Mathematics

[cipherdecoy]

Hate it or love it?

It's a hate for me. I would be interested to know about your experiences with it and whether you were dying to get rid of it back in high school or whatever.

[sprinks]

I don't hate it, but I strongly dislike it! I'm doing Foundations of Maths right now, but I'm dropping maths completely next year. I struggle with it, because I think differently to most others and so even though I get the right answers, my working out is some weird logic of my own! :p. And also I have this thing that I don't care about how to do things, I want to know why its that way. So that is hard and time consuming, because we're meant to just memorise things and use them, not sit there and demand to know WHY that equation is the way it is!! :p

[Pensive]

Used to dislike it a lot sometime back, but after entering high-school my views have quite changed. For me it all depends on the topic now. Some mathematical topics I find immensely boring (I can't help saying that), others are amazingly interesting though as if we are solving some creative puzzle.

[sofia82]

Used to love it, it was my major in the high school but changed my idea about my studies at the univesity ... no i foget all about it.

[papayahed]

And also I have this thing that I don't care about how to do things, I want to know why its that way. So that is hard and time consuming, because we're meant to just memorise things and use them, not sit there and demand to know WHY that equation is the way it is!! :p

Then you should stick with it! I can't tell you how many hours we had to listen to the reasons behind using certain formulas and how it was derived.


Original question:

I love me some math!! I would love to go back and take a few more classes.

[johann cruyff]

I love mathematics!I'm especially interested in mathematical logic,and have been reading quite a lot about it lately.

[Taliesin]

Love it, of course. One of the greatest creative arts of mankind.

Although, I dislike how it is often taught in schools - they make students to perform some algorithms over and over. Damn, any computer can follow these algorithms, but it takes humans to be creative in the field - why do they take away all the fun from maths?

I never memorized anything but the basic facts on the topics - after all, you can deduce all the formulas from them when you know them.


An engineer, a chemist and a mathematician are staying in three adjoining cabins at an old motel. First the engineer's coffee maker catches fire. He smells the smoke, wakes up, unplugs the coffee maker, throws it out the window, and goes back to sleep.

Later that night the chemist smells smoke too. He wakes up and sees that a cigarette butt has set the trash can on fire. He says to himself, "Hmm. How does one put out a fire? One can reduce the temperature of the fuel below the flash point, isolate the burning material from oxygen, or both. This could be accomplished by applying water." So he picks up the trash can, puts it in the shower stall, turns on the water, and, when the fire is out, goes back to sleep.

The mathematician, of course, has been watching all this out the window. So later, when he finds that his pipe ashes have set the bedsheet on fire, he is not in the least taken aback. He says: "Aha! A solution exists!" and goes back to sleep.

That's how I usually solved the problems in school - aha, a solution exists, it uses that method. Why would I need to go through the whole solving process when I already got the idea?
Anyhow, thankfully my teachers gave me olympiad problems so I had things to do during the class. Later I searched for them myself.

[Trystan]

Absolutely despise it. I find nothing of interest in it at all . . . and I suck at it big time.

[Nossa]

Hate it. With passion! lol

[Virgil]

I voted hated. I was thinking of advanced calculous, differential equations, and series equations and stuff like that. I do hate the very advanced mathematics I was forced to learn toward the end of college. It left a bad taste in my mouth. But the more mundane math trigonometry, geometry, linear algebra, even basic calculus is fun, and while I'm not sure I love it, certainly can be enjoyable.

[Eggys]

Hate it. I'm failing math quite badly, too. Hell, I hate all of school.

[kilted exile]

I love maths. It's possibly the only real truth (well except death) in the world. To hate maths is to hate logic

[NikolaiI]

I love math, but then I had a great school with great faculty and students.

[thelastmelon]

I voted "Hate it!" but I'm going to have to change my mind about it, since I'm partly going to be a teacher in math when I'm done at my studies at the University. Half next term will be dedicated to math and how to teach it to the children. I'm going to be a teacher for children up to the age of 9, so it's probably not all that complicated. :)

[Pensive]

I don't hate it, but I strongly dislike it! I'm doing Foundations of Maths right now, but I'm dropping maths completely next year. I struggle with it, because I think differently to most others and so even though I get the right answers, my working out is some weird logic of my own! . And also I have this thing that I don't care about how to do things, I want to know why its that way. So that is hard and time consuming, because we're meant to just memorise things and use them, not sit there and demand to know WHY that equation is the way it is!!

We had quite a competitive mathematics in even Grade 6, Grade 7 and Grade 8, used to be a bane of our existence, nearly all the girls in the class had most problem with it. Much that is covered in highschool was covered then.

My problem was a bit similar. I had to solve certain questions in a certain manner (the way I was taught) and even though I tried to understand why I was solving the questions the way I was I never understood what I was solving them for due to which I was so bothered that at times I did badly at solving them. I wanted to know what use was it. With the thought that mathematics was a foreign language I couldn't do well in/could never understand what it's for I used to start understanding the formulaes and stuff leading me to understand very little, especially geometery. And I had to learn formulaes. Area of circle. Perimeter of circle. Area of a hollow cylinder, etc etc. My algebra was better, even though it was considered more advanced compared to other topics, mostly I knew what I was solving the questions for which made things easier.

On entering Grade 8, I decided to leave 'learning' formulaes. It was better to understand the shape of geometerical figures and then derive the formulae by my own and it really worked. Things got much better in Grade 9 when I studied Physics and it helped me even more in understanding how a formulae is derived. Also how useful mathematics is. Partly thanks to Physics and the abandonment of formulae learning, I have noticed that I don't really dislike mathematics as much as I used to. Of course there are times when I am very much weary of it because of the syllabus (there are sooo many topics for mathematics!) but my grades have significantly improved during these two years. I find myself able to do some very challanging questions too which I could have never thought of before. So I would always recommend preferably not to learn a formulae without understanding it and also to have a belief that you can do it rather than you can not.

*end of the rant*

[Sweets America]

I never really liked math. When I was young I had a lot of trouble with math because I could not accept the facts that the teachers gave us. I could not understand why we had to use multiplication, or addition or whatever, and this or that sign and not another, and why 2+2 would equal 4 and not five and what if we were all wrong.... I could not understand the logic of the human way of seeing the world, and I could not apply the rules since nobody explained to me where they came from, who found them and how. I was at a loss and could not follow something just because people said it was true. Later I found some math exercises fun to do even if I didn't know where the rules came from, so it depended. But I tend to be bad in logic on the whole, or my logic is different from the usual one...

[Bakiryu]

I've always hated math and now I still do. Too many rules to figure out something you could figure out in a simpler way. Too many things to memorize. And it's completely pointless!

[aabbcc]

I voted love, though the truth would be that I had phases. "Love" phases, in which it was an obsessive interest, in which I used to spend hours upon hours reading books on certain topics in mathematics (and logic), participate in competitions, even spend my free time on attending lectures; "hate" phases, in which I was barely passing at school (yep :D) due to the lack of interest for the fields covered at school, in which I refused to write homeworks (but still had perfect tests, which is why I managed to pass the class) and didn't want to hear about it. This last year of school was "hate", but I think I'm again inclining towards "love". The influence of my boyfriend, he reminded me how beautiful mathematics can be. ;)

[amanda_isabel]

Hmm. I'm trying to decide whether or not I would vote hate. In general I didn;t like math when it came to all that algebra, etc., basically I started hating it when the alphabet was mixed into it.

I didn't like my teachers, either, but as a high school junior I liked my teacher, plus the course was on Geometry which is a bit easier for me to understand than Algebra.

But, going back a bit, in my sophomore year, I started my math year pretty well because my teacher so totally rocked! But just as we moved on nto quadratic equations he left for Africa and we got another teacher I didn't get quite so much.

In senior year though, our math teacher was great so, well, while I was not exactly loving it, at least I understood it.

I don;t really hate math, but I find it a lot more difficult and had such difficulty in first & second year (high school) that when it came to the later years I had a much more difficult time than I should have had, and because I didn;t understand it and I didn;t like my teachers it became even more difficult. But I do dearly love that feeling in class, you know, when you finally get to apply (one more thought! I can so get it a little more easily in theory, ie. when the teacher explains, but applying it is a different matter) the concept, and you think to yourself, "Math really isn't that bad." :D

[PeterL]

I voted 'love it', but I just find it very useful and simple.

[Pensive]

I don;t really hate math, but I find it a lot more difficult and had such difficulty in first & second year (high school) that when it came to the later years I had a much more difficult time than I should have had, and because I didn;t understand it and I didn;t like my teachers it became even more difficult. But I do dearly love that feeling in class, you know, when you finally get to apply (one more thought! I can so get it a little more easily in theory, ie. when the teacher explains, but applying it is a different matter) the concept, and you think to yourself, "Math really isn't that bad." :D

Yeah that's a great feeling.
But it proved to be a bit of a trouble for me as well, reminds me of the mathematics exam I recently gave. There came this question regarding veocity/time graph, a bit challenging regarding the use of some mixed techniques unlike the more simple velocity/time graphs we had done. It didn't cost many marks but I spent quite a lot of time trying it and eventually I solved it. I was like yay! And so happy that literally (no exaggeration here) I was about to shout out my emotions I had to realise I was sitting in the examination hall....but then all the excitement I didn't pay much attention to the next question resulting in taking two quadratic equations (two different questions) as one simultaneous equation, overlooked the mention of them as part in all the happiness of success with the previous question. :p And damn it this question costed me more...

