Send questions of potential general interest to
math21a@fas.harvard.edu.
| Question:Why is multivariable calculus important?
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Answer:
Calculus is the culturally richest mathematical theory we know. It was used to conquer
the microscale and understand quantum mechanics in order to answer questions
what we are made of and the macroscale, when trying to understand the motions of stars and galaxies and
answer questions where we come from. It might surprise that the mesoscale could be even harder
to understand mathematically but it allows us to explore or create worlds which did not exist yet.
We live in the golden age of this exploration. We have
learned how to look into our bodies using tomography, scan geometric objects using cameras
and manufacture objects using 3D printers. We learn to build robots the size of bees,
or replicate the world on the computer for simulation, games or entertainment as well as to explore
the structure of real or imagined material worlds
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