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Recipe number 2

Cookbook · Chapter 2 · Type & text

Two-column paper with numbered equations

A two-column physics paper whose inline formulas and seven numbered equations are set by MathJax from the ?bundle build, and stay vector in the PDF.

p. 213 · 1 of 4

  • Trim 210 × 297 mm
  • 2 columns, 6 mm gutter
  • STIX Two Text 9.5/12.6
  • Azeret Mono
  • Schibsted Grotesk
  • 4 pages
  • Level
  • Postext 1.4.1
  • Laid out in 31 ms
  • 247 lines of code

What you'll build

A research article from the September issue of Measure, a fictional open-access journal of experimental physics, set on A4 in two columns. At the top, a bottle-green band holds the masthead, a stroboscopic image of a swinging pendulum and the title. The byline, the dates and the licence sit on white below the band, and a tinted abstract with four keyword chips runs across both columns. Six numbered sections follow, with seven numbered equations and 46 inline formulas; MathJax sets those and the labels inside the figures. Table 1 and the dots of Figure 2 come from one array of measurements. On the last page the end of the conclusions, the back matter and the references share the two columns under Figure 3, and both columns end level. The PDF keeps every formula as vector outlines, with no maths font to embed.

This recipe answers

  • How do I typeset maths (inline, display, equations) and keep it vector in the PDF?
  • How do I write superscripts, subscripts and chemical formulas without full maths?
  • How do I number headings (1, 1.1, 1.1.1) and style each level differently?
  • How do I set a bibliography or glossary (hanging indent, smaller type)?
  • How do I add a figure with a numbered caption and cite it in the text ("see Fig. 3.2")?

The short answer

script.js · lines 38–58in full code
// Every postext symbol comes from https://esm.sh/postext?bundle, which carries MathJax: in
// 1.4.1 the plain URL makes initMathEngine() throw "Can't find handler for document".
await initMathEngine(); // gotcha: math-bundle. Unawaited, formulas paint as grey boxes, unwarned
const math = { // on by default: $…$ inline, $$…$$ display, and \$ for a literal dollar sign
  fontSizeScale: 0.94, // 1.4.1 gives maths an x-height of 0.5 em, STIX Two Text 0.473 em
  marginTop: pt(LEAD), // display maths: a line above, half a line below, and the grid snap
  marginBottom: pt(LEAD / 2), // then rounds the space below up to the next baseline
};
// Equation numbers: in 1.4.1 a \tag makes a formula 0 wide, so it vanishes unwarned (gotcha:
// math-tag-vanishes). numbered() sets the line instead: the formula centred, its number flush
// right, in ems of the maths as drawn (1 ex is half the size, TeX's x-height 0.442 em: ×1.13).
const MATH_EM = renderMath('\\mathmakebox[10em]{}', true, 100).widthPx / 1000;
const COLUMN_EM = (COLUMN * PT_PER_MM) / (BODY * math.fontSizeScale * MATH_EM);
const NUMBER_EM = 3; // room for "(7)", and as much on the left so the formula stays centred
const FORMULA_EM = (COLUMN_EM - 2 * NUMBER_EM - 0.1).toFixed(2); // 0.1: rounding never overflows
// Column maths only: a numbered formula in a page-wide box would need MEASURE, not COLUMN.
const numbered = (md) => md.replace(/\$\$([^$]+?)\\tag\{([^}]+)\}\s*\$\$/g, (_, body, n) =>
  `$$\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em]{}\\mathmakebox[${FORMULA_EM}em]{${body.trim()}}`
  + `\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em][r]{(${n})}$$`);
// Then build from the rewritten text: buildDocument({ markdown: numbered(markdown), … }).
// Formulas are MathJax paths: renderToPdf writes them as vector outlines, with no maths font.

Maths from a CDN: the bundled engine, MathJax awaited, numbered equations

Ingredients

Type
STIX Two Text, Schibsted Grotesk, Azeret Mono (SIL OFL 1.1)
Assets
None: every picture is drawn in code

Method

#1 · Load the bundled engine and number the equations

The code is the short answer above. In 1.4.1 maths needs the ?bundle build. Every symbol has to come from it, since initMathEngine() throws when it is loaded from the plain URL, and await initMathEngine() has to run before the first build, or every formula paints as a grey box with no warning. From then on $…$ sets inline maths and $$…$$ display maths, and renderToPdf writes each formula as vector paths. The same release draws a formula that carries a \tag 0 wide, so nothing prints. numbered() rewrites each tagged equation as three \mathmakebox boxes (3 em left empty, the formula centred, the number flush right in the last 3 em) that together come to 0.1 em less than the column. The widths are in MathJax's own em, which MATH_EM measures by rendering an empty 10 em box.

#2 · Draw the title block from a heading style

script.js · lines 62–102in full code
const text = (id, content, family, size, color, placement, extra) => ({ kind: 'text', id,
  content, fontFamily: family, fontSize: pt(size), color: col(color), align: 'left',
  overflow: 'wrap', placement, ...extra });
const at = (to, edge, x, y, width) => ({ anchor: { to, edge }, offset: { x: mm(x), y: mm(y) },
  ...(width && { size: { width: mm(width) } }) });
const caps = (size, fontWeight = 600) => ({ fontWeight, letterSpacing: pt(size * 0.18),
  textTransform: 'uppercase' }); // tracked capitals: design text and callout titles take them
const [RULE_Y, BAND, BYLINE] = [21, 130, 152]; // mm from the top: rule, band foot, byline foot
const titleBlock = {
  enabled: true,
  minHeight: mm(BYLINE - TOP), // from the top margin down to the byline: the abstract follows
  slot: { elements: [
    { kind: 'box', id: 'band', style: { backgroundColor: col('journal') },
      placement: { anchor: { to: 'bleed', edge: 'top-left' },
        size: { width: 'fill', height: mm(BAND) } } },
    { kind: 'image', id: 'swing', resourceId: 'strobe', // drawn in code, hung from the rule
      placement: at('page', 'top-left', 54, RULE_Y, 136) },
    text('journal', 'Measure', SANS, 17, 'paper', at('page', 'top-left', M, 11.2),
      { fontWeight: 700, overflow: 'clip' }),
    text('subject', 'Journal of Experimental Physics', SANS, 7, 'mist',
      at('#journal', 'right-of', 3, 2.2), { ...caps(7), overflow: 'clip' }),
    text('issue', 'Vol. 7 · No. 3 · 2026', MONO, 7, 'mist', at('page', 'top-right', -M, 13.3),
      { align: 'right', overflow: 'clip' }),
    { kind: 'rule', id: 'hairline', thickness: pt(0.5), color: col('mist'),
      placement: at('page', 'top-left', M, RULE_Y, MEASURE) },
    text('kicker', '{attr.kicker}', SANS, 7.5, 'mist', at('page', 'top-left', M, BAND - 39, 110),
      caps(7.5)), // 39 mm above the band's foot: room for itself and a two-line title
    text('title', '{titleText}', SANS, 36, 'paper', at('#kicker', 'below', 0, 3, 170),
      { fontWeight: 700, lineHeight: 1.04 }), // broken where the heading line has its \\
    // Design text prints ^1^ as it is (gotcha: design-text-no-inline-marks): the author
    // marks in the attribute are the characters ¹ and ², which the latin subset carries.
    text('authors', '{attr.authors}', SANS, 11, 'ink', at('page', 'top-left', M, BAND + 7, 120),
      { fontWeight: 600 }),
    text('affiliations', '{attr.affiliations}', SANS, 7.5, 'muted',
      at('#authors', 'below', 0, 1.6, 120), { lineHeight: 1.35 }),
    ...[['Received {attr.received}', 'muted', 400], ['Accepted {attr.accepted}', 'muted', 400],
      ['Published {publishDate}', 'muted', 400], ['Open access · CC BY 4.0', 'journal', 600]]
      .map(([content, color, fontWeight], i) => text(`d${i}`, content, MONO, 6.6, color,
        at('page', 'top-right', -M, BAND + 7.6 + 3.4 * i), { align: 'right', fontWeight })),
  ] },
};

The article title is a level-1 heading (#), so it heads the PDF's outline, with the numbered sections under it. Its article heading style replaces the heading with a slot of design elements: a band that bleeds off the top, the masthead, the stroboscopic image, and the title, broken where the Markdown heading has its \\. The byline and two of the dates come from the heading's attributes, and the publication date from the frontmatter's publishDate. minHeight reserves 130 mm from the top margin to the foot of the byline, and the abstract starts below that.

