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Algebra

24567

Comments

  • Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    Alex, MATH pertaints to everyone.


    THIS:


    http://www2.seminolestate.edu/rrapalje/CollegeAlgebra/Practice%20Tests/Image48.gif


    DOES NOT.

  • You can change. You can.

    It's unfair to say that is not math simply because it's not basicaly arithmethic or however the fuck you spell that

  • a little muffled

    @Saturn: Something as complicated as that? Probably not, but it makes the simple ones easier. And take it from someone who can do it: being able to do simple algebraic manipulations in your head comes up all the time.


    In the end, though, the manipulations aren't even what's important: mathematics is, more than anything else, a manner of thinking. I get that it's hard for you; it's hard for a lot of people. The fact that elementary/high school tends to do a horrible job of teaching it does not help. But the fact that it's hard, and frustrating, does not mean that it isn't useful and relevant.

  • For the record, what are you planning on doing?  I can think of quite a few deceptively basic jobs that need that level of math as a bare minimum.

  • edited 2012-12-12 18:47:19
    Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    Screenwriting.


    But I work at a Cupcake bakery.

  • One foot in front of the other, every day.

    Saturn, what you're doing there is finding unknown values through a logical process. This is highly useful. Usually, math teachers don't tell you why. This sucks, but it doesn't mean you can't take these skills and find an application for them.


    Besides, mathematics really aren't about numbers. Numbers are just a tool that you use in the process of mathematics, and the real prize is understanding logical systems. That's what mathematics are -- the science of logic. Let me give you an example that pertains to me:


    Look at this diagram that has the points A, B and B2. 



    This represents a sword fight from a bird's eye view. A is my enemy and B is myself, and A attacks directly along the line AB. In response, I shift my position to B2 and attack along the line B2A, turning my adversary's attack into the hypotenuse of a triangle. I've used the shortest side of a triangle as my foot movement, the longest side as an evasive defense principle and the middling side as my own attack, which ensures that while I remain defended, my attack will be faster than my adversary's by virtue of traveling a shorter distance.


    This is infallible unless my adversary follows with a superior counter, as it uses mathematical principle to ensure, objectively, that I attain the upper hand. I don't need to know the precise distance between myself and my adversary, nor the precise distance of my foot movement or my own attack. All I have to know is the geometric principles at play and apply them.


    Most useful mathematical application beyond arithmetic is useful less for finding absolute values, but moreso for its capacity to be applied with versatility. Right now, you're learning these skills. And sure, the individual equations might have no relevance to you, and the teachers and resources might not give any indication of how this might be applied to situations of personal relevance. That's not the failing of mathematics, though, but of educators and educational resources. 

  • "I've come to the conclusion that this is a VERY STUPID IDEA."

    The real question is, why do I need English 12 credits to graduate when I'm planning to take a math major?

  • edited 2012-12-12 18:55:22
    Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    Thank you for that Alex.


    You are able to apply that knowledge to something you care about without the use of stupid, hateful numbers. I can get behind that.


    But I doubt there is any time in my life where I will have to sit down and write out a maximization and minimization plot from equations, find their corner points, and find the values of when profit is the highest with items sold.


    I shouldn't need to know the formula to find the x-intercepts of a quadratic equation.

  • BeeBee
    edited 2012-12-12 18:57:44

    Well, for screenwriting you need to have a good sense of geometric space, or your scenes will be clunky.  It's also a really, really good idea to at least have a layman's knowledge of the sciences, or you eventually make yourself look...really silly.


    If anything, good writing for entertainment media demands that you have a solid foundation in almost everything.

  • edited 2012-12-12 18:56:27

    stupid, hateful numbers.



    No, numbers aren't stupid or hateful at all.  In fact, you might find that they aren't even capable of having thoughts or emotions.

  • Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    Bee, I don't anything I learned in either of these classes helped me with my screenwriting.

  • a little muffled

    To use the most trivial example imaginable, what if you want to write a screenplay about a mathematician?

  • BeeBee
    edited 2012-12-12 19:01:52

    Your writing is limited to subjects you know enough about to believably write about them.  Unless you want to limit yourself to screenwriting shows about screenwriting, you're under even more pressure than most people to be "well-rounded".


