you're writing x wrong ❌

You're writing the variable x wrong - let's fix it! #algebra #math

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[WrathofMath]

I know, I know, they all can work as long as you're careful - but I believe in my choice as the superior x!

[saucegotti]

thanks for the advice this was keeping me up all night

[michaelloew]

Greek speakers be like "I was right all along"

[HyperFocusMarshmallow]

This choice works to distinguish x from multiplication.✖️
For careful writing, the thing that distinguishes the two is that ✖️ is as wide as it is tall and placed above the baseline (this can be exaggerated if necessary) while x is slightly taller than its wide and has its lower part resting on the baseline.
When writing by hand or without any guiding lines, especially in a hurry, this can get messy though.

When it comes to x vs y, my solution is to make my y curly. Generally my letters are quite curly. I think that’s probably something I’ve picked up by having used a lot of Greek letters and sometimes having had to learn to clearly distinguish between u, v, ν(Greek nu) and υ(Greek upsilon), U, V, μ(Greek mu).
Just having a few of those in the same equation force you to get some consistency.

So I usually make my u have a slight curve to the left line (like a reflected s curve but less exaggerated). My v has a straight left line down a straight line but with a tiny added loop at the top right (to distinguish it from ν which has a straight line down and a curved line up but no other ornamentation.).
Upsilon υ is less common but when I need it, the distinguishing feature is that the slope of the left is straight down rather than at a slope.

Ok, the point of all of that is that I make my y similar to how I make my u except that I extend the final leg down below the line and usually add a little loop at the bottom to help the flow of the pen.

That’s a somewhat peculiar style but not that uncommon either.
In this form my y don’t look close to my x at all.

Finally we arrive at x. x is a very common letter in mathematics, much more common than in regular text. And as you begin high school and even more so later, it’s much more common than ✖️ since multiplication can increasingly be written by using a dot slightly above the baseline or just left out entirely, inferring it from context when variables are placed next to each other (fancily called juxtaposition, which literally means exactly what the simple English did but in a single word).

So it’s perfectly fine to make you x as simple as possible.
I like your idea of curving the end points though.
The issue is that it looks like my χ (Greek chi).
But I do like curves. So if I curve I curve all the corners of my x. But I do not write them as c and it’s mirror image!
I write one diagonal line with curved corners and then I write another curved line with curved corners. Very similarly to how I write the curved down-sloping diagonal for χ but then also the same thing on the other up-sloping diagonal.
That way the lines still intersect in a nice x.
I find that this helps distinguish x from its capital version X. If I need both a lot it’s possible to draw lines on the top and bottom of X making it look like the Roman numeral version. (Though that’s not great when you use “bar” — a line just above a variable — to carry some mathematical meaning.).

So, my recommendation would be to either say x is a symbol I will use a lot so I’ll make it as simple as possible and fix other parts of notation.
Or if you want to make it fancy, go with curves at the end of all the lines, since otherwise you’ll eventually collide with χ.

I’d like to see you write χ(x) using your x.

To be fair, people probably won’t even encounter χ in high school and they can easily fix it if they ever go to university.

I express some preferences here.
It’s partially an aesthetic preference. I’ve come to like making letters certain ways. Part of that is from doing it alot and part of it is having seen various teachers writing on many black boards. Or reading typeset fonts that look nice.

Those aren’t necessarily the criteria someone who is new to math should use. The important thing is to keep it simple when you’re learning. Use your regular letters. If you find it hard to distinguish two letters then experiment a bit. If your teacher complains that they can’t read your test-answers, that might be good time to pick some strategy.
But practice writing a lot on real paper. It’s a skill. That goes for the maths as well as for the accompanying words.

As a teacher it might be more important to keep letters distinct so people can follow.
But in that case I think the aim should probably be solid habits that is a good foundation.
That’s why I think the x vs χ collision is more important than x vs ✖️.
The second one is important for a month when you first see it but eventually it will not matter much. On the other hand, the first one only applies to those who study further anyway and they’ll probably be able to fix it if they need to.

So simplicity and taste. Good luck have fun!

(I wrote a follow up here after having had a similar discussion below a different video. This seemed like a relevant place for it. The other one mostly started as me being triggered by the recommendation that x should look like χ, for context. 😆 It’s fine, but regular x is probably better. In my opinion, change y instead of you need to…)

[tom_something]

That's how I do mine for math. Got used to seeing it in print that way and started liking how it was looking.

[jesseruscito]

Thats how ive always written them sir! Thank you for reinforcing this. This simple trick has probably saved me so many points in AP Calc

[amritraj]

My x is either an hyperbola or 2 parabolas intersecting each other.
~ Albert einstein

[Vextrinity]

Thats why in math when algebraic letters are introduced you switch to the dot for multiplication

[RunstarHomer]

The )( drives me crazy, especially when they connect it all with a diagonal stroke like )/( and it ends up looking nothing at all like x, usually looks more like n or some weird backward N. 😂 Glad you're out here fighting the good fight brother

[thapashanu]

bro said something no one was ready to hear about. 😢

[keke_IRL]

Argument invalid, I Just write Y like "y"
And the one you racommend is the capital one, it is already taken

[GeigerPancake]

Arent you supposed to start with an inverted c, reach the top right corner(without lifting your pen) and complete the other c?

[matheshmathanalagan]

There's a better way to write x than that but idk how to show it rn

[ngoccuongngo]

Actually, we don't use it because of cross product

[gswcooper]

I write my variable x's using the curved x, but with the two curves joined together - so they're never too far apart or too close together. Also it makes it more distinct from other letters. :)

[violintegral]

I used to write my x's like that and then I stopped, but after watching this video I think you've convinced my to try to write them how I used to again, with the one curvy line and then a straight line

[Spherey]

i just write my y's in cursive, it's always noticeable, i never write y's with two lines

[Trangoont]

That's how I've always done it

[wasdc]

ORR JUST WRITE YOUR “y” LIKE A NORMAL PERSON

[Atmic_Cntnt]

Thanks for the advice! Now i can write my name in a good way now!