#3 · Number the sections, not the title

script.js · lines 149–168in full code
// Each level has its own template, {2} for a section and {2}.{3} for a subsection, and its own
// type. Heads snap the text after them back onto the grid, so the two columns stay level.
const levels = [{ level: 1, breakBefore: { enabled: true, parity: 'any' } }, // the title; its
  // break is restated, as a headings object drops it (gotcha: headings-drop-h1-break)
  { level: 2, numberingTemplate: '{2}', fontSize: pt(11.5), lineHeight: pt(LEAD * 2),
    marginTop: pt(LEAD), marginBottom: pt(0) }, // "1 Introduction", journal green
  { level: 3, numberingTemplate: '{2}.{3}', fontSize: pt(10), lineHeight: pt(LEAD),
    fontWeight: 600, color: col('ink'), marginTop: pt(LEAD / 2), marginBottom: pt(0) }, // "2.1"
];
const headingStyles = [ // the article title and the back matter are headings, but uncounted
  { id: 'article', numbered: false, span: 'page', advancedDesign: titleBlock },
  // In 1.4.1 a heading takes no letterSpacing: the back-matter capitals stay untracked.
  { id: 'back', numbered: false, fontSize: pt(7.5), lineHeight: pt(9), // bold, from its H2 level
    textTransform: 'uppercase', marginTop: pt(LEAD), marginBottom: pt(2) },
];
// The default "{h1}.{n}" prints Figure 1 here too, as an empty {h1} drops with its dot; "{n}"
// says outright that figures and tables count through the article. Tables caption above.
const resourceTypes = defaultResourceTypes(LANG).map((type) => ({ ...type,
  numberingTemplate: '{n}', resetOn: 'never',
  ...(type.id === 'table' && { captionStyle: { position: 'above' } }) }));

Each level has its own template and type: {2} numbers the six sections 1 to 6 in 11.5 pt journal green, {2}.{3} the subsections of Theory 2.1 to 2.3 in 10 pt semibold ink, and numbered: false keeps the title and the back matter out of the count. Every head snaps the text under it back onto the 12.6 pt baseline grid, so the lines of the two columns stay level across the gutter. Figures and tables count through the whole article with {n}. The default {h1}.{n} would print the same numbers here, because the unnumbered title leaves {h1} empty and an empty counter drops with its dot, but {n} does not depend on that. The table type also moves its caption above the table, where journals set it.

#4 · Run the abstract across both columns

script.js · lines 172–183in full code
const calloutStyles = [{ id: 'abstract', title: 'Abstract', span: 'page',
  background: col('tint'), marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(LEAD),
  padding: { top: mm(4.2), right: mm(22), bottom: mm(4.2), left: mm(22) }, // ~90 characters
  // The title takes the heading face; the body the text's face, ink and justification.
  titleStyle: { fontSize: pt(7.5), ...caps(7.5, 700), color: col('journal'), gap: mm(1.6) },
  body: { fontSize: pt(9.8), lineHeight: pt(13.2), firstLineIndent: pt(0) } }];
// Keyword chips never break, set ragged: a justified line of chips opens its spaces into gaps.
const keywords = { id: 'keywords', fontFamily: SANS, fontSize: pt(8), lineHeight: pt(14),
  textAlign: 'left', firstLineIndent: pt(0), boldColor: col('journal') };
const chipStyles = [{ id: 'keyword', fontFamily: MONO, fontSize: em(0.88), color: col('journal'),
  background: col('paper'), borderColor: col('rule'), // the border is 0.5 pt by default
  borderRadius: pt(8), paddingX: em(0.55), paddingY: em(0.12), gap: em(0.45) }];

A span: 'page' box under the title block sets the abstract across the full measure, and the two columns start below it. Padding of 22 mm on each side keeps its lines near 90 characters. The keywords are chips, which never break across lines, each named with {style="keyword"}. Their paragraph style, keywords, is set ragged, because a justified line of chips stretches the spaces between them into gaps.

#5 · Close on a bibliography with hanging indents

script.js · lines 187–192in full code
const paragraphStyles = [keywords,
  { id: 'references', fontSize: pt(8.2), lineHeight: pt(10.5), textAlign: 'left',
    hangingIndent: mm(5), spaceBetween: pt(2.5) }, // ragged, so never hyphenated
  { id: 'colophon', fontFamily: SANS, fontSize: pt(7), lineHeight: pt(9.5), color: col('muted'),
    textAlign: 'left', firstLineIndent: pt(0), spaceBetween: pt(3), marginTop: pt(LEAD) },
];

A :::paragraphs fence applies the references paragraph style to every entry, and its 5 mm hangingIndent keeps the number at the margin and starts every turnover line 5 mm in. Column balancing levels the last band of the article. On page 216 the end of the conclusions, the back matter and the references share the two columns under Figure 3. The balancer can only add space, and a two-line reference cannot split, so the back matter was rewritten two lines shorter until both columns ended level.

#6 · Compute the table, label the figures in MathJax

script.js · lines 336–379in full code
const [L, G] = [1.000, 9.812]; // the bench pendulum: length (m) and local gravity (m s^-2)
const T0 = 2 * Math.PI * Math.sqrt(L / G); // s: Eq. (1), 2.0059 s
const agm = (a, b) => [1, 2, 3].reduce(([x, y]) => [(x + y) / 2, Math.sqrt(x * y)], [a, b])[0];
const exact = (deg) => T0 / agm(1, Math.cos((deg * Math.PI) / 360)); // Eq. (6)
const runs = [[5, 2.0069], [10, 2.0096], [20, 2.0210], [30, 2.0412], [45, 2.0864],
  [60, 2.1517], [75, 2.2458], [90, 2.3658]]; // amplitude (°), measured period (s): simulated
const fixed = (x, n, sign) => (sign && x >= 0 ? '+' : '') + x.toFixed(n).replace('-', '−');
const cell = (content) => ({ content, align: 'right' }); // headerRowCount marks row 0
const table = { headerRowCount: 1, columnWidths: [1.25, 1.35, 1, 1.1, 1.2], rows: [
  ['Amplitude', 'Measured', 'Eq. (6)', 'Over *T*~0~', 'Residual'],
  ...runs.map(([deg, T]) => [`${deg}°`, fixed(T, 4), fixed(exact(deg), 4),
    `${fixed((exact(deg) / T0 - 1) * 100, 2)}%`, `${fixed((T / exact(deg) - 1) * 100, 3, 1)}%`]),
].map((row) => row.map(cell)) }; // cells take no maths (gap: math-in-captions): *T*~0~ is plain
// An SVG cannot see the page's fonts (gotcha: svg-no-webfonts), so the figure labels are
// MathJax paths too: the same italic θ as the text, and vector in the PDF.
const R = (x) => Math.round(x * 100) / 100; // coordinates to 0.01 mm keep the SVG short
function tex(markup, x, y, size, anchor = 0, color = 'ink') { // anchor 0 left, .5 centre, 1 right
  const r = renderMath(markup, false, 100); // paths in MathJax units: 1000 to the em
  const k = size / 1000;
  return `<g transform="translate(${R(x - anchor * r.viewBox.width * k)} ${R(y)}) scale(${k})" `
    + `fill="${palette[color]}">${r.paths.map((p) => `<path d="${p.d}"/>`).join('')}</g>`;
}
const PX_PER_MM = 10; // the drawings are in mm, declared to the engine at 10 px to the mm
const figure = (id, w, h, caption, altText, placement) => ({ id, typeId: 'figure', kind: 'svg',
  svg: { fileId: `${id}.svg`, width: w * PX_PER_MM, height: h * PX_PER_MM }, caption, altText,
  placement, createdAt: 0, updatedAt: 0 });
const resources = [ // each is placed where the text first cites it with :ref; sizes in mm
  figure('strobe', 136, 70, '', 'A swinging pendulum, lit by flashes.'), // uncited: the band's
  figure('geometry', 84, 60, 'The pendulum and its symbols: the length *L* from the pivot to '
    + 'the centre of the bob, the mass *m* and the amplitude, the angle between the vertical '
    + 'and either turning point of the swing.', // the caption face has no Greek: no θ here
  'A bob on a rod hanging from a pivot, pulled aside by an angle.', { position: 'top' }),
  { id: 'runs', typeId: 'table', kind: 'table', table: { model: table }, createdAt: 0,
    updatedAt: 0, caption: 'Measured and predicted periods of the one-metre pendulum, in seconds, '
    + 'and their excess and residual in per cent.',
    note: 'Amplitudes to ±0.5°. The measurements are simulated for this example.' },
  figure('period', 84, 60, 'The period against the amplitude, as a ratio to *T*~0~: Eq. (6) '
    + '(solid), the first two terms of Eq. (7) (dashed) and the measurements (dots).',
  'The period grows with the amplitude, slowly, then fast; the measured points sit on the curve.'),
  figure('phase', 176, 76, 'The phase plane of the pendulum: one orbit for each amplitude from '
    + '30° to 150° in steps of 30°, the 90° orbit of our widest runs in red, and the separatrix '
    + 'of a swing to 180° dashed.', 'Nested closed orbits growing into lemon shapes.',
  { position: 'top', span: 'page' }), // cited on page 3, it opens page 4 across both columns
];

One array, runs, feeds Table 1 and the dots of Figure 2, and the table's predicted column is Eq. (6) evaluated at each amplitude. The text cites each resource with :ref{id="…" style="full"}, which prints “Figure 2” in bold ink and floats the resource into the first free slot after the citation. Captions and table cells take no maths in 1.4.1, so they use plain ~sub~ and ^sup^ markup (*T*~0~), and symbols in running text stay $T_0$. An SVG figure is drawn as an image and cannot use the page's web fonts, so tex() calls renderMath for each label and writes the outlines into the SVG as paths. The θ₀ of Figure 1 is the glyph the formulas use, and it stays vector in the PDF.

The whole recipe

// ═══ Postext Cookbook · Nº 002 · Two-column paper with numbered equations ══════════
// https://postext.dev/en/cookbook/journal-article-with-maths
// Code: MIT · Text: original (CC BY 4.0) · Figures: generated in code (CC BY 4.0)
// Fonts: STIX Two Text, Schibsted Grotesk, Azeret Mono (SIL OFL 1.1) · Needs postext ≥ 1.4.1
// A research article in a fictional physics journal: a title block across the page, numbered
// sections, MathJax formulas in the text and in the figures, a table computed from the data.
import {
  buildDocument, renderPageToCanvas, clearMeasurementCache, registerResourceImage,
  defaultResourceTypes, initMathEngine, renderMath,
} from 'https://esm.sh/postext?bundle';
import { renderToPdf, decompressWoff2 } from 'https://esm.sh/postext-pdf';

const LANG = 'en'; // @lang: the language of the sample document ('en' | 'es')
const RECIPE = 'journal-article-with-maths';

// ─── 1 · Design ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
const palette = {
  ink: '#141a1f', journal: '#0f4d3f', // text; the journal's green: band, heads, labels
  mist: '#b9d9cc', series: '#c8442a', // type on the band; data: measurements, the red bob
  tint: '#ecf3ef', rule: '#bcc9c3', // the abstract box; hairlines
  muted: '#58625d', paper: '#ffffff', // running heads, affiliations, notes; white
};
const col = (id) => ({ hex: palette[id], model: 'hex', paletteId: id });
const colorPalette = [ // the defaults link to 'main-color': point it at the journal green
  ...Object.entries(palette).map(([id, hex]) => ({ id, name: id, value: { hex, model: 'hex' } })),
  { id: 'main-color', name: 'journal (defaults)', value: { hex: palette.journal, model: 'hex' } },
];
// A serif for the text around the formulas, a grotesque for heads and labels, a mono for metadata.
const [SERIF, SANS, MONO] = ['STIX Two Text', 'Schibsted Grotesk', 'Azeret Mono'];
const [BODY, LEAD] = [9.5, 12.6]; // pt: body size and leading, the grid both columns share
// mm: the A4 trim, the head, foot and side margins, and the gutter between the two columns
const [TRIM_W, TRIM_H, TOP, BOTTOM, M, GUTTER] = [210, 297, 22, 22, 17, 6];
const MEASURE = TRIM_W - 2 * M; // mm: the text width, which the band's type and rules align to
const COLUMN = (MEASURE - GUTTER) / 2; // mm: one of the two columns
const PT_PER_MM = 72 / 25.4; // a point is 1/72 in, and an inch 25.4 mm

// #region answer: maths from a CDN: the bundled engine, MathJax awaited, numbered equations
// Every postext symbol comes from https://esm.sh/postext?bundle, which carries MathJax: in
// 1.4.1 the plain URL makes initMathEngine() throw "Can't find handler for document".
await initMathEngine(); // gotcha: math-bundle. Unawaited, formulas paint as grey boxes, unwarned
const math = { // on by default: $…$ inline, $$…$$ display, and \$ for a literal dollar sign
  fontSizeScale: 0.94, // 1.4.1 gives maths an x-height of 0.5 em, STIX Two Text 0.473 em
  marginTop: pt(LEAD), // display maths: a line above, half a line below, and the grid snap
  marginBottom: pt(LEAD / 2), // then rounds the space below up to the next baseline
};
// Equation numbers: in 1.4.1 a \tag makes a formula 0 wide, so it vanishes unwarned (gotcha:
// math-tag-vanishes). numbered() sets the line instead: the formula centred, its number flush
// right, in ems of the maths as drawn (1 ex is half the size, TeX's x-height 0.442 em: ×1.13).
const MATH_EM = renderMath('\\mathmakebox[10em]{}', true, 100).widthPx / 1000;
const COLUMN_EM = (COLUMN * PT_PER_MM) / (BODY * math.fontSizeScale * MATH_EM);
const NUMBER_EM = 3; // room for "(7)", and as much on the left so the formula stays centred
const FORMULA_EM = (COLUMN_EM - 2 * NUMBER_EM - 0.1).toFixed(2); // 0.1: rounding never overflows
// Column maths only: a numbered formula in a page-wide box would need MEASURE, not COLUMN.
const numbered = (md) => md.replace(/\$\$([^$]+?)\\tag\{([^}]+)\}\s*\$\$/g, (_, body, n) =>
  `$$\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em]{}\\mathmakebox[${FORMULA_EM}em]{${body.trim()}}`
  + `\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em][r]{(${n})}$$`);
// Then build from the rewritten text: buildDocument({ markdown: numbered(markdown), … }).
// Formulas are MathJax paths: renderToPdf writes them as vector outlines, with no maths font.
// #endregion

// #region title: the title block: a heading style draws the band, the masthead and the byline
const text = (id, content, family, size, color, placement, extra) => ({ kind: 'text', id,
  content, fontFamily: family, fontSize: pt(size), color: col(color), align: 'left',
  overflow: 'wrap', placement, ...extra });
const at = (to, edge, x, y, width) => ({ anchor: { to, edge }, offset: { x: mm(x), y: mm(y) },
  ...(width && { size: { width: mm(width) } }) });
const caps = (size, fontWeight = 600) => ({ fontWeight, letterSpacing: pt(size * 0.18),
  textTransform: 'uppercase' }); // tracked capitals: design text and callout titles take them
const [RULE_Y, BAND, BYLINE] = [21, 130, 152]; // mm from the top: rule, band foot, byline foot
const titleBlock = {
  enabled: true,
  minHeight: mm(BYLINE - TOP), // from the top margin down to the byline: the abstract follows
  slot: { elements: [
    { kind: 'box', id: 'band', style: { backgroundColor: col('journal') },
      placement: { anchor: { to: 'bleed', edge: 'top-left' },
        size: { width: 'fill', height: mm(BAND) } } },
    { kind: 'image', id: 'swing', resourceId: 'strobe', // drawn in code, hung from the rule
      placement: at('page', 'top-left', 54, RULE_Y, 136) },
    text('journal', 'Measure', SANS, 17, 'paper', at('page', 'top-left', M, 11.2),
      { fontWeight: 700, overflow: 'clip' }),
    text('subject', 'Journal of Experimental Physics', SANS, 7, 'mist',
      at('#journal', 'right-of', 3, 2.2), { ...caps(7), overflow: 'clip' }),
    text('issue', 'Vol. 7 · No. 3 · 2026', MONO, 7, 'mist', at('page', 'top-right', -M, 13.3),
      { align: 'right', overflow: 'clip' }),
    { kind: 'rule', id: 'hairline', thickness: pt(0.5), color: col('mist'),
      placement: at('page', 'top-left', M, RULE_Y, MEASURE) },
    text('kicker', '{attr.kicker}', SANS, 7.5, 'mist', at('page', 'top-left', M, BAND - 39, 110),
      caps(7.5)), // 39 mm above the band's foot: room for itself and a two-line title
    text('title', '{titleText}', SANS, 36, 'paper', at('#kicker', 'below', 0, 3, 170),
      { fontWeight: 700, lineHeight: 1.04 }), // broken where the heading line has its \\
    // Design text prints ^1^ as it is (gotcha: design-text-no-inline-marks): the author
    // marks in the attribute are the characters ¹ and ², which the latin subset carries.
    text('authors', '{attr.authors}', SANS, 11, 'ink', at('page', 'top-left', M, BAND + 7, 120),
      { fontWeight: 600 }),
    text('affiliations', '{attr.affiliations}', SANS, 7.5, 'muted',
      at('#authors', 'below', 0, 1.6, 120), { lineHeight: 1.35 }),
    ...[['Received {attr.received}', 'muted', 400], ['Accepted {attr.accepted}', 'muted', 400],
      ['Published {publishDate}', 'muted', 400], ['Open access · CC BY 4.0', 'journal', 600]]
      .map(([content, color, fontWeight], i) => text(`d${i}`, content, MONO, 6.6, color,
        at('page', 'top-right', -M, BAND + 7.6 + 3.4 * i), { align: 'right', fontWeight })),
  ] },
};
// #endregion

