The Math Club....Who wants to talk advanced Math?

#1

Advanced Mathematics the core foundation behind all Computer Graphics.

I do know that there is a segment of CG Programmers that theorists that
love to talk with passion about it.
Well that is why I posted this thread.
If you guys wand an ongoing math thread this would be it…
Calculus, Advanced Trigonometry, New Math Algorithms for Matrix conventions etc
All is fair.

For now just express your desire to talk about this topic…

If there is enought interest for this sort of ongoing thread I will move dit to
the CGSociety General Discussions section.

Looking forward to your comments.

-R

#2

I do.
Haven’t done anything math related since 8th grade. I am turning 28. How this math thing will work actually? I have some videos from 3dbuzz, they are explaining stuff quite nicely.
How about having a thread with the theory (everything you said in your post), then some problems or something. Is this what you had in mind?

#3

That would be kosher…

The core rule of the thread is how Math and CG go hand in hand.

-R

#4

Im interested! Im at a point where I want to start getting into the more technical aspects of Rendering especially with Mentalray and im very keen to learn the basics of some higher level math. This kind of thread would be very helpful for me!

#5

If the underlying reason for this thread is computer graphics, why dont we include how math applys in programming in this discussian.

#6

How about people post examples of how they use Math to accomplish a task in whatever CG application they are using. For example, using a Sine wave to create a cyclical animation of a piston moving up and down. I think it would be itneresting to see what equations are used in various situations.

#7

I like the idea as such, though I am not sure I’m 100% what we’re talking about here… A Q&A thread about maths, a tutorial sort of thing, general “this is how i use maths” sort of posts, … ? “Maths” as a general topic just seems like a very big area to pack into a single thread, and I can see it being a bit confusing?

#8

I asked for this over a year ago Roberto, - infact it was a math forum within cgtalk. A lot of people where interested but the moderators didnt see the point. So i shut up shop working on a wiki page here and decided to have my own blog, where I could talk in both foundation ideas, theory, and actual pure math.

I wanted a forum for thinkers in relation to math, not just processes, but why, how and the ideas behind it. I tend to just search the web nowadays, watch TED and read papers and publish on my blog.

If this idea kicks off maybe i’ll join in.

#9

And that is a very good point…
For now, I would suggest, to just start focusing on what the level of interest we have right now and what people want to talk about.

I am convinced that a subforum would be too much to ask for, but a single thread can be shepperded and mantained with ease.

#10

I’ll start the ball rolling with a topic which is negative numbers. I long while back Roberto Ortiz posted here about a book his friend wrote called “Negative Math: How Mathematical Rules Can Be Positively Bent”. I got that book and read it since Ive always been curious about the “whys” of math. Basically that whole book is about how negative numbers introduced a lot of contradictions into math, mainly the inability to calculate the square root of negative numbers. Trying to resolve this problem mathematicians tried to invent ways of calculating the square root of negative numbers but instead ended up inventing two new systems of mathematics that have given them the ability to solve problems way beyond the original goal of dealing negative numbers. And these are imaginary/complex numbers and quaternions.

#11

You already broke my head. To me the inability to square root a negative number is down to the impossibility of multiplying a number by itself and producing a negative result (one of the pair must be positive and one negative) which would mean that no negative number could possibly be the result of a squaring.

Of course, I only did maths to A’ Level so my gf’d probably laugh at my simplistic view of maths, she has this degree thing and reads books on imaginary numbers to relax.

#12

I love the idea Robert. Eventhough I’m a total right-brain kinda guy, and am therefor crap at Math, I’ve always had a strong interest in the subject. Especially when it pertains to CG.
The trick will be to keep this thread organized and on rails and not have it split up in ten different directions straight away. :slight_smile:

#13

I’m up for it. I studied math before switching to tech writing, but that was a while ago and I’m rather rusty at it. I’m also quite keen on the history and philosophy of math and science.

See, but if you broaden the definition of “number” and the definition of “multiply”, then you discover that you can have a perfectly self-consistent system where negative numbers can have square roots and all the other basic axioms still hold. And then you discover that this new system has all sorts of practical applications in science and engineering. Several developments in mathematics happened this way.

#14

Roberto, I strongly vote for at least a stickied thread on this subject.

In recent times I’ve often felt a guilt pang for not completing my engineering which could have helped me so much now in my cg. Not that you can’t do good art without it but its liberating to know what goes on behind the scenes. It makes grasping concepts, especially those pertaining to rendering (like someone else pointed out) so much smoother.
I have friends into pure math and I keep giving them hints at crossing over the fence but they seem uninterested.

Many times, some very informative threads here have led me on and encouraged me to learn more about something completely new. Maybe a thread on this would make me stop procrastinating and go pick up a book or two and refresh my fundamentals.

We could probably start with what branch of math constitutes the basic principles of graphics?
-Sachin

#15

Is it strange that I find that incredibly hot? :applause:

Sexism aside, I’m a bit of a mathematics nerd. I haven’t studied it to a particularly high level, but what little I do know I like to apply into my work, such as for writing shaders and the like. I’d love to have a good place to discuss such matters! :slight_smile:

#16

I’d like to finally get my head wrapped around vector math. Does anyone know a page, video, etc. that will help me learn it that is simpler to understand than the wikipedia article on the subject?

#17

I’m not sure why this thread is in GD other than for added exposure.
There’s been math talk for years on CGTalk; it happens in the graphic programming forum, where more people than note are comfortable with at least the basics (if not more) and have always been up for helping those who aren’t but wish to learn.

First math lesson to be learnt here:
Redundancy of content between sets, when unnecessary, makes for wasted cycles or memory :slight_smile:

#18

Thanks arquebus for the post…
The book was written by my best friend Alberto A. Martinez .
He is a Physics history professor at the University of Austin.
here is the amazon.com link:

http://www.amazon.com/Negative-Math-Mathematical-Rules-Positively/dp/0691123098/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1214417591&sr=8-1

As posted before I will move the thread out of GD soon (in about a week).

#19

I think that’s more relevant to computer science :wink:

#20

Computational analisys and discreet maths/calculus are all part of the science of mathematics, not of electronic computing :slight_smile:
Cycles and space don’t relate exclusively to CPUs and storage, people just a few years ago struggling to build and reduce tabling and analogic calulation tools would tell you that much.
They just happen to be very recurrent issues in electronic computation :wink: