May 1, 2017 (Vol. 37, No. 9)
Rating:
Strong Points: Beautiful interface and graphical depictions, many computations
Weak Points: None
Platform:
iPad, iPhone, Android
Cost:
$4.99
Summary:
As users have come to expect from Wolfram products, the Wolfram Linear Algebra Course Assistant is a wonderful resource for students of mathematics. Linear algebra is (unsurprisingly) the focus of this particular app, which is organized into seven sections: linear equations, vectors, matrices, linear transformations, subspaces, orthogonality, and eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Each of these sections, in turn, includes different calculators to perform a wide range of computations. These computations—such as calculating the cross product of two vectors—yield both numerical results and graphical representations. Critical for its utility as an educational aid, the app also displays step-by-step solutions to the computations if the app user chooses to reveal them. (That is, users can first check their answers before revealing the full method to perform the calculation.)