// Running heads 12.4 mm from the trim, over a hairline at 16 mm: 6 mm above the text block.
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// ─── 2 · Content ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
const markdown = String.raw`---
Markdown sample · 136 lines · content.en.mdtitle: "The period of a pendulum at large amplitudes" author: "Marta Oyelaran, Tomás Heikkinen and Priya Anand" publishDate: "18 September 2026" --- # The period of a pendulum \\ at large amplitudes {style="article" kicker="Research article · Classical mechanics" authors="Marta Oyelaran¹, Tomás Heikkinen² and Priya Anand¹" affiliations="¹ Department of Physics, Northgate College, Dunmore · ² Horology Workshop, Harrow Hill Institute" received="12 March 2026" accepted="30 June 2026"} :::callout{type="abstract"} Every textbook gives the period of a pendulum as $T_0 = 2\pi\sqrt{L/g}$ and adds that it holds for small swings. We ask how small. The exact period, written with a complete elliptic integral and computed in three lines with the arithmetic–geometric mean, is longer than the textbook value by 0.19% at 10°, 1.7% at 30° and 18% at 90°. A one-metre pendulum timed with a photogate at amplitudes from 5° to 90° follows the exact curve to within 0.08%, the limit set by reading the amplitude. We give the series a student can check by hand, and a rule of thumb for the teaching laboratory. :::paragraphs{style="keywords"} **Keywords** :chip[pendulum]{style="keyword"} :chip[elliptic integral]{style="keyword"} :chip[arithmetic–geometric mean]{style="keyword"} :chip[photogate]{style="keyword"} ::: ::: ## Introduction Galileo is said to have noticed that a lamp swinging on a long chain seems to take the same time over every swing, wide or narrow, and in the *Two New Sciences* he stated the rule that textbooks still teach: the period of a pendulum depends on its length, not on how far it swings [1]. A generation later Huygens, who had invented the pendulum clock in 1656, showed that this is only nearly true [2]. A bob on a circular arc takes longer over a wide swing than over a narrow one, and he fitted his clocks with curved cheeks that made the bob follow a cycloid instead, the one curve on which the period does not depend on the amplitude at all. The cheeks brought errors of their own, however, and clockmakers soon settled for a simpler remedy of keeping the swing of the pendulum small and steady. A pendulum timed in a teaching laboratory bears out both Galileo’s rule and Huygens’ correction. Every introductory course gives the period as $$T_0 = 2\pi\sqrt{\frac{L}{g}} \, . \tag{1}$$ Here $L$ is the length from the pivot to the centre of the bob and $g$ the acceleration of free fall. For a one-metre pendulum the formula predicts 2.006 s, and a careful student will find a period close to that. Then someone pulls the bob far out to the side, well past the small angles of the textbook, and the measured period grows. By how much, and from what amplitude the growth matters, is the subject of this article. In Section 2 we derive the exact period and show how to compute it on a pocket calculator. Section 3 describes a bench experiment with a photogate timer, Section 4 compares the two, and Section 5 turns to the teaching laboratory and to clocks. The geometry and the symbols are those of :ref{id="geometry" style="full"}. ## Theory ### The equation of motion A bob of mass $m$ on a light rigid rod of length $L$, displaced by an angle $\theta$ from the vertical, feels a torque $-mgL\sin\theta$ about the pivot. We neglect the mass of the rod, the size of the bob and the drag of the air until Section 5. With the moment of inertia $mL^2$, the equation of motion is $$\ddot\theta + \frac{g}{L}\,\sin\theta = 0 . \tag{2}$$ When the swing is small, $\sin\theta$ can be replaced by $\theta$. Equation (2) then becomes the equation of a harmonic oscillator, with an angular frequency $\omega_0 = \sqrt{g/L}$ and the period $T_0 = 2\pi/\omega_0$ of Eq. (1). Nothing in that solution depends on the amplitude $\theta_0$. This is Galileo’s isochronism, and it is exact only in the limit $\theta_0 \to 0$. ### The exact period Equation (2) can be integrated once. Multiplying it by $\dot\theta$ and integrating from the turning point, where the bob is momentarily at rest at $\theta = \theta_0$, gives the conservation of energy: $$\tfrac{1}{2}\,L\,\dot\theta^{2} = g\,(\cos\theta - \cos\theta_0) . \tag{3}$$ Separating the variables and integrating over a quarter of a swing, with the substitution $\sin(\theta/2) = k\sin\phi$ and the modulus $k = \sin(\theta_0/2)$, gives the exact period $$T = 4\sqrt{\frac{L}{g}}\;K(k) . \tag{4}$$ Here $K$ is the complete elliptic integral of the first kind, as tabulated by Legendre [3] and treated in every course of analysis [4]: $$K(k) = \int_0^{\pi/2}\frac{d\phi}{\sqrt{1-k^{2}\sin^{2}\phi}} . \tag{5}$$ Since $K(0) = \pi/2$, the small-amplitude limit gives back $T_0$. The ratio $T/T_0 = 2K(k)/\pi$ depends on the amplitude alone, so everything that follows holds for a pendulum of any length. Elliptic integrals have a reputation for needing tables, but Gauss found that $K$ follows from the arithmetic–geometric mean. Start from $a_0 = 1$ and $b_0 = \cos(\theta_0/2)$, and repeat $a_{n+1} = (a_n + b_n)/2$ and $b_{n+1} = \sqrt{a_n b_n}$ until the two agree. Their common limit $M$ gives $$T = \frac{T_0}{M\bigl(1,\,\cos(\theta_0/2)\bigr)} . \tag{6}$$ The iteration converges so fast that three steps, three rows of a spreadsheet, give ten correct digits even at 90° [5]. ### The series in the amplitude Expanding $K$ in powers of the amplitude gives the series of the classic texts [4,6], with $\theta_0$ in radians: $$T = T_0\left(1 + \frac{\theta_0^{2}}{16} + \frac{11\,\theta_0^{4}}{3072} + \cdots\right) . \tag{7}$$ The next term is $173\,\theta_0^6/737\,280$, but the first correction alone is worth remembering. It says that the true period exceeds the textbook one by 1% when $\theta_0^2/16 = 0.01$, at 0.4 rad or 23°, and by 0.1% at 7°. For a one-metre pendulum, whose $T_0$ is 2.0059 s, a swing of 30° lasts 2.0408 s: the 35 ms difference adds up to a full second in just under a minute, well within reach of a stopwatch. Timing a pendulum was for two centuries the way to measure $g$ [7], and plotting $T_0^2$ against the length is still a classic exercise: a student who times the bob at an amplitude of 30° will find $g$ too small by 3.4%. ## Method A brass bob 48 mm across, of mass 0.49 kg, hangs from a steel wire 0.3 mm in diameter, clamped between two hardened jaws so that the pivot is a sharp edge rather than a loop. The effective length, from the edge of the jaws to the centre of the bob, is $L = 1.000 \pm 0.001$ m, and a gravimetric survey of the building gives $g = 9.812$ m s^−2^. With these values the textbook formula predicts 2.0059 s. A photogate at the bottom of the swing records each passage of the bob to 10 µs. For each amplitude we release the bob from a V-shaped holder set with a protractor, and time it over ten full periods. The amplitude is read again at the end of the run, and we report the mean of the two readings, which are known to ±0.5°. We stop at 90°, where the tension in the wire falls to zero at the turning points. Apart from the timer, the whole apparatus cost less than \$40, most of it for the bob. ## Results :ref{id="runs" style="full"} lists the measured periods beside the exact prediction of Eq. (6), and :ref{id="period" style="full"} plots both, as the ratio to $T_0$, against the amplitude. The measurements follow the exact curve over the whole range. The residuals scatter on both sides of zero with no trend, and they grow with the amplitude as they should if their source is the reading of the angle: at 60°, an error of 0.5° in $\theta_0$ moves the prediction by 0.1%. The textbook value, by contrast, falls further behind with every degree. It is only 0.05% short at 5°, but the true period exceeds it by 0.8% at 20°, 7% at 60° and 18% at 90°, where a pendulum that should swing to and fro in two seconds takes 2.37 s. The first two terms of Eq. (7) do far better: they stay within 0.1% up to 40°, and within 1% up to 70°. With its third term as well, Eq. (7) is within 0.01% of the exact period up to 45°, and within 0.4% even at 90°. ## Discussion For the teaching laboratory the first term of Eq. (7) suggests a rule that needs no radians. Square the amplitude in degrees and divide by 50: the result is the excess of the true period over $T_0$ in parts per thousand. At 30° the rule gives 18 against an exact 17.4, and at 60° it gives 72 against 73.2. At 90° it gives 162 against 180, 10% low. The period is not the only thing that changes. :ref{id="phase" style="full"} draws the motion in the phase plane, with one closed orbit for each amplitude: Eq. (3) solved for the angular velocity, in units of $\omega_0$. Small swings trace ellipses, round which the state of the pendulum turns at the steady rate $\omega_0$. Wide swings stretch into lemon shapes, flattened above and below, and most of the added period goes on the slow crawl round their ends, where the bob hangs near its turning points with little torque to bring it back. The motion is no longer a cosine either. At 90° a third harmonic of 1.5% of the fundamental flattens the swing at its extremes, against 0.02% at 10°. At 180° the orbit becomes the separatrix