Some fractions are a part of everyday life; dimes, quarters, nickels, hours, minutes, seconds, etc. These are relatively easy to manage mainly because we deal with them so often. Everyone just “knows” that 1/2 is 0.5, and 1/4 is .25, and 1/10 is 0.1; we’ve had it ingrained in us through massive amounts of repetition. I go one step further; I can usually estimate the decimal equivalent of just about any fraction that comes up in my life. Super useful? Maybe not, but it has good show-off value, and I think it’s fun!
Continue reading Fractured Memories
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Every once in awhile, I come across a video (usually on Youtube, isn’t that where everthing ends up) that quite elegantly illustrates something math-related. I haven’t been collecting them long, but I thought I’d share a couple of them with you all. Please enjoy them as much as I have.
Ah, Mother’s Day. Admittedly, Math isn’t the first thing you think about when scrambling for that 1-800-Flowers phone number (I always forget that one) or that last box of chocolate from the drugstore. However, one of the memories that sticks in my mind most about my Mom is arguing with her about Math during dinner about .9 repeating and 1. Before you think we’re crazy, please keep in mind she’s a Math teacher, and I have some small interest in the subject myself. So here’s to you, Mom. I finally realized you were right some time ago, but don’t think I ever said so.
Happy Pi Day! Yes, it’s that time of year again when the month and day (in the American form of date representation) for those legendary 3 digits 3/14, also known as the beginning of the mathematical term Pi
Have you ever had a problem stuck in your head, and you couldn’t find the answer? I was recently reminded of a problem I first came up with while doing a statistics workbook the summer of my 3rd grade year (yes, my math-teacher mother gave us workbooks to do during summer break… hey, it got results). The book dealt with dice and the probabilities of a 1 showing on a 6-sider, or the sum of 2 rolled dice being 7, etc. but my question had a twist I couldn’t quite solve. Now it’s easy to see that the probability of rolling a 1 on a 6-sided die is 1 in 6, but what probability exists, in rolling 2 dice, of seeing at least one 1 (on either die, or both)?
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I like math. Now, don’t get me wrong; I don’t run around solving Fermat’s Last Theorem for fun on Sunday nights, or anything like that. Perhaps it would be more clear to say I enjoy math, for many reasons, not the least of which is, when you prove something in math, it’s true every time!