Thanks for your reply, that's some useful information. I'm writing as a self-taught programmer who has spent years trying to get a handle on the maths of game

Thanks for your reply, that's some useful information. I'm writing as a self-taught programmer who has spent years trying to get a handle on the maths of game development and computer graphics; for the most part that means calculus, linear algebra and geometry. I went to high school in the UK where I was not taught calculus, or for that matter even told that I could go to university. My experiences did lead, I must admit, to some hostility towards the educational establishment and a strong desire to succeed without their help! I first learned of calculus when I was about 18 and I bought a book on computer graphics programming. I was all geared up to start doing some cool 3d stuff, when all of a sudden I saw this strange elongated "S" symbol, which of course was not explained in the text. This confused me, when the book had a mathematical appendix describing the simplest vector operations (which I did learn in high school) in some detail. And that was the beginning of my frustration! There just seems to be such an enormous gulf between high school, "everyday" mathematics and anything coming after. I would like to think that in a world where programming is now so popular, that the border between everyday mathematics and the higher reaches of academia would shift a little and a kind of intermediate area would open up.