LaTeX Cases Environment Fix

Problem

The \begin{cases} environment in LaTeX was not rendering correctly on the Jekyll website. The function definition was showing as f(x) = {1, x >= 00, x < 0 instead of the proper piecewise function format.

Root Cause

Kramdown (the markdown processor) was HTML-encoding the LaTeX before MathJax could process it:

• & became &
• < became <
• This prevented MathJax from properly parsing the \begin{cases} environment

Solution Implemented

1. Enhanced MathJax Configuration

Updated the MathJax configuration in _layouts/default.html to include:

• autoload-all.js extension for automatic package loading
• Explicit package configuration: packages: { '[+]': ['base', 'ams', 'noerrors', 'noundefined'] }
• Better error handling and processing options

2. Script Tag Approach

Used <script type="math/tex; mode=display"> to bypass Kramdown processing:

Before (problematic):

$$
f(x) = 
\begin{cases}
    1, & x\geq 0\\
    0,  & x < 0
\end{cases}
$$

After (working):

<script type="math/tex; mode=display">
f(x) = 
\begin{cases}
    1, & x\geq 0\\
    0,  & x < 0
\end{cases}
</script>

Technical Details

Why Script Tags Work

• <script type="math/tex"> is a MathJax-specific format
• Kramdown doesn’t process content inside script tags
• MathJax directly processes the LaTeX without HTML encoding interference
• mode=display ensures proper display math formatting

MathJax Configuration Updates

extensions: [
    "AMSmath.js", 
    "AMSsymbols.js", 
    "noErrors.js", 
    "noUndefined.js",
    "autoload-all.js"  // Added for automatic package loading
],
packages: {
    '[+]': ['base', 'ams', 'noerrors', 'noundefined']  // Explicit package loading
}

Results

Cases environment renders correctly: The piecewise function now displays properly No HTML encoding: LaTeX symbols are preserved as intended Proper formatting: Display math is centered and well-formatted MathJax compatibility: All other math expressions continue to work

Usage

For complex LaTeX environments like cases, align, matrix, etc., use:

<script type="math/tex; mode=display">
\begin{cases}
    condition1, & \text{if } condition1\\
    condition2, & \text{if } condition2
\end{cases}
</script>

For inline math, continue using standard markdown: $x \geq 0$

Alternative Approaches Tried

1. Display math delimiters ($$...$$): Still got HTML encoded
2. HTML div wrapper: Still got HTML encoded
3. Kramdown configuration: Didn’t resolve the encoding issue
4. Script tags: ✅ Success!

The script tag approach is the most reliable solution for complex LaTeX environments in Jekyll/Kramdown setups.