How do I launch the Mathematica kernel from a terminal window?

Due to operating system restrictions, launching the Mathematica 4.1.5, 4.2, or 5.0 kernel from the terminal requires you to type either the full kernel file path or ./MathKernel when in the directory containing the kernel.

To avoid typing the full kernel path, you can create a much shorter command using a shell script or alias. For example, if Mathematica is installed in the /Applications directory, the following alias will launch the kernel when you evaluate kernel in a terminal window. Note the backslash before the space that allows the operating system to read the full path.

alias kernel '/Applications/Mathematica\ 4.1.app/Contents/MacOS/MathKernel'

alias kernel '/Applications/Mathematica\ 4.2.app/Contents/MacOS/MathKernel'

alias kernel '/Applications/Mathematica\ 5.0.app/Contents/MacOS/MathKernel'

Download this FAQ as a Mathematica 5.2 Notebook

Questions or comments? Send email to support@wolfram.com.