Structural Abstraction

Structural abstraction is an accessibility technique that simplifies complex visual structures — particularly mathematical formulas — by initially collapsing sub-expressions into symbolic summaries and allowing users to progressively expand and explore them at their own pace. This approach helps readers with cognitive or visual disabilities manage the complexity of dense notation by presenting a high-level overview first, then enabling drill-down into specific components. In MathJax, collapsed sub-expressions are indicated by Unicode symbols representing the top-level structure (such as a plus sign for a sum or an integral sign for an integral), and users can expand them via click, keyboard, or touch interaction.