    ^ Exactly.  If you try to write about math without knowing math, you get Numb3rs.  This should be an obvious deterrent.

  • You can change. You can.

    Well, for screenwriting you need to have a good sense of geometric space, or your scenes will be clunky.



    Untrue. Blocking's left to the actual film crew during production. The only reason why a screenwriter would be involved in the blocking of the actors would be because he's also involved in the production of the movie, normally as a director.

  • Definitely not gay.

    I always liked Algebra. I got a 93% in my last test.

  • BeeBee
    edited 2012-12-12 19:05:03

    To an extent.  Poor writing can result in a lot of rather more fundamental issues of physical improbability.  You can't always count on your production crew to cover your ass for writing something larger than a given physical space into it.

  • Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    I'd say every other class besides math has helped me with my screenwriting. Not trying to be difficult or immature, this is just based off what I think.

  • BeeBee
    edited 2012-12-12 19:09:36

    Oh, I understand the sentiment completely.  The classes that helped me the most in software engineering were probably band and theater.  And even more weirdly, when I hit a plateau in my band performance, math was what pushed me over it from mediocre to good.

  • a little muffled

    If you've taken it as a given that math is irrelevant to you, how on Earth can you expect to find relevance in it?

  • As much as I try to avoid banally potholing to tropes, this one is rather relevant.

  • Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    I didn't say math is irrelevant, I keep trying to tell you guys that. I'm saying the level of math that is required of me is irrelevant to my needs.

  • "I will grant you two wishes; one for each testicle."

    what's with people and not liking math


    you should all love math math is easy

  • BeeBee
    edited 2012-12-12 19:29:31


     


    This is what happens when you decide your profession is a substitute for math.


    Don't do super-math.  Just do regular math.

  • You can change. You can.


    To an extent.  Poor writing can result in a lot of rather more fundamental issues of physical improbability.



    The only extent to which this might be an issue for a production crew is if a screenwriter forgets something as basic as "Two objects can't occupy the same space". Mostly because actors and directors themselves often determine the movement and shooting seen on the film unless the plot itself demands the actors or directors to show a particular movement or object (e.g: "Angle On: Officer Doe's holster as he pulls his gun out of it")


    And even then, such practices are frowned upon because actors and directors are paid to do this.


  • Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    No, math isn't easy. It's hard and annoying and too many numbers and letters and variables and matrices and polynomials and quadratic formula and b^2-4ac and vertexes and parabolas and fuck

  • "I will grant you two wishes; one for each testicle."

    Bee's image is borked.


    I'm just slightly more math inclined than most people (I'm currently at a Math and Science boarding school). I'm no math genius (I have a borderline grade in BC Calc 2). I understand that some people find it difficult and droll.

  • edited 2012-12-12 19:36:10

    Math is super easy though.  It's like the only subject in school in which you actually can tell how well you did on any assignment before you get your grade back on it.  It also requires way less memorization than other subjects, and until you have to start doing proofs and stuff, it really kind of requires less thought too, since usually it's just a matter of applying formulas and making sure you don't screw anything up when you're doing the arithmetic stuff.

  • Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!

    Math requires more memorization on my part than any of my other subjects, for me personally.


    I just don't connect well with the steps.


    Might be why I didn't do so well on Chemistry, despite that class being fantastic.

  • edited 2012-12-12 19:38:54
    a little muffled

    It's a kind of nocebo effect: people convince themselves math is "too hard" for them, and so it is.


    Edit: If you're trying to learn math by memorization, you're doing it wrong.

  • You can change. You can.

    It's a kind of nocebo effect: people convince themselves math is "too hard" for them, and so it is.



    Agreed. I disliked having math classes because of the inherent stress that comes from having more workload, but it was relatively easy for me to learn it when I was preparing for a exam or something like that.


    I just wish that university did not rate how much you deserve a piece of cardboard that says you're a screenwriter based on how good are you at finding the tangent value on a triangle, really. That's all that bothers me here. I don't even mind learning about it.

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