Recommend a book

[Reynard]

For the practical stuff, I'd recommend "Engineering Mathematics" and "Further Engineering Mathematics" by K. A. Stroud. The first volume covers a good chunk of the A-level syllabus while the second then takes things onwards.

You get walked through each topic step-by-step and provided with a relevant set of problems to solve at appropriate intervals.

They're very user-friendly books that took me through my my foundation of engineering course and my subsequent MEng. Plenty of stuff in there that would be of relevance to computer scientists as well. This from a person who failed her maths A-level miserably, but then finished off as one of the top mathematicians in her year at degree level.

Sometimes it's just the way that the material is presented to you, and Stroud does it in a very intuitive way that invites you to teach yourself. That's super useful when you're sat in a lecture hall with 300 other people and you really can't hear what's being said...

 

[Profpointy]

I have recently read Queens Gambit and found it an enjoyable can’t put it down read. Queens Gambit is readily available second hand for around £3. This book is very well written and is a joy to read the story is fascinating.

View attachment 737345

Tempted to read that, having really enjoyed the TV series, which I thought exceptionally good.

Didn't Trevis also write the book "The Man Who Fell to Earth"; later filmed by Nic Roeg and starring David Bowie?

 

[dicko]

Tempted to read that, having really enjoyed the TV series, which I thought exceptionally good.

Didn't Trevis also write the book "The Man Who Fell to Earth"; later filmed by Nic Roeg and starring David Bowie?

The book is better than the tv series it’s unputdownable and in much detail.

 

[Profpointy]

For the practical stuff, I'd recommend "Engineering Mathematics" and "Further Engineering Mathematics" by K. A. Stroud. The first volume covers a good chunk of the A-level syllabus while the second then takes things onwards.

You get walked through each topic step-by-step and provided with a relevant set of problems to solve at appropriate intervals.

They're very user-friendly books that took me through my my foundation of engineering course and my subsequent MEng. Plenty of stuff in there that would be of relevance to computer scientists as well. This from a person who failed her maths A-level miserably, but then finished off as one of the top mathematicians in her year at degree level.

Sometimes it's just the way that the material is presented to you, and Stroud does it in a very intuitive way that invites you to teach yourself. That's super useful when you're sat in a lecture hall with 300 other people and you really can't hear what's being said...

Might have to buy one or other of those, despite the hefty price tag

 

[Reynard]

Might have to buy one or other of those, despite the hefty price tag

Look for used copies on the Bay of E, perhaps?

Though it might be worth waiting a while until after the academic year has started and all the undergrads have got their books.

 

[lazybloke]

For the practical stuff, I'd recommend "Engineering Mathematics" and "Further Engineering Mathematics" by K. A. Stroud. The first volume covers a good chunk of the A-level syllabus while the second then takes things onwards.

You get walked through each topic step-by-step and provided with a relevant set of problems to solve at appropriate intervals.

They're very user-friendly books that took me through my my foundation of engineering course and my subsequent MEng. Plenty of stuff in there that would be of relevance to computer scientists as well. This from a person who failed her maths A-level miserably, but then finished off as one of the top mathematicians in her year at degree level.

Sometimes it's just the way that the material is presented to you, and Stroud does it in a very intuitive way that invites you to teach yourself. That's super useful when you're sat in a lecture hall with 300 other people and you really can't hear what's being said...

Thanks @Reynard, i've been trying to remember 'Stroud'; the book that got me through my electronic engineering maths modules.

For maths knowledge in general, i'd maybe start with BBC bitesize; i think that goes up to A Level

 

[ColinJ]

This got me wondering how I would get on with Stroud now! I had a quick look but could not find my copy. I don't remember getting rid of it and I still have most of my other university textbooks so it is probably hiding somewhere in the house.

 

[Dadam]

Following. I was quite good at maths up to just before A level. I got an A in the AO, but at A level it just didn't go in. Failed first time and managed a pass on resits. After that I did a comp sci degree but the maths on that course seemed to make much more sense.

 

[Reynard]

Following. I was quite good at maths up to just before A level. I got an A in the AO, but at A level it just didn't go in. Failed first time and managed a pass on resits. After that I did a comp sci degree but the maths on that course seemed to make much more sense.

I was much the same. A level maths just didn't seem to stick, but it all made sense once I got to uni, because it tied in with all the (mainly) mechanical engineering stuff I was doing.

Didn't help that the teacher I had for A-level - who incidentally was an engineer himself - always refused to answer questions about practical applications for the material we were covering. I found his attitude to teaching very cold and condescending, which is one of the reasons why I found the course a complete turn-off.

 

[lazybloke]

I was much the same. A level maths just didn't seem to stick, but it all made sense once I got to uni, because it tied in with all the (mainly) mechanical engineering stuff I was doing.

Didn't help that the teacher I had for A-level - who incidentally was an engineer himself - always refused to answer questions about practical applications for the material we were covering. I found his attitude to teaching very cold and condescending, which is one of the reasons why I found the course a complete turn-off.

Similar here too.
B in O level maths. A in the lower sixth AO level, but struggled with A level and got a D. I also did over a year of Further Maths before dropping it.

The right teachers do make a massive difference to learning, but the endless parties might have been something of a distraction.

 

[Profpointy]

Look for used copies on the Bay of E, perhaps?

Though it might be worth waiting a while until after the academic year has started and all the undergrads have got their books.

My to-be-read pile is already a bit marginal on being able to get through before I shuffle off this mortal coil

 

[Reynard]

My to-be-read pile is already a bit marginal on being able to get through before I shuffle off this mortal coil

As someone who acquires books way faster than she can get through them (thanks to a couple of local book exchanges), that is a problem I am well acquainted with

 

[Dadam]

As someone who acquires books way faster than she can get through them (thanks to a couple of local book exchanges), that is a problem I am well acquainted with

100%
It's one of those sobering thoughts you get more and more as you get older. The existential terror, not of dying, but that there are orders of magnitudes more books, films, TV shows, games and artworks of very other kind in the world than you could possibly experience in the rest of your life, even if you dedicated every waking moment. 😱