Apple introduces iPad mini built for Apple Intelligence

That's like saying giving students a better calculator revolutionizes math education.

Even giving students full access to Mathematica (which I think is worthwhile BTW) won't revolutionize it.

But better calculator does revolutionize math education. Math is about problem-solving – if I can use tool that speeds up the boring parts (those that can be automated), I can focus on what really matters. For example, doing logarithms with slide rule is slow. Computing logarithms with digital calculator is easy. Do person with slide rule has any advantage over person with calculator? What about reverse?

Wolfram Mathematica – it is designed for smart and highly educated people – CAS with M-expr LISP frontend isn't for everybody. Math Notes is designed for children of ages 6-99.

Calculating logs with a slide rule is fast! It's pure table lookup: slide the cursor to the input value, and read off the log from another row.

Computers are faster at lookup tables than humans.

I feel some nuance is needed here.

Handheld calculators that calculate logs require a human to hit buttons; that's the rate limiting process.

Both the calculator and slide rule are fast at the actual table lookup. The hairline mark on the slide rule's cursor performs a fast lookup; it instantaneously links the input value with its logarithm.

It's the button punching on the calculator, or sliding of the cursor of the slide rule, and the reading of the result, that are slow.

The limitations of slide rules compared to calculators are:

- precision: you can't get anywhere near a six figure logarithm or product. In engineering, you usually don't need this; but you do need intuition for being in the right ballpark. Forget slide rules for accounting/finance though.

- variety of functions: there are only so many tables you can fit on a slide rule before it becomes unwieldy.

- lack of registers for recalling prior values, such as frequently reused intermediaries. Even the cheapest, simples calculators usually have an accumulator register you can add to or subtract from, recall and clear. The user can have several slide rules to have multiple cursors left at different values.

The actual speed of calculating what is available, with the available precision, is not bad. The game-changing speed difference comes with programmable calculators.

With Math Notes, you just write with your hand `log₂(1024)=` and you'll see the result. No slide rules, no buttons, just magic paper that does math. In this case, the logarithm is the tool I want – not slide rule, not handheld calculator. The less UI, the better UI.

Writing that by hand is a lot of strokes compared to punching buttons or moving a slider.

Usually, people use slide rule and handheld calculator in combination with paper and pencil. Combo of writing tool & computing tool. Merging them is a good idea.