We introduce a new open source (free) software package that provides a simple, highly interactive interface for carrying out certain mathematical tasks that are commonly encountered in physics. These tasks include plotting and animating functions, solving systems of coupled algebraic equations, and basic calculus (differentiating and integrating functions of a single variable). This package was created using Easy Java Simulations (Ejs),1 so we will refer to it simply as Ejs-Math. It can be downloaded from the Open Source Physics collection of the comPADRE digital library.2

Topics
MATLAB, Java, Programming languages, Optical interference, Educational aids, Libraries, Lectures, News and events
1.
Easy Java Simulations was created by Francisco Esquembre and uses the Open Source Physics library, developed primarily by Wolfgang Christian. See
W.
Christian
 and
F.
Esquembre
 , “
Modeling physics with Easy Java Simulations
,”
Phys. Teach.
 
45
(
8
),
475
–
480
(
Nov. 2007
), www.compadre.org/Repository/ document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=7284; and
https://doi.org/10.1119/1.2798358
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L.
 
Engelhardt
,
Introduction to EJS Video Tutorial
(
2010
), www.compadre.org/OSP/ tutorials/EJS_Tutorial.
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2.
Download the Ejs-Math package from www.compadre.org/osp/ items/detail.cfm?ID=11250.
3.
Python, when used along with its scientific computing libraries, provides a free alternative to MATLAB and IDL, as described in
F.
 
Perez
,
B.
 
Granger
, and
J.
 
Hunter
, “
Python: An ecosystem for scientific computing
,”
Comp. Sci. Eng.
 
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2
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4.

It is an important milestone for advanced undergraduate students to master programming, and the packages mentioned here (including Ejs) are all appropriate options for that purpose.

5.

This parser was originally created by Yanto Suryono, and was subsequently adapted for inclusion in the Open Source Physics library by Wolfgang Christian.

6.

Greek letters, superscripts, and subscripts can be included in axis labels using LaTeX-like formatting. For example, entering ($\Delta$x)^{2}=(x_{f}−x_{i})^{2} for a label will produce the equation (Δx)2=(xf−xi)2⁠.

7.
Readers can download a sample animation at http://dx.doi. org/10.1119/1.4752042.
8.
For an introduction to Launcher and Launch Builder, see
W
Christian
 ,
M.
Belloni
 , and
D.
Brown
 , “
An open source XML framework for authoring curricular material
,”
Comp. Sci. Eng.
 
8
(
5
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51
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2006
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For a more detailed description, see
M.
 
Belloni
 and
W.
 
Christian
, “
Authoring curricular material
” in
Open Source Physics: A User's Guide with Examples
(
2006
), www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile. cfm?ID=7283.
Google Scholar
 
© 2012 American Association of Physics Teachers.
2012
American Association of Physics Teachers

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