[kratsayra]

To bad there isn't an in between option . . . I'm so horrible at daily arithmetic, I really am. And I haven't had an actual math course in ages. My first thought was that I hate it.

But, actually, I kind of miss it. In middle and high school I was considered "good" at math because I was a good student in general. But I kind of miss learning some of that stuff. I even did math team in 8th grade - where you compete to solve math puzzles - and I wasn't too bad at that either. So, I kind of miss learning new math things. Although I don't have much talent for some of it - I always had so much trouble with standardized test math. Bleh. :sick:

I know some people using mathematical things to write music. It's pretty cool. And I wish I understood that more.

[Taliesin]

I've always hated math and now I still do. Too many rules to figure out something you could figure out in a simpler way. Too many things to memorize. And it's completely pointless!

Leaving totally aside the aesthetic value and centering on the practical, as completely pointless as, say, computers, motorized vehicles, electricity, or well, any technological achievement?
I already commented before on how many things one needs to memorize in mathematics.

For those who love math, and have some knowledge on basic calculus, here is a mathematical fallacy that I found today and quite enjoyed
http://www.dougshaw.com/findtheerror/torndiff.gif
from this page (http://www.dougshaw.com/)

[Shalot]

Math is so important but I was afraid of it in high school and dreaded algebra. And math is one of those things you've got to keep practicing and I am returning to math as an adult and trying to love it because I need it. In high school, I just remember being so bored and hearing this term f of x or f(x) and hating hating hating it. But then I got this great math teacher a year ago and the way he explained functions was so much better. I had been away from math for years and in college I majored in English and they only required Mickey Mouse Math classes like Alegrabraic Reasoning and Statistical Reasoning so that's all I took. Last year I had to take a precalculus class again that I had in high school to get a refresher so that I could go on up to more advanced topics.

My last math class was really cool because I learned how to maximize profits given a certain set of conditions - who can't get interested in that? :p

Really, to all you high school kids hating your algebra, just try to get into it. I've heard people say that you take math and then never use it again, but I have decided that is false. If you have a solid algebra foundation you can do more with math then may be clear to you at this point.

and I wish LitNet would quit timing out

[Erichtho]

I voted "hate it", but it's not actual hate, more frustration because at some point in school I lost interest and soon wasn't able to follow anymore. Now I've already forgotten most of what I used to know about Maths.

[motherhubbard]

I love math and its infinite possibilities and purely simplistic logic. I wish that everything were so simple as math. Imagine how easy things would be if all we had to do was figure out the right formula for the problem we were facing. I love learning new math as well. As math becomes more and more abstract or complex it looks like it will be such a challenge or maybe even impossible to learn, but when you sit down to it and start working you gain a better understanding as you go- it’s so exciting. I love that feeling as if a veil has been lifted, and now I understand it. Sometimes I just think and marvel over all of the mathematics in the universe.

[Virgil]

I love math and its infinite possibilities and purely simplistic logic. I wish that everything were so simple as math. Imagine how easy things would be if all we had to do was figure out the right formula for the problem we were facing.

So true. Very good point.

[Joreads]

I love math there is no Interrupting to do you are wrong or you are right and that is what appeals to me.

[Lioness_Heart]

At the moment I kind of hate it because I have a total maths overload: I'm taking maths AND further maths for A2, as well as physics (i.e. maths) and chemistry, which contains one module which is essentially... maths.

I should love it... the rest of my life will be spent doing it (I want to be a research physicist).

Pure maths is lovely. But mechanics is AWFUL. Although that might be because I have an awful teacher...

grrr........

that reminds me, I'd better get back to revision. :sick:

[Dori]

Mathematics, rightly viewed, possesses not only truth, but supreme beauty — a beauty cold and austere, like that of sculpture, without appeal to any part of our weaker nature, without the gorgeous trappings of painting or music, yet sublimely pure, and capable of a stern perfection such as only the greatest art can show.

from The Study of Mathematics by Bertrand Russel