ipython/ipython — Issue #1275: Markdown parses LaTeX math symbols as its formatting syntax in notebook
Author: joonro
Created: 2012-01-16 14:22:33+00:00
State: open

In notebook markdown cells in notebook, markdown's formatting syntax conflicts with LaTeX math symbols and one needs additional escaping to avoid this.

A couple of examples:

1. \( \) and \[ \] for inline and line math environments do not work; need to escape \: \\( \\) and \\[ \\]

2. The following does not work, as some part became _italic_:
'''latex
$$ \underline{x}_{1} x_{2} $$
'''

It works after escaping the first _ with \_:
'''latex
$$ \underline{x}\_{1} x_{2} $$
'''

I found a discussion about this: http://doswa.com/2011/07/20/mathjax-in-markdown.html