and the period grows without bound, since a pendulum balanced upside down never falls. The same series explains why clockmakers kept their pendulums swinging through only a few degrees. At an amplitude of 2° the circular error is small, but it changes with the amplitude: a clock whose swing falls from 2.1° to 2° as its oil thickens gains 0.7 s a day. Huygens’ cheeks removed the error in principle [2], but it was the small, steady swing of the escapements of the next two centuries that removed it in practice. Two effects we did not model deserve a word. The bob is not a point, and a sphere of radius $r$ on a wire of length $L$ swings like a simple pendulum of length $L\,(1 + \tfrac{2}{5}\,r^2/L^2)$, a correction of 0.023% in length and half that in period, below our scatter. Air drag lowers the amplitude by up to 4% over a run at large angles, as Newton measured and Stokes explained [8,9], which is why we report the mean amplitude of each run rather than the release angle. ## Conclusions The period of a simple pendulum grows with the amplitude, slowly at first and then fast: by 0.19% at 10°, 1.7% at 30° and 18% at 90°. Three steps of the arithmetic–geometric mean give the exact value, and a one-metre pendulum on a bench confirms it to within the accuracy of a protractor. Below 23° the textbook formula is good to 1%; beyond that, a student can square the amplitude in degrees and divide by 50 to see how far off it is. ## Author contributions {style="back"} M. O. and P. A. built the apparatus and timed the runs, T. H. wrote on clocks, and all three revised the article. ## Acknowledgements {style="back"} We thank the Northgate College workshop, who made the pivot jaws, and two referees for their comments. ## Data availability {style="back"} The photogate records of every run, and a spreadsheet that evaluates Eq. (6) in three rows, are published with this article as supplementary material. ## Competing interests {style="back"} The authors declare no competing interests. ## References {style="back"} :::paragraphs{style="references"} [1] G. Galilei, *Discorsi e dimostrazioni matematiche intorno a due nuove scienze* (L. Elzevir, Leiden, 1638). [2] C. Huygens, *Horologium oscillatorium* (F. Muguet, Paris, 1673). [3] A.-M. Legendre, *Traité des fonctions elliptiques et des intégrales eulériennes*, vol. 2 (Huzard-Courcier, Paris, 1826). [4] E. T. Whittaker and G. N. Watson, *A Course of Modern Analysis*, 4th ed. (Cambridge University Press, 1927). [5] C. G. Carvalhaes and P. Suppes, Approximations for the period of the simple pendulum based on the arithmetic-geometric mean, *Am. J. Phys.* **76**, 1150–1154 (2008). [6] R. A. Nelson and M. G. Olsson, The pendulum: rich physics from a simple system, *Am. J. Phys.* **54**, 112–121 (1986). [7] H. Kater, An account of experiments for determining the length of the pendulum vibrating seconds in the latitude of London, *Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond.* **108**, 33–102 (1818). [8] I. Newton, *Philosophiæ naturalis principia mathematica* (Royal Society, London, 1687), Book II. [9] G. G. Stokes, On the effect of the internal friction of fluids on the motion of pendulums, *Trans. Camb. Phil. Soc.* **9**, 8–106 (1851). ::: :::paragraphs{style="colophon"} **Cite as** M. Oyelaran, T. Heikkinen and P. Anand, The period of a pendulum at large amplitudes, *Measure* **7**, 213–216 (2026), doi:10.5555/measure.7.3.213. *Measure* is a fictional journal set for the Postext Cookbook: its authors, institutions and measurements are invented, while the physics and the references are real. Set in STIX Two Text, Schibsted Grotesk and Azeret Mono (SIL OFL). Text and figures: CC BY 4.0. :::
`; // content.<lang>.md, inlined by the Cookbook // #region figures: one set of numbers feeds Table 1 and Figure 2; labels set by MathJax const [L, G] = [1.000, 9.812]; // the bench pendulum: length (m) and local gravity (m s^-2) const T0 = 2 * Math.PI * Math.sqrt(L / G); // s: Eq. (1), 2.0059 s const agm = (a, b) => [1, 2, 3].reduce(([x, y]) => [(x + y) / 2, Math.sqrt(x * y)], [a, b])[0]; const exact = (deg) => T0 / agm(1, Math.cos((deg * Math.PI) / 360)); // Eq. (6) const runs = [[5, 2.0069], [10, 2.0096], [20, 2.0210], [30, 2.0412], [45, 2.0864], [60, 2.1517], [75, 2.2458], [90, 2.3658]]; // amplitude (°), measured period (s): simulated const fixed = (x, n, sign) => (sign && x >= 0 ? '+' : '') + x.toFixed(n).replace('-', '−'); const cell = (content) => ({ content, align: 'right' }); // headerRowCount marks row 0 const table = { headerRowCount: 1, columnWidths: [1.25, 1.35, 1, 1.1, 1.2], rows: [ ['Amplitude', 'Measured', 'Eq. (6)', 'Over *T*~0~', 'Residual'], ...runs.map(([deg, T]) => [`${deg}°`, fixed(T, 4), fixed(exact(deg), 4), `${fixed((exact(deg) / T0 - 1) * 100, 2)}%`, `${fixed((T / exact(deg) - 1) * 100, 3, 1)}%`]), ].map((row) => row.map(cell)) }; // cells take no maths (gap: math-in-captions): *T*~0~ is plain // An SVG cannot see the page's fonts (gotcha: svg-no-webfonts), so the figure labels are // MathJax paths too: the same italic θ as the text, and vector in the PDF. const R = (x) => Math.round(x * 100) / 100; // coordinates to 0.01 mm keep the SVG short function tex(markup, x, y, size, anchor = 0, color = 'ink') { // anchor 0 left, .5 centre, 1 right const r = renderMath(markup, false, 100); // paths in MathJax units: 1000 to the em const k = size / 1000; return `<g transform="translate(${R(x - anchor * r.viewBox.width * k)} ${R(y)}) scale(${k})" ` + `fill="${palette[color]}">${r.paths.map((p) => `<path d="${p.d}"/>`).join('')}</g>`; } const PX_PER_MM = 10; // the drawings are in mm, declared to the engine at 10 px to the mm const figure = (id, w, h, caption, altText, placement) => ({ id, typeId: 'figure', kind: 'svg', svg: { fileId: `${id}.svg`, width: w * PX_PER_MM, height: h * PX_PER_MM }, caption, altText, placement, createdAt: 0, updatedAt: 0 }); const resources = [ // each is placed where the text first cites it with :ref; sizes in mm figure('strobe', 136, 70, '', 'A swinging pendulum, lit by flashes.'), // uncited: the band's figure('geometry', 84, 60, 'The pendulum and its symbols: the length *L* from the pivot to ' + 'the centre of the bob, the mass *m* and the amplitude, the angle between the vertical ' + 'and either turning point of the swing.', // the caption face has no Greek: no θ here 'A bob on a rod hanging from a pivot, pulled aside by an angle.', { position: 'top' }), { id: 'runs', typeId: 'table', kind: 'table', table: { model: table }, createdAt: 0, updatedAt: 0, caption: 'Measured and predicted periods of the one-metre pendulum, in seconds, ' + 'and their excess and residual in per cent.', note: 'Amplitudes to ±0.5°. The measurements are simulated for this example.' }, figure('period', 84, 60, 'The period against the amplitude, as a ratio to *T*~0~: Eq. (6) ' + '(solid), the first two terms of Eq. (7) (dashed) and the measurements (dots).', 'The period grows with the amplitude, slowly, then fast; the measured points sit on the curve.'), figure('phase', 176, 76, 'The phase plane of the pendulum: one orbit for each amplitude from ' + '30° to 150° in steps of 30°, the 90° orbit of our widest runs in red, and the separatrix ' + 'of a swing to 180° dashed.', 'Nested closed orbits growing into lemon shapes.', { position: 'top', span: 'page' }), // cited on page 3, it opens page 4 across both columns ]; // #endregion // #region art: the swinging pendulum, the geometry, the plot and the phase plane const rad = (deg) => (deg * Math.PI) / 180; const svg = (w, h, body) => `<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="${w * PX_PER_MM}" ` + `height="${h * PX_PER_MM}" viewBox="0 0 ${w} ${h}">${body}</svg>`; const line = (x1, y1, x2, y2, color, width, extra = '') => `<line x1="${R(x1)}" y1="${R(y1)}" ` + `x2="${R(x2)}" y2="${R(y2)}" stroke="${palette[color]}" stroke-width="${width}" ${extra}/>`; const dot = (x, y, r, color, extra = '') => `<circle cx="${R(x)}" cy="${R(y)}" r="${r}" ` + `fill="${palette[color]}" ${extra}/>`; const arc = (cx, cy, r, from, to, color, width, extra = '') => `<path d="M${R(cx + r * Math.sin( from))} ${R(cy + r * Math.cos(from))}A${r} ${r} 0 0 0 ${R(cx + r * Math.sin(to))} ${R(cy + r * Math.cos(to))}" fill="none" stroke="${palette[color]}" stroke-width="${width}" ${extra}/>`; const path = (points, color, width, extra = '') => `<path d="${points.map(([x, y], i) => `${i ? 'L' : 'M'}${R(x)} ${R(y)}`).join('')}" fill="none" stroke="${palette[color]}" ` + `stroke-width="${width}" ${extra}/>`; function strobe() { // 136 × 70 mm on the band: one half swing, lit at equal times const [px, len, amp] = [74, 60, rad(68)]; // pivot x, rod length (mm), amplitude let out = arc(px, 0, len, -amp, amp, 'mist', 0.35, 'stroke-dasharray="1 1.6" ' + 'stroke-opacity="0.7"'); for (let i = 8; i >= 0; i--) { // nine flashes at equal times: the bob bunches up where it const th = amp * Math.cos((Math.PI * (i + 0.5)) / 9); // slows down; the red one last const [x, y, last] = [px + len * Math.sin(th), len * Math.cos(th), i === 0]; out += line(px, 0, x, y, last ? 'paper' : 'mist', last ? 0.5 : 0.3, `stroke-opacity="${last ? 0.9 : 0.4}"`) + dot(x, y, 4, last ? 'series' : 'mist', `fill-opacity="${last ? 