The Goal - Magic Textbooks

I think also we should start formalizing textbooks. If a textbook is formalized, you can create these very interactive textbooks, where you could describe the proof of a result in a very high-level sense, assuming lots of knowledge. But if there are steps that you don’t understand, you can expand them and go into details—all the way down the axioms if you want to. No one does this right now for textbooks because it’s too much work. But if you’re already formalizing it, the computer can create these interactive textbooks for you. It will make it easier for a mathematician in one field to start contributing to another because you can precisely specify subtasks of a big task that don’t require understanding everything.

- Terence Tao

Although Tao was speaking about mathematics, this idea extends far beyond it.

Imagine if every subject had a living, interactive textbook that captured the entire body of knowledge up to the cutting edge.

A textbook that adapts to you. If you already know a prerequisite, you skip it. If you don’t, you can unfold the concepts step by step, going as deep as you need. Every idea connects seamlessly to the best available resources on the internet—curated, updated, and accessible.

Let’s call these magic textbooks.

With a magic textbook, you could pick up any subject you’re curious about and learn precisely what you want—no more, no less. They would save time by cutting out redundancy, guiding you along the best possible roadmap, and linking you to the most effective resources.

And because they’re digital rather than static paper, they could do even more. Tools like automated spaced repetition, weakness detection, adaptive testing, and personalized pacing would help you not just learn, but retain knowledge deeply.

This is my vision for Gangilon: to create these magic textbooks. To empower self-study. To spread the joy of knowledge to more people.

If we succeed, the result will be an acceleration of discovery and progress across all fields of knowledge. And I believe that will make the world a better place.

- Ibrahim