4 ms·
> Wolfram Alpha can solve all of the problems in a typical math textbook I mostly disagree (and I used WolframAlpha thoroughly during my engineering education)
by redox99 3y ago
> Wolfram Alpha can solve all of the problems in a typical math textbook
I mostly disagree (and I used WolframAlpha thoroughly during my engineering education). Wolfram can solve well encapsulated tasks (solve for X, find the integral, etc). Even then often it gives you a huge expression, whereas doing it by hand you can achieve a much simpler expression.
It doesn't really handle complex problems, at least like the ones you'd find in a college level math or physics course. It can be a tool for solving certain steps within those problems (like a calculator), but you can't plug the whole thing into Wolfram and get an answer.
GPT4 is kinda OK at this, like 50%+ success rate probably, highly dependent on how common the problem is.
- xmprt 3y ago> It doesn't really handle complex problems, at least like the ones you'd find in a college level math or physics course Those complex problems are taught and asked in college level classes because of Wolfram Alpha. Like the parent commenter mentioned, classes had to adapt to new technology and since Wolfram Alpha could solve the straightforward questions, college classes started asking more complex ones with multiple steps and where the problem needs to be reframed in order to actually solve it.
- redox99 3y agoNah, you can check any math or physics book that's many dedcades old and they had this same kind of problems.