1 : 0.34}"`); } return svg(136, 70, out + dot(px, 0, 1.1, 'paper')); } function geometry() { // 84 × 60 mm, one column const [px, py, len, a] = [42, 6, 44, rad(38)]; const [bx, by] = [px + len * Math.sin(a), py + len * Math.cos(a)]; return svg(84, 60, `<rect x="${px - 14}" y="${py - 3}" width="28" height="3" ` + `fill="${palette.rule}"/>` + line(px, py, px, py + len + 6, 'muted', 0.3, 'stroke-dasharray="1.2 1"') + arc(px, py, len, -a, a, 'rule', 0.4, 'stroke-dasharray="1.2 1"') + arc(px, py, 12, 0, a, 'journal', 0.4) + line(px, py, 2 * px - bx, by, 'rule', 0.4) + dot(2 * px - bx, by, 3.4, 'rule') + line(px, py, bx, by, 'ink', 0.6) + dot(px, py, 0.9, 'ink') + dot(bx, by, 3.4, 'series') + tex('\\theta_0', px + 3.4, py + 18.4, 4.2) + tex('L', (px + bx) / 2 + 3.2 * Math.cos(a), (py + by) / 2 - 3.2 * Math.sin(a) + 1.4, 4.2) + tex('m', bx + 5, by + 1.5, 4.2)); } function period() { // 84 × 60 mm: T/T0 against the amplitude const [x0, y0, w, h] = [13, 8, 66, 40]; const X = (deg) => x0 + (deg / 90) * w; const Y = (ratio) => y0 + h - ((ratio - 1) / 0.2) * h; const curve = (f) => Array.from({ length: 91 }, (_, d) => [X(d), Y(f(d))]); let out = ''; for (const r of [1, 1.05, 1.1, 1.15, 1.2]) { out += line(x0, Y(r), x0 + w, Y(r), 'rule', 0.2) + tex(r.toFixed(2), x0 - 1.8, Y(r) + 1.1, 3.1, 1, 'muted'); } for (const d of [0, 30, 60, 90]) out += tex(`${d}^\\circ`, X(d), y0 + h + 4.6, 3.1, 0.5, 'muted'); return svg(84, 60, out + path(curve((d) => exact(d) / T0), 'journal', 0.6) + path(curve((d) => 1 + rad(d) ** 2 / 16), 'muted', 0.4, 'stroke-dasharray="1.4 1"') + runs.map(([d, T]) => dot(X(d), Y(T / T0), 1, 'series')).join('') + tex('\\theta_0', x0 + w, y0 + h + 9.5, 3.6, 1) + tex('T/T_0', x0 - 1.8, y0 - 4.2, 3.6, 1)); } function phase() { // 176 × 76 mm, across the page: the orbits of Eq. (3) const [cx, cy, sx, sy] = [88, 39, 24, 16]; // origin, and mm per radian and per unit of θ̇/ω0 let out = line(cx - 84, cy, cx + 84, cy, 'rule', 0.3) + line(cx, cy - 37, cx, cy + 37, 'rule', 0.3); for (const [x, label] of [[-Math.PI, '-\\pi'], [Math.PI, '\\pi']]) { out += line(cx + sx * x, cy, cx + sx * x, cy + 1.2, 'muted', 0.3) + tex(label, cx + sx * x, cy + 5, 3.1, 0.5, 'muted'); } for (const deg of [30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180]) { const a = rad(deg); const v = (th) => Math.sqrt(Math.max(0, 2 * (Math.cos(th) - Math.cos(a)))); // Eq. (3) const orbit = Array.from({ length: 241 }, (_, i) => { // over the top, then back under const [u, s] = i < 120 ? [i / 120, 1] : [(i - 120) / 120, -1]; const th = a * Math.sin(Math.PI * (u - 0.5)); return [cx + sx * th * s, cy - sy * v(th) * s]; }); out += deg === 90 ? path(orbit, 'series', 0.7) : path(orbit, 'journal', deg === 180 ? 0.35 : 0.45, deg === 180 ? 'stroke-dasharray="1.4 1"' : ''); } return svg(176, 76, out + tex('\\theta', cx + 84, cy - 1.6, 3.8, 1) + tex('\\dot\\theta/\\omega_0', cx + 1.6, cy - 34.4, 3.8)); } // #endregion // ─── 3 · Fonts ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── const FONTS = { // every face the pages paint, loaded before the first build (gotcha: fonts-first) 'STIX Two Text': ['400', '400i', '700'], 'Schibsted Grotesk': ['400', '400i', '500', '600', '700', '700i'], 'Azeret Mono': ['400', '600'], }; // ─── 4 · Build & show ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── await loadFonts(FONTS, markdown); for (const [id, draw] of Object.entries({ strobe, geometry, period, phase })) { await loadSvg(`${id}.svg`, draw()); // registered for the canvas, kept as bytes for the PDF } const doc = await buildWithFonts( () => buildDocument({ markdown: numbered(markdown), resources }, config()), markdown); showPages(doc, { title: 'Two-column paper with numbered equations' }); offerPdf(() => renderToPdf(doc, { fontProvider: fontsourceProvider, resourceBytes: imageBytes }), `${RECIPE}.pdf`); // text in the Fontsource faces; formulas and figures as vector paths
Kit · core, fonts, viewer, pdf, images: the same in every recipe · 310 lines// ─── Kit ── helpers shared by every Cookbook recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ───── // ─── Kit · core v1 ── the same in every recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ───────── function mm(value) { return { value, unit: 'mm' }; } function pt(value) { return { value, unit: 'pt' }; } function em(value) { return { value, unit: 'em' }; } /** The sample language's string: t({ en: 'Figure', es: 'Figura' }). */ function t(strings) { return strings[LANG] ?? Object.values(strings)[0]; } /** A file in this recipe's assets folder, served from the Postext repo by jsDelivr. */ function asset(file) { return `https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/drnachio/postext@main/cookbook/${RECIPE}/assets/${file}`; } // ─── Kit · fonts v1 ── the same in every recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ──────── // Postext measures text with the faces the browser has loaded, and caches the // widths, so every face must be ready before the first build. Faces come from // Fontsource: the same static files the PDF embeds, so screen and PDF agree. /** faces = { 'Family Name': ['400', '400i', '700'] }. `text` is the sample: * letters beyond Latin-1 (č, ł, ő…) also load the latin-ext files. With * `optional`, a face Fontsource does not ship is skipped instead of failing. * Resolves to the number of faces added. */ async function loadFonts(faces, text = '', { optional = false } = {}) { kitStatus('Loading fonts…'); const ranges = { latin: 'U+0000-00FF,U+0131,U+0152-0153,U+02BB-02BC,U+02C6,U+02DA,U+02DC,U+0304,U+0308,U+0329,' + 'U+2000-206F,U+20AC,U+2122,U+2191,U+2193,U+2212,U+2215,U+FEFF,U+FFFD', 'latin-ext': 'U+0100-02BA,U+02BD-02C5,U+02C7-02CC,U+02CE-02D7,U+02DD-02FF,U+0304,U+0308,U+0329,' + 'U+1D00-1DBF,U+1E00-1E9F,U+1EF2-1EFF,U+2020,U+20A0-20AB,U+20AD-20C0,U+2113,U+2C60-2C7F,U+A720-A7FF', }; const subsets = /[Ā-˿Ḁ-ỿ]/.test(text) ? ['latin', 'latin-ext'] : ['latin']; const jobs = []; let added = 0; for (const [family, specs] of Object.entries(faces)) { const id = fontsourceId(family); const meta = optional ? await fontsourceMeta(family) : null; for (const spec of new Set(specs)) { const weight = parseInt(spec, 10); const style = spec.endsWith('i') ? 'italic' : 'normal'; if (hasFace(family, weight, style)) continue; if (optional && !(meta?.weights.includes(weight) && meta.styles.includes(style))) continue; for (const subset of subsets) { const url = `https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/${id}@5/files/${id}-${subset}-${weight}-${style}.woff2`; const face = new FontFace(family, `url(${url}) format('woff2')`, { weight: String(weight), style, unicodeRange: ranges[subset] }); jobs.push(face.load().then((ready) => { document.fonts.add(ready); added++; }, () => { if (subset === 'latin' && !optional) throw new Error(`Fontsource has no ${family} ${weight} ${style}`); })); } } } await Promise.all(jobs).catch((error) => { kitFail(error); throw error; }); return added; } /** Runs `build` (a buildDocument or buildBundle call) and checks the faces * the pages use. A regular face missing from FONTS is loaded with a warning; * bold and italic variants are loaded when the family ships them. Then the * measurement caches are cleared and the build runs again. */ async function buildWithFonts(build, text = '') { const tried = new Set(); for (let round = 0; round < 3; round++) { kitStatus('Laying out…'); await new Promise(requestAnimationFrame); // let the status paint first const result = await Promise.resolve().then(build).catch((error) => { kitFail(error); throw error; }); const wanted = { base: {}, variants: {} }; for (const { font, base } of [result].flat().flatMap(fontStringsOf)) { const { family, weight, style } = parseFont(font); const key = `${family}|${weight}|${style}`; if (tried.has(key) || hasFace(family, weight, style)) continue; tried.add(key); (wanted[base ? 'base' : 'variants'][family] ??= []).push(`${weight}${style === 'italic' ? 'i' : ''}`); } if (Object.keys(wanted.base).length) { console.warn(`[cookbook] FONTS does not list ${JSON.stringify(wanted.base)}: loading them.`); } const added = await loadFonts(wanted.base, text) + await loadFonts(wanted.variants, text, { optional: true }); if (added === 0) return result; clearMeasurementCache(); } throw new Error('The fonts did not settle after three builds.'); } /** Every font string of the layout. `base` marks a block's own face; its * bold, italic and bold-italic variants are listed whether or not used. */ function fontStringsOf(doc) { const found = new Map(); const walk = (node) => { if (!node || typeof node !== 'object') return; if (Array.isArray(node)) { node.forEach(walk); return; } for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(node)) { if (typeof value === 'string' && /fontString$/i.test(key)) { found.set(value, found.get(value) || key === 'fontString'); } else if (value && typeof value === 'object') walk(value); } }; walk(doc.pages); walk(doc.blocks); return [...found].map(([font, base]) => ({ font, base })); } /** '700 37.5px Open Sans' / 'italic 400 13px "Source Serif 4"' → { family, weight, style }. * A string with no weight ('95.8px Young Serif', from a design text) is 400. */ function parseFont(font) { const m = /^(?:(italic|oblique)\s+)?(?:small-caps\s+)?(?:(\d+|bold|normal)\s+)?[\d.]+px\s+(.+)$/.exec(font.trim()); if (!m) throw new Error(`Unexpected font string: ${font}`); const weight = m[2] === 'bold' ? 700 : !m[2] || m[2] === 'normal' ? 400 : Number(m[2]); return { family: m[3].replace(/^["']|["']$/g, ''), weight, style: m[1] ? 