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Mathematica

Updated 

Summary

Mathematica is a computational software program used in scientific, engineering, and mathematical fields and other areas of technical computing. Mathematica seamlessly integrates a numeric and symbolic computational engine, graphics system, programming language, documentation system, and advanced connectivity to other applications.

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Mathematica Online

Mathematica Online allows you to browse, view, edit, and use interactive functions in your Mathematica notebook through the cloud. Providing instant access through the cloud enables the sharing of documents and resources. Mathematica Online may be accessed through a Web browser or mobile app.

How to access Mathematica Online
  1. Visit https://wolframcloud.com/
  2. Click Sign in
  3. Click Single Sign-On (SSO)
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  4. Enter your VCU email address and click Continue
  5. Log in with your eID and associated password

Mathematica for Personal Computers

To download Mathematica for your personal device under the VCU license:

  1. Visit the Wolfram Account Sign In page
  2. Enter your VCU Email address and click Continue
  3. Log in with your eID and associated password
  4. Select the Products & Services tab
  5. Click Wolfram Mathematica
  6. Under Access, select the Download option for your preferred operating system

Mathematica for VCU Computers

See How to install software on a VCU Computer.

License

VCU participates in the statewide license for Mathematica, Mathematica Online, and Wolfram AlphaPro from Wolfram Research Inc. The Wolfram applications, obtained under this VCU site license, may be used:

  • by VCU faculty, staff, and students
  • for VCU-related research and instruction
  • on University-owned computers
  • on personally-owned computers

Under the cross-platform license, Mathematica provides unlimited copies running at any time. In addition, the VCU Mathematica license agreement includes "Home Use" licenses for faculty and staff. Home-use licenses are restricted to the employee's desktop computer or laptop. Home-use licenses are automatically registered to the individual who requests the license and may not be transferred to another individual. The Mathematica versions available for use under this site license include:

  • Mathematica for Windows 
  • Mathematica for Mac
  • Mathematica for Linux

Mathematica Online was added to the university site license in June 2018. All users must sign in using their VCU eID to gain access. You may access Mathematica Online from a desktop or mobile device using a Web browser or mobile app.

Support

The vendor provides support for the use of Mathematica. Contact the IT Support Center if you have an issue with the licensing or installation of Mathematica.

Mathematica Tutorials

The first two tutorials are excellent for new users and can be assigned to students as homework to learn Mathematica outside of class time.

  • Hands-on Start to Mathematica (videos)
    Follow along in Mathematica as you watch this multi-part screencast that teaches you the basics—how to create your first notebook, calculations, visualizations, interactive examples, and more.

  • Hands-on Start to Wolfram Mathematica and Programming with the Wolfram Language (book)
    Learn Mathematica at your own pace from authors with 50+ years of combined Mathematica experience—with hands-on examples, end-of-chapter exercises, and authors' tips that introduce you to the breadth of Mathematica with a focus on ease of use.

  • Mathematica Screencast and Video Gallery
    Screencasts and videos provide instruction and tips on how to use Mathematica.

  • How-To Topics
    Access step-by-step instruction ranging from how to create animations to basic syntax information.

  • Learning Center
    Search Wolfram's vast collection of materials for calculations or tutorials in your field of interest.

 

Wolfram|Alpha Pro

  • Tour of Wolfram|Alpha
    New to Wolfram|Alpha? Take a tour to learn what you can do with Wolfram|Alpha, and explore additional features you get with Wolfram|Alpha Pro.


Teaching with Mathematica

Mathematica offers an interactive classroom experience that helps students explore and grasp concepts, plus gives faculty the tools they need to create supporting course materials, assignments, and presentations easily.

  • Mathematica for Teaching and Education—Free video course
    Learn how to make your classroom dynamic with interactive models, explore computation and visualization capabilities in Mathematica that make it useful for teaching practically any subject at any level, and get best-practice suggestions for course integration.

  • How To Create a Lecture Slideshow—Video tutorial
    Learn how to create a slideshow for a class that shows a mixture of graphics, calculations, and nicely formatted text, with live calculations or animations.

  • Wolfram Demonstrations Project
    Download pre-built, open-code examples from a daily-growing collection of interactive visualizations, spanning a remarkable range of topics.

  • Wolfram U
    Access on-demand and live courses on Mathematica, SystemModeler, and other Wolfram technologies.


Research with Mathematica

Rather than requiring different toolkits for different jobs, Mathematica integrates the world's most extensive collection of algorithms, high-performance computing capabilities, and a powerful visualization engine in one coherent system. This system is ideal for academic research in just about any discipline.


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