it.
I mean at the start of 2019 you were thinking about doing a maths degree, I took the time to reply in that thread with a bunch of course recommendations + a book recommendation for you:
https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...-degree-does-anyone-have-any-advice.18845165/
Then months later you were asking again:
https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...maths-required-for-game-development.18872728/
So 3 years later have you actually done anything? The first book of the three you've mentioned is fairly basic so I presume not.
Why not just buy one book and try to get through that first perhaps.
I mean at the start of 2019 you were thinking about doing a maths degree, I took the time to reply in that thread with a bunch of course recommendations + a book recommendation for you:
https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...-degree-does-anyone-have-any-advice.18845165/
Then months later you were asking again:
https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...maths-required-for-game-development.18872728/
So 3 years later have you actually done anything? The first book of the three you've mentioned is fairly basic so I presume not.
Why not just buy one book and try to get through that first perhaps.
Soldato
No, electronics can require quite extensive use of maths. It isnt just about putting capacitors and resistors on the board but what you are trying to achieve, the design aim. For instance signal processing or electromagnetic modelling require understanding of the underlying mathematics behind it. Yes you could be taught to design something using software but if you dont understand the fundamentals then its quite easy not to recognise that you are going down a rabbit hole and end up with a solution that is junk and not realisable.
Any electronics degree worth its salt will have a strong focus on maths
Associate
- Joined
- 3 May 2007
- Posts
- 1,876
I did electronic and electro technical engineering at collage and 75% of the time we were just doing different types of maths in a classroom.
Soldato
Transistor H parameters and transmission line power factors/losses? Fun times.
That's wrong. 1 + 1 = Window.
Soldato
- Joined
- 28 Nov 2005
- Posts
- 12,977
I'm currently going through Electrical Engineering degree, just done the maths and science phase.
Depending on how good your foundation level is, it can be tricky self learning. Especially the higher end maths like laplace and fouriers transforms.
Depending on how good your foundation level is, it can be tricky self learning. Especially the higher end maths like laplace and fouriers transforms.
Soldato
Mechanics is interesting, useful and somewhat intuitive. Stats is needless piddling around with symbols and abstract concepts (IMO).
I was simply saying that whilst I could understand stats, I could not even begin to wrap my head around mechanics. Even A-level mechanics was just mystifying, and I failed it horribly
Fortunately pure and stats dragged my overall grade up to something half-respectable You know when something is just beyond your comprehension - that's mechanics for me 
What about statistical mechanicsI was simply saying that whilst I could understand stats, I could not even begin to wrap my head around mechanics. Even A-level mechanics was just mystifying, and I failed it horribly
Is that a thing? I didn't take maths very far, not beyond A-level. I just know that anything involving the word mechanics is pure evil. Voodoo black magic and dark rituals involving triangles.What about statistical mechanics
Used this book for my degree in maths. thought it was good. Everyone is different though, a lot of people really liked the Stewarts Calculus book but I absolutely hated it. Other suggestions in this thread are worth taking a look at too. But you should add what maths you need to do what you want to do.
Lastly, don't buy all three books, buy the first and see how you go.
You might
a) hate the way the book is presented/info explained
b) decide that you no longer want to do it
c) find something better.
You be able to get some (or all) at a library tbh.
Electronics is all about the maths 
well if your doing it properly that is. Then when you get further up the food chain its all about the Statistics Minitab FTW.
Still being a mech engineer never trust anything you cant see with the naked eye, unless you like popping caps across the room much to the annoyance of electrical engineers
well if your doing it properly that is. Then when you get further up the food chain its all about the Statistics Minitab FTW.Still being a mech engineer never trust anything you cant see with the naked eye, unless you like popping caps across the room much to the annoyance of electrical engineers