'italic' : 'normal' }; } /** True when a loaded FontFace covers exactly this family, weight and style * (document.fonts.check() is also true for families nobody declared). */ function hasFace(family, weight, style) { for (const face of document.fonts) { if (face.status !== 'loaded' || face.style !== style) continue; if (face.family.replace(/^["']|["']$/g, '') !== family) continue; const [low, high = low] = face.weight.split(' ').map(Number); if (weight >= low && weight <= high) return true; } return false; } /** Fontsource's id for a family: 'Source Serif 4' → 'source-serif-4'. */ function fontsourceId(family) { return family.toLowerCase().replace(/\s+/g, '-'); } /** The weights and styles a family ships ({ weights: [400, 700], styles: ['normal', 'italic'] }), or null. */ function fontsourceMeta(family) { fontsourceMeta.cache ??= new Map(); const id = fontsourceId(family); if (!fontsourceMeta.cache.has(id)) { fontsourceMeta.cache.set(id, fetch(`https://api.fontsource.org/v1/fonts/${id}`) .then((res) => (res.ok ? res.json() : null), () => null)); } return fontsourceMeta.cache.get(id); } // ─── Kit · viewer v1 ── the same in every recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ─────── /** Shows the pages as facing spreads on a dark desk: the first page is a * recto on its own, then verso | recto pairs, as in a bound book. Pages * are painted when they scroll near the screen. */ function showPages(docs, { title, width = 460 } = {}) { const root = viewer(title); const pages = [docs].flat().flatMap((doc) => doc.pages.map((page) => ({ doc, page, n: (doc.pageIndexOffset ?? 0) + page.index }))); const spreads = []; let verso = null; for (const p of pages) { if (p.n % 2 === 1) { if (verso) spreads.push([verso, null]); verso = p; } else { spreads.push([verso, p]); verso = null; } } if (verso) spreads.push([verso, null]); const density = Math.min(window.devicePixelRatio || 1, 2); showPages.painter?.disconnect(); const painter = new IntersectionObserver((entries) => { for (const { isIntersecting, target } of entries) { if (!isIntersecting) continue; painter.unobserve(target); const { doc, page } = target.postext; renderPageToCanvas(page, doc, target, { scale: (width * density) / page.width }); } }, { rootMargin: '800px' }); showPages.painter = painter; root.replaceChildren(...spreads.map((pair) => { const spread = document.createElement('div'); spread.className = 'pt-spread'; for (const p of pair) { const figure = document.createElement('figure'); if (p) { const label = p.page.pageLabel || String(p.n + 1); const canvas = document.createElement('canvas'); canvas.postext = p; canvas.style.aspectRatio = `${p.page.width} / ${p.page.height}`; canvas.setAttribute('role', 'img'); canvas.setAttribute('aria-label', `Page ${label}`); const folio = document.createElement('figcaption'); folio.textContent = label; figure.append(canvas, folio); painter.observe(canvas); } else figure.className = 'pt-blank'; spread.append(figure); } return spread; })); kitStatus(`${pages.length} ${pages.length === 1 ? 'page' : 'pages'}`); document.documentElement.dataset.postext = 'ready'; return pages.length; } /** The desk, the bar and the error reporting, created once. */ function viewer(title) { if (!document.getElementById('pt-kit')) { document.head.insertAdjacentHTML('beforeend', `<style id="pt-kit"> :root { color-scheme: dark; } body { margin: 0; background: #0e1014; color: #b9bcc4; font: 13px/1.45 system-ui, sans-serif; } #pt-bar { position: sticky; top: 0; z-index: 1; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; align-items: center; gap: 6px 16px; padding: 10px 16px; background: rgb(14 16 20 / .92); backdrop-filter: blur(6px); border-bottom: 1px solid #23262d; } #pt-bar strong { color: #f4f1ea; font-weight: 600; } #pt-actions { display: flex; gap: 12px; margin-left: auto; } #pt-actions a, #pt-actions button { color: #d8a21a; font: inherit; background: none; border: 0; padding: 0; cursor: pointer; } #pages { display: grid; justify-items: center; gap: 48px; padding: 32px 16px 72px; } .pt-spread { display: flex; } .pt-spread figure { margin: 0; width: min(460px, 44vw); } .pt-spread canvas { display: block; width: 100%; background: #fff; box-shadow: 0 1px 2px rgb(0 0 0 / .5), 0 22px 44px -16px rgb(0 0 0 / .8); } .pt-spread figure:first-child canvas { box-shadow: inset -14px 0 14px -14px rgb(0 0 0 / .18), 0 1px 2px rgb(0 0 0 / .5), 0 22px 44px -16px rgb(0 0 0 / .8); } .pt-spread figcaption { margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; font: 600 10px/1 system-ui, sans-serif; letter-spacing: .18em; text-transform: uppercase; color: #6c7079; } .pt-blank { visibility: hidden; } @media (max-width: 760px) { .pt-spread { flex-direction: column; gap: 32px; } .pt-spread figure { width: min(460px, 92vw); } .pt-blank { display: none; } } </style>`); document.body.insertAdjacentHTML('afterbegin', '<header id="pt-bar"><strong id="pt-title"></strong><span id="pt-status" role="status"></span><span id="pt-actions"></span></header>'); document.getElementById('pt-title').textContent = document.title || 'Postext'; addEventListener('error', (event) => kitFail(event.error ?? event.message)); addEventListener('unhandledrejection', (event) => kitFail(event.reason)); } if (title) document.getElementById('pt-title').textContent = title; return document.getElementById('pages') ?? document.body.appendChild(Object.assign(document.createElement('main'), { id: 'pages' })); } function kitStatus(text) { viewer(); document.getElementById('pt-status').textContent = text; } function kitFail(error) { document.documentElement.dataset.postext = 'error'; kitStatus(`Error: ${error?.message ?? error}`); } // ─── Kit · pdf v1 ── the same in every recipe that exports a PDF ────────────── /** postext-pdf embeds TrueType bytes. Fetch the Fontsource file the screen * used, snapping to a weight the family ships and falling back to upright * when it has no italic: the PDF asks for every face a block could use. */ async function fontsourceProvider(family, weight, style) { const id = fontsourceId(family); const meta = await fontsourceMeta(family); const weights = meta?.weights?.length ? meta.weights : [400, 700]; const w = weights.reduce((a, b) => (Math.abs(b - weight) < Math.abs(a - weight) ? b : a)); const s = style === 'italic' && meta && !meta.styles.includes('italic') ? 'normal' : style; const res = await fetch(`https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/${id}@5/files/${id}-latin-${w}-${s}.woff2`); if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`Fontsource has no ${family} ${w} ${s} (${res.status})`); return decompressWoff2(new Uint8Array(await res.arrayBuffer())); } /** A "Build the PDF" button in the bar. Once built: "Open the PDF" (a new * tab, since CodePen's preview frame cannot show PDFs) and a download link. */ function offerPdf(makePdf, filename) { viewer(); const button = Object.assign(document.createElement('button'), { type: 'button', textContent: 'Build the PDF' }); button.dataset.postextPdf = filename; button.addEventListener('click', async () => { button.disabled = true; button.textContent = 'Building the PDF…'; try { const bytes = await makePdf(); const url = URL.createObjectURL(new Blob([bytes], { type: 'application/pdf' })); const size = `${Math.max(1, Math.round(bytes.length / 1024))} KB`; button.replaceWith( Object.assign(document.createElement('a'), { href: url, target: '_blank', rel: 'noopener', textContent: 'Open the PDF ↗' }), Object.assign(document.createElement('a'), { href: url, download: filename, textContent: `Download ${filename} · ${size}` })); } catch (error) { button.disabled = false; button.textContent = 'Build the PDF'; kitFail(error); } }); document.getElementById('pt-actions').append(button); } // ─── Kit · images v1 ── recipes with pictures · postext.dev/cookbook ────────── /** Registers a photo or PNG for the canvas and keeps its bytes for the PDF. * fetch → ImageBitmap never taints the canvas (a plain cross-origin <img> would). */ async function loadImage(fileId, url) { const res = await fetch(url); if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`Image not found (${res.status}): ${url}`); const bytes = new Uint8Array(await res.arrayBuffer()); registerResourceImage(fileId, await createImageBitmap(new Blob([bytes]))); (loadImage.bytes ??= new Map()).set(fileId, bytes); } /** Registers SVG markup (drawn in code, or fetched) as a vector image. */ async function loadSvg(fileId, svg) { const img = new Image(); img.src = `data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,${encodeURIComponent(svg)}`; await img.decode(); registerResourceImage(fileId, img); (loadImage.bytes ??= new Map()).set(fileId, new TextEncoder().encode(svg)); } /** renderToPdf({ resourceBytes: imageBytes }) */ function imageBytes(fileId) { return loadImage.bytes?.get(fileId); } /** renderToHtml({ resourceImageUrl: imageUrl }) */ function imageUrl(fileId) { const bytes = imageBytes(fileId); if (!bytes) return undefined; imageUrl.urls ??= new Map(); if (!imageUrl.urls.has(fileId)) { const type = /\.svg$/i.test(fileId) ? 'image/svg+xml' : /\.png$/i.test(fileId) ? 'image/png' : 'image/jpeg'; imageUrl.urls.set(fileId, URL.createObjectURL(new Blob([bytes], { type }))); } return imageUrl.urls.get(fileId); } // ─── /Kit ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

