# I have math questions **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 9, 2013, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085 "2013-07-09T22:24:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SC2Maar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@SC2Maar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SC2Maar)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/1 "2013-07-09T22:24:49Z")
But I don’t know if it’s appropriate to ask them on SDMB. It’s not a homework. It’s just self-study. But people may think they are homework and therefore feel unwilling to solve them. How can I convince people that they are not homework? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/2 "2013-07-09T22:33:46Z")
There’s no problem with asking them. As for convincing people to answer in good faith… Well, for that you’re on your own. At least, when the topic is math, you can verify for yourself whether the answers are correct or jokes. ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/3 "2013-07-09T23:26:47Z")
For me, just putting in the OP “these are book/simple/sample questions but I’m not taking a class so it’s not homework” has always worked just fine. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/4 "2013-07-10T00:15:15Z")
Yup, don’t sweat it - just post them in GQ. You’ll get great answers, crap answers, snark, and most everything in-between. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/5 "2013-07-10T01:32:29Z")
Bribery is helpful. ---
**Author:** ![R3d\_Anonymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/aeb1de/32.png) [@R3d\_Anonymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R3d_Anonymous)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/6 "2013-07-10T02:21:48Z")
Just wondering: I saw one time that someone said how the SDMB doesn’t have a problem with homework questions as long as they are not asking to do the work for them. In another words, you can ask if all you are looking for is a little help to get pointed in the right direction. Is this correct? ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/7 "2013-07-10T02:57:06Z")
I’ve posted homework-like questions in GQ without problems. Of course it helps to have been here awhile. But just explain your situation and I think you’ll be fine. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/8 "2013-07-10T03:00:46Z")
It’s usually okay if you frame it as “how do I go about solving this problem” rather than “what is the answer to this problem.” ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/9 "2013-07-10T03:12:38Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > It’s usually okay if you frame it as “how do I go about solving this problem” rather than “what is the answer to this problem.” If the OP just wants us to give the answer, then there’s nothing to discuss and it isn’t a suitable topic for SDMB to begin with. The answer is always 42. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/10 "2013-07-10T05:28:11Z")
Slight hijack - what are some good online resources for mathematical questions? I’m thinking: 1. reference 2. tutorials 3. forums 4. applications For example, I like to tinker with different ideas, sometimes just out of curiosity, sometimes as a way of conceptualizing unrelated things, sometimes to solve a problem, and sometimes to make something more realistic when writing fiction. All of these things can wander into the realm of math. But I don’t want to have to go linearly through a series of math textbooks to finally get to what I need. I’d like to be able to, say, be able to consult a good index to find which area of math relates to what I’m trying to do, identify which formula(s)/algorithms are relevant, and then have some similar examples to modify in an application so I can plot things and play with the parameters. I’d like some general broad resources of the four types mentioned, but at this time I’m also particularly interested in playing with waveforms. I’m comfortable with trig and basic calculus, but from what I can gather based on my limited experience, something like Fourier transforms might be the direction I need to head in. But I’m having trouble finding practical resources about that. I’m also tangentially interested in conversion of waveforms, for example, turning a trigonometric waveform into an audio file or light projection. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-math-questions/663085/11 "2013-07-10T06:42:51Z")
“Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater.” -Albert Einstein