While teaching in the blackboard, I find it difficult to represent a vector/matrix/tensor. In latex, we represent $\mathbf{x}$. But, how do we represent it while writing in chalk? Is it okay to write an underlined variable $\underline{x}$ instead? What is the usual practice?
I think, avoiding the bold text might confuse the students.
Answer
The following are the notations I've seen most along the years (I don't think there's a winner).
Vectors:
Matrices:
In my experience, unadorned symbols are preferred by mathematicians; the arrow is preferred by physicists; and bar and underbar (and double underbar for matrices) are preferred by engineers.
Even though I don't have to write many vectors and matrices (in my classes I deal mainly with scalar quantities), I usually employ underbarred symbols for four reasons:
- Of course, I'm an engineer!
- A bar is faster to draw then an arrow.
- My handwriting is awful, and I think that simpler symbols improve readability; at the same time, though, I don't want to abandon the categorization of quantities through different symbols.
- The interpretation of underbar is frequently that of bold, and I prefer bold symbols for vectors over symbols with an arrow.
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