[latexrefman-discuss] \emptyset and other math symbols...

Vincent Belaïche vincent.belaiche at domain.hid
Mon Feb 29 10:51:10 CET 2016


\emptyset
~~~~~~~~~

The current text says that \varnothing is a reversed empty set.

Well, to my knowlegde, it is not reversed. The difference is rather
that:

1) \varnothing needs amssymb, and

2) \varnothing looks better (a diagonally stiked-though circle, whereas
   \emptyet looks like a diagonally stiked-though zero).


\vdash and \dashv
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Maybe it would be good to say also « right tack » and « left tack »
about these symbols. In French, the only term known by me is « taquet
droit » and « taquet gauche » which is just the translation of « right
tack » and « left tack ».

Maybe some litteral translation of trunstile would be good for people to
picture out what the symbol looks like. Do you know what people had in
mind when they used this word to name this symbol. Probably that was
something like a swing gate (« portillon pivotant »):

http://www.klein-access-design.com/fr/16/gamme/1/gamme.html
http://www.klein-access-design.com/fr/16/gamme/3/gamme.html

not something wih a tripod rotor («tourniquet tripode »)

http://www.klein-access-design.com/fr/16/gamme/2/gamme.html

Then the question is why \vdash is not reversed, and \dashv is reversed,
probably just because we write left to right. That is anyway a bit
confusing IMHO, it would be better to say « stile turning on the left »
in English (« portillon pivotant à gauche »). Any feedback ?

\varepsilon and \epsilon
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
\epsilon is termed « Greek-text ». I find this a little confusing,
because we are talking about math symbols, not text mode. I had rather
rephrase like this:

   Lower case Greek letter (ordinary). Looks like Greek-text letter.

Now I could not find any translation for « curly » in that context, it
seems that in French we just name the \epsilon « epsilon lunaire » =
« moonlike/lunar epsilon », and the other one \varepsilon just « epsilon », so
for \varepsilon I just wrote « en forme de 3 retourné » = « shaped like
a reversed 3 », but maybe a litteral « bouclé » (= « curly/looped »)
would be fine too.

Would it be good to add to the English text « lunar » about \epsilon,
is that something that you also say ?

  Vincent.







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