Evolution of Math

[rknapp]

The Evolution of Math

 

Last week I purchased a burger and fries at McDonalds for $3.58.

 

The counter girl took my $4.00 and I pulled 8 cents from my pocket and gave it to her. She stood there, holding the nickel and 3 pennies. While looking at the screen on her register, I sensed her discomfort and tried to tell her to just give me two quarters,

but she hailed the manager for help. While he tried to explain the transaction to her, she stood there and cried. Why do I tell you this?

 

Because of the evolution in teaching math since the 1960s...

 

 

Teaching Math In 1960

 

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is hisprofit?

 

 

Teaching Math In 1970

 

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?

 

 

Teaching Math In 1980

 

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of

production is $80. Did he make a profit?

 

 

Teaching Math In 1990

 

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80 and his profit is $20 Your assignment: Underline the number 20.

 

 

Teaching Math In 2000

 

A logger cuts down a beautiful forest because he is selfish and

inconsiderate and cares nothing for the habitat of animals or the

preservation of our woodlands. He does this so he can make a profit of $20. What do you think of this way of making a living? Topic for class participation after answering the question: How did the birds and squirrels feel as the logger cut down their homes? (There are no wrong answers.)

 

 

Teaching Math In 2006

 

Un ranchero vende una carretera de madera para $100. El cuesto de la produccion era $80. Cuantos tortillas se puede comprar?

[Krista]

lol... I hate math... I just happen to be good at it.

 

 

I could've gotten you two quarters Robbie.

 

Krista

[Graeme]

I just would've given Robbie a fifty-cent piece. Much easier to handle....

[Bondwriter]

Actually I've seen this type of jokes for over twenty years. I find them dubious and reactionary, not speaking of the 2006 one, which totally crosses the line for me.

[Graeme]

Actually I've seen this type of jokes for over twenty years. I find them dubious and reactionary, not speaking of the 2006 one, which totally crosses the line for me.

This IS supposed to be the Games and Humor forum (you can tell that it's not supposed to be serious because they deliberately misspelt Humour).

 

I didn't understand the Spanish, so I can't comment on the last item.

 

However, there HAS been an evolution in the way things are taught. My son's maths homework has, along side traditional mathematical questions, "real-life" questions that involve maths. The theory is that it helps them relate mathematics to their everyday life. The downside, especially at the age of my boys, is that they can struggle with just reading the question if their reading ability is not good, or if the grammar isn't the best (which is definitely the case for some questions), and that discourages them from doing their maths homework.

[Andy]

The same thing is happening/going to happen with science in UK schools. Instead of learning proper, HARD science, with equations, and FACTS. It is basically becoming scientific geography.

 

*shudder*

 

But.... It is funny, because it is true.

 

Sadly.

[Bondwriter]

The implied message is that students are becoming stupid, the level is going down, and the curriculae are based on a liberal ideology (the 2000 one). When I said "this kind", I should say "the exact same" joke twenty years ago, that my grandfather, a college professor, had as a photocopy. It missed the last one in Spanish, but did end with the "liberal/ left wing/ bleeding heart reference".

 

The last one is "A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80. How many tortillas can he buy?"

 

There are indeed evolutions in education, fashions and fads, but saying it's going downhill (and usually cutting down on financing) has been a fixture of our various governments. The self-fulfilling prophecy stuff.

 

So, IMO, humor can also have messages. I'll stop there, this is the Games and Humor forum after all, but I just wanted to say that this joke is old, and the 2000 and 2006 things make me cringe.

[colinian]

lol... I hate math... I just happen to be good at it.

I could've gotten you two quarters Robbie.

 

Krista

 

OMG, I agree 100%! I get A's in math, and hate it. I just finished taking two math classes (simultaneously) this summer: Differential Equations and Linear Algebra. DE was very hard, LA was pretty easy. I totally struggled to get my