The composed script.js runs as it is: paste it into any page’s module script, or open the recipe on CodePen. Recipe folder on GitHub ↗

Variations

#Number figures within sections

Long papers count figures per section; this prints Figure 1.1 in the introduction and Table 4.1 in the results.

-  numberingTemplate: '{n}', resetOn: 'never',
+  numberingTemplate: '{h2}.{n}', resetOn: 'h2',

#Put the equation numbers on the left

Swap the two outer boxes and the numbers move to the left edge of the column.

-  `$$\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em]{}\\mathmakebox[${FORMULA_EM}em]{${body.trim()}}`
-  + `\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em][r]{(${n})}$$`);
+  `$$\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em][l]{(${n})}\\mathmakebox[${FORMULA_EM}em]{${body.trim()}}`
+  + `\\mathmakebox[${NUMBER_EM}em]{}$$`);

Pitfalls

Pitfall

Maths needs https://esm.sh/postext?bundle and initMathEngine()

Formulas from https://esm.sh/postext paint grey boxes without an error. Import every symbol from https://esm.sh/postext?bundle, never mixing the two URLs, and await initMathEngine() before the first build. Mathematics →

Pitfall

A \tag makes a display formula vanish

In postext 1.4.1 a display formula with \tag{…} comes out 0 wide, so nothing prints and no invalidMath warning is raised. Number the equations yourself: centre the formula and set its number flush right in \mathmakebox boxes whose widths add up to the column. Mathematics →

Pitfall

A bare $ opens maths: write \$

A dollar sign opens inline maths, so a price such as $40 starts a formula. Write \$40. Escapes and literal characters →

Pitfall

A no-break space still breaks the line

In postext 1.4.1 the line breaker treats U+00A0 as an ordinary space, so 0.08 %, 2.006 s or Section 2 can split across two lines. Close the pair up (0.08%) or reword the sentence. Escapes and literal characters →

Pitfall

Design text has no inline ^sup^ or **bold**

Design text elements print plain text, so ^1^ or **bold** in an attribute appear literally. Use Unicode superscripts (¹ ² ³ are in the latin subset) or a second element in another weight. Text, rules and boxes in page designs →

Pitfall

Text inside an SVG <img> cannot use web fonts

An SVG is drawn as an image, and an image has no access to the page's web fonts, so its labels fall back to a system face. Outline the text, embed an @font-face subset in the SVG, or move the labels to the caption. Figures and tables as resources →

Pitfall

A top float can push the last column down on a closing page

In postext 1.4.1, when a chapter or story ends on a page that opens with a page-wide top float and its lines split unevenly between the columns, stretchAfterFloats adds a blank line under the float in the shorter column instead of letting it end short, so the two columns no longer start on the same line. Set headings.balancing.stretchAfterFloats to false, or fit the copy to an even number of lines. Column balancing →

Pitfall

Quote every frontmatter value

YAML reads title: 1984 as a number and a date as a Date object, and non-string values print empty in placeholders and leave the PDF without a title. Quote every value: title: "1984". Document metadata →

Pitfall

Any headings object switches off the H1 page break

By default an H1 breaks to a recto (always-odd), but passing any headings object resets that default, so chapters run on and span: 'page' does nothing. Restate headings.levels[0].breakBefore: { enabled: true, parity } in every config. Chapters that open on a recto →

Pitfall

Load every face before layout

Layout measures text with the faces the browser has loaded and caches the widths, so a face that arrives after the first build leaves wrong line breaks and a PDF that no longer matches the screen. Load every weight and style first, and call clearMeasurementCache() before rebuilding when one arrives late. Fonts before layout →

Sandbox check · invalidMath

Invalid LaTeX

Why. MathJax could not parse a formula, so a red placeholder is printed instead.

Fix. Fix the TeX, or escape a dollar sign that was not meant as maths with \$. Docs →

Markdown warning · unclosedMath

Unclosed math delimiter

Why. A $ opens inline maths that is never closed, usually because it belongs to a price.

Fix. Write \$ for a literal dollar, or close the formula on the same line. Docs →

  • A display formula does not keep with the line that introduces it. A lead-in such as “gives the period as” can end a column, or stand above a figure, with its equation in the next column. Fit the copy, and send figures to the head of a column (position: 'top', as Figure 1 does) so they never land between the two.
  • The paragraph after a display formula is a new paragraph, and it is indented. Start it as a sentence of its own (“Here L is…”) rather than a LaTeX-style “where…”.
  • Plain ~0~ drops its figure a third of an em, below the descenders, and ^2^ after it follows the ₀ instead of standing over it. In running text write $T_0$ and $T_0^2$, and keep the plain markup for captions and table cells, which take no maths.
  • On a closing page under a page-wide figure, the balancer may add a line above a heading that opens a column, so the two columns start a line apart, and stretchAfterFloats: false does not prevent it. Check the last page and fit the copy by a line.
  • In 1.4.1 an in-column heading takes no letterSpacing, so the back-matter headings are untracked capitals. Tracked capitals work in design text and callout titles, as in the kicker and the abstract's label.
  • Check that the label face carries ¹, ² and ±, and Greek if a caption needs it. Instrument Sans, tried first, has none of the three in its Fontsource files, and Schibsted Grotesk has no Greek, so the Figure 1 caption names the amplitude in words rather than θ₀.

Credits

Text
Original prose, CC BY 4.0
Fonts
STIX Two Text (SIL OFL 1.1) · Schibsted Grotesk (SIL OFL 1.1) · Azeret Mono (SIL OFL 1.1)
PDF