When I was in high school, and not so long ago, there were not many more options for solving determinants than having to resort to complex graphing calculators in which more time was wasted entering the data than learning how to solve them. Of course, that was when 17-year-olds did not develop apps for smartphones that are capable of solving mathematical operations, as is the case with Math (beta).
Determinants, matrices and equations
A certain Guillermo Palacín is the person in charge of this curious application that perhaps many of you do not know for having chosen the path of letters, or for having chosen the path of «we'll see how we pass mathematics, but I'm not going to this class ». However, for all those who have had to solve equations, matrices or determinants at some point in your life, this application will be like a kind of blessing that could have made your time as students much simpler.
Right now, you have three functions ("function" as a normal word, not as a math word). It is capable of solving equations, something that you will have mastered if you have already managed to reach the following elements, but that you always have to keep in mind. It is capable of solving determinants up to 5 × 5, and it is also capable of staggering matrices by selecting the number of rows and columns. By the way, in the future you will be able to solve functions (these yes, from mathematics).
A reference application
And of course, you will think that the application cannot be taken to an exam, and it is true. However, the truth is that when we talk about complex equations, or determinants or matrices of many columns and rows, the worst of all is not having any reference to know if we have solved it in the correct way. We may be solving hundreds of these (I won't be the only one who has done this), and yet be getting all of them wrong. With the application we will be sure of the result, and with much less exercises we will have been able to know if we have learned to solve them in the correct way.
A 17 year old boy
The most surprising thing is that the application has not been developed by an adult traumatized by what were his last years of high school, but rather a boy who is living those years of high school. 17 years is what Guillermo Palacín has, who is probably already getting a lot out of the application that he has developed. Again, it is just one more case of a young man who comes to the world of programming without having to study a degree in computer engineering. A case of a young man who shows that everyone is capable of dedicating themselves to the world of Android development. A 100% Spanish application essential for any young person studying mathematics in high school, and that reopens the debate on whether young people should be allowed to use the smartphone in class or should it be prohibited.
Math (beta) is available for free on Google Play.