Questions tagged [discussion]

The question you're asking is designed to solicit opinions or best-practices on a particular topic, with the goal of reaching community consensus.

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7 votes
1 answer
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Can I get a promotion?

What activities, if any, are currently being done to promote MO? Have opinions changed from two years ago with this post?
Chris Ramsey's user avatar
  • 3,944
7 votes
1 answer
196 views

Maximal bounties

Which question in MO has had maximal total bounties among other questions? I mean the total bounties which are given by the asker or other participants.
Ali Taghavi's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
599 views

Famous questions

I noticed this Famous MO Question. Its title is: "Difference between Principal Component Analysis(PCA) and Singular Value Decomposition(SVD)?." It has zero votes, but is one of the most "famous" MO ...
Joseph O'Rourke's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
377 views

How to make it easier to moderate blatantly off-topic questions?

As many of you have noticed, there's a lot of new users asking basic mathematics questions. This is not the only site in the network with this kind of problem; on Meta Stack Exchange we get all kinds ...
Glorfindel's user avatar
  • 2,743
7 votes
1 answer
1k views

Is it possible to use tikzcd code in MO posts?

Question : Is it possible to use tikzcd code in MO posts? There are information for drawing diagrams using AMScd ...
Praphulla Koushik's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
541 views

2022 Community Moderator Election

The 2022 Community Moderator Election is now underway! Community moderator elections have three phases: Nomination phase Primary phase Election phase Most elections take between two and three weeks, ...
7 votes
1 answer
167 views

Right-clicking on a mathjax link does wrong thing

Surely I am not the only user of this site with this habit - if I want to have look at the linked content I right-click on the link to open it in a new tab, so when I finish reading I then turn to the ...
მამუკა ჯიბლაძე's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
598 views

What to do if an answer was subjected to a minor formatting-only edit?

Recently an answer of mine (https://mathoverflow.net/a/20820/402) was edited (or rather, a suggested edit was approved by two other users). The edit consisted exclusively of minor formatting changes, ...
Dmitri Pavlov's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
291 views

Spelling conventions

After the recent discussion on LaTeX style accents, I have been reminded of this old discussion at tea regarding the appropriate spelling convention for some German names, such as Kähler. At the time, ...
François G. Dorais's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
522 views

What would be good place to list unresolved bounties?

Probably at least some MathOverflow users have been in a situation like this. I have placed a bounty on some question in hope to get an answer (or a better answer or a specific type of answer, for ...
Martin Sleziak's user avatar
7 votes
0 answers
173 views

How is TeX rendered in edit summaries?

I recently edited a question Dynkin type classification for 2-dimensional hypersurfaces in non-commutative space, and entered as my edit summary "$<x,y>$ -> $\langle x,y\rangle$" <...
LSpice's user avatar
  • 11.3k
7 votes
0 answers
271 views

`positive-characteristic` and `characteristic-p` are synonyms

I thought that tag synonyms were meant simply to be proposed and left to survive or die on their own, but I see another question in HNQ about tag synonyms, so maybe one is supposed to raise a ...
LSpice's user avatar
  • 11.3k
7 votes
0 answers
308 views

2020: a year in moderation

As we say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new one, we have a tradition of sharing moderation stats for the past 12 months. As most of you here are aware, sites on the Stack Exchange network ...
JNat's user avatar
  • 101
7 votes
0 answers
336 views

There is no an answer button for certain Wiki question [duplicate]

Edit: My problem has been solved about 12 hours after that I wrote this meta post. I wish to answer this question but it seems that it is impossible to answer it. It is written that "To ...
Ali Taghavi's user avatar
7 votes
0 answers
232 views

Editing an old post to add MathJax

Sometimes I come across an old post which does not use MathJax. Is it OK to edit such a post if the edit improves readability? This question (and its answers) motivated this post. I know some users ...
Michael Albanese's user avatar
7 votes
0 answers
774 views

Are these questions of mine, (seemingly too hard for MSE?), suitable for MO?

The questions at issue are this and this. If they get no answer even after the end of bounties, might I post to MO? And how about evaluating $\displaystyle \sum_{m=0}^\infty \sum_{n=1}^\infty \frac{(-...
Vincenzo Oliva's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
690 views

A serif font for MathOverflow?

Wouldn't it be nicer to have a serif font on MathOverflow? As is done, say, on MSE. It seems to be much more readable, like a printed text. And I'd say making answers looking more like notes or even ...
Andrew's user avatar
  • 2,645
6 votes
2 answers
517 views

Deleted posts visible to high reputation users

Suppose I delete an answer or a question I have posted, it is still visible for users with high reputation to see that. I guess deleting an answer would mean I realise that the content is wrong or ...
Praphulla Koushik's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
2k views

User retention rates on MathOverflow

A two-input table : First input : number of users with more than $500, 1000, 2500, 5000$ or $10000$ reputation points. Second input : number of users not seen for more than $1/12, 1/4, 1/2, 1, 2$ or $...
Sebastien Palcoux's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
2k views

What does research-level mathematics mean?

My understanding of this is that mathematics is research-level if: you could conceivably write a paper on some aspect of it; it could be taught in a grad-level course; it is not widely known ...
Albert Zhang's user avatar
6 votes
4 answers
299 views

What should the "hover text" for the MathOverflow link on all SE sites be?

If you go to the bottom of any page in the SE network (e.g. this one!), you'll see a list of SE sites. In particular there's a link to MathOverflow, that is potentially seen by a large number of ...
6 votes
2 answers
1k views

On the question about a strengthening of Bertrand's postulate

I am trying to work out what I think about the suitability of this question. The author is in a very real and awkward situation: His$^{\ast}$ graduate student has a result. The result is not that ...
David E Speyer's user avatar
6 votes
5 answers
251 views

How to avoid prepending a blank line or indenting the first line of a post when using \newcommand?

When \newcommand is used, it is somewhat common that it is used in such a way that the (rendered) post starts with a blank line. While this is minor, it is still ...
user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
368 views

Citing papers in questions/answers

Is there an established policy for how to cite a paper you link to in a question/answer? If not, what does etiquette dictate appropriate for citations? I used to be careful to include full citations ...
Alec Rhea's user avatar
  • 8,977
6 votes
3 answers
759 views

Where/how does one best post "Seeking a collaborator"

I have an idea for an attack on an additive number theory conjecture. My usual collaborator (with whom I have published four papers) is not an ANT specialist, and is not interested in working on this ...
Kieren MacMillan's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
513 views

"Silent" Edits for MO?

This question is inspired by Do we have an unofficial quota on how many old questions one should bump for minor edits in a single day? Wouldn't it make sense, to have the choice of a "silent" ...
Manfred Weis's user avatar
  • 12.6k
6 votes
1 answer
377 views

Should meta be Q&A?

Should the meta-MathOverflow have the Q&A format? I don't see any rationale for this. After all, meta is just an auxiliary sub-forum which should help running the main forum. Collecting the ...
Włodzimierz Holsztyński's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
632 views

Why can't I post my question on MO anymore

It seems that my account in MO has been blocked. My post is no more accepted, saying that we are no more accepting post from this account. How can I get my account unblocked?
gete's user avatar
  • 203
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

Swinnerton-Dyer passed away?

His wiki article has been updated to say that he passed away recently. Are there any other sources confirming that? Thanks. If it is more appropriate for another stackexchange site, please feel free ...
Fan Zheng's user avatar
  • 5,119
6 votes
1 answer
286 views

What happens when a question is migrated to MSE?

When a question is closed as off topic and migrated, will it no longer appear in MO, or will it appear in MO with a note saying it has been migrated? Similarly, in MSE, will it say "migrated from MO" ...
Brian Rushton's user avatar
6 votes
6 answers
775 views

I have a question which is a near fit for MathOverflow. What are some other resources I might consult?

What are some other resources which might be useful for somebody considering asking a MathOverflow question, especially if their question is not quite a perfect fit here? In asking this, I have ...
Tim Campion's user avatar
  • 60.6k
6 votes
1 answer
326 views

Is it reasonable to expect that the number of upvotes is greater than the number of favorites?

Am I mistaken to think that logically the number of upvotes to a question should be greater or equal to the number of favorites? The small difference between these two numbers in this post: Examples ...
Ali Taghavi's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
939 views

Bizarre Recent Upvotes

Just in the last day or so, the following extremely low-quality posts have all received upvotes: https://mathoverflow.net/questions/190836/how-to-calculate-math-expectation https://mathoverflow.net/...
Steven Landsburg's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
656 views

Why was my non-big-list question made community wiki?

This question of mine was made community wiki by someone other than me. I'm aware of discussion (e.g. here and here) arguing that big-list questions should be CW so that the voting system can be used ...
Mike Shulman's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
292 views

Who decides on a community policy?

Approximately one month ago, I asked whether pronunciation questions should be allowed. The responses I received seemed to suggest that they should, albeit possibly in the form of a handful of ...
Avi Steiner's user avatar
  • 3,031
6 votes
1 answer
397 views

Are interdisciplinary questions about mathematics of musical instruments on-topic here?

I have some mathematical questions that lie between music and mathematics, particularly applications of mathematics in building musical instruments. As an example see this paper: The Mathematics of ...
Amit Sing Mukerjee's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
282 views

Should I edit this question or make a new question?

Should the Grothendieck ring of varieties be K_0 of numerical motives? I want to change it to: 1) Asking about after tensoring with $\Qb$ 2) Asking if there is a map in some direction and if ...
David Corwin's user avatar
  • 15.1k
6 votes
1 answer
173 views

Subquestion of Original Post

On this question, I asked broadly about computing the Gauss Legendre quadrature for large N. However, I've mentioned there in the "edit" section an algorithm I've found on the web, which theoretically ...
Amir Sagiv's user avatar
  • 3,544
6 votes
2 answers
742 views

Appropriate Reaction to a Failed Reference Request on MO

This follows Amir Asghari's advice concerning my comment on the answer to Answering my own question: Background of my question is, that I can envisage different reasons for reference requests on ...
Manfred Weis's user avatar
  • 12.6k
6 votes
2 answers
365 views

Tag referring to a book/ specific collection of problems

The scottish-book has been created today by one user, posting various questions from the given book, or adding references and retagging existing a few questions when they appear in the given book. ...
YCor's user avatar
  • 60.1k
6 votes
2 answers
208 views

Question about closing

The following question has 5 votes to close, but it is not closed : Preparing for Set Theory Research What is going on here? I'm not trying to start a discussion of the merits of this question (...
Andy Putman's user avatar
  • 43.4k
6 votes
1 answer
290 views

On an answer containing pre-formatted text

I just came across an answer by a new user which looks very unusual to me: https://mathoverflow.net/a/139275/21095 Specifically, there is very little mathjax in this answer. Instead the vast majority ...
Ricardo Andrade's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
245 views

Are bounty reputation points assigned to unanswered question returned back?

Are bounty reputation points, being assigned to unanswered question, returned back to the issuer of the bounty? If "yes" - when? If not - why? Alternatively (instead of direct "refunding") in the case,...
Alex's user avatar
  • 335
6 votes
1 answer
276 views

Bountied question has already been answered elsewhere

This question, while somewhat old, recently had a 250 point bounty placed upon it by David E. Speyer. However, as I remarked in the comments, it has already been answered by Harry West, but in the ...
Gro-Tsen's user avatar
  • 29.8k
6 votes
1 answer
318 views

How should [applications] be applied?

Is tag applications for applications of mathematics to mathematics itself? applications of mathematics to other fields? applications of mathematics to any field? job applications? (e.g., ...
Rodrigo de Azevedo's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
518 views

Appropriateness of intuition pump question

Before I begin, please note that I am not troubled by the votes to close of my question here, but I'm somewhat puzzled about them. The purpose of this meta thread is for someone to explain why the ...
Jon Bannon's user avatar
  • 6,977
6 votes
1 answer
245 views

Hard to notice links in comments

This is a conscious duplicate :D There are at least two more questions about it (The color of links in comments, On the current color scheme, and why it sucks - by the way, when trying to share them ...
მამუკა ჯიბლაძე's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
383 views

Question about "auto-awarding" a bounty

I offered a bounty for clarifying the confusion in the answers & comments to the question "Simple, closed geodesics in 𝕊^3 manifold." I've just been notified that my bounty will be "auto-awarded":...
Joseph O'Rourke's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
501 views

Suitability on MO of question on teaching engineers mathematical thinking skills

Recently, I asked a question on MSE about teaching engineers mathematical thinking skills. Would this question be suitable for MO, where it might reach more professionals involved in teaching ...
J W's user avatar
  • 748
6 votes
1 answer
365 views

When should an answer be flagged as "not an answer"?

Since the upgrade to MO2.0 there are some new flags, among others it is now possible to flag an answer as "not an answer." I believe this notifies the moderators only (as opposed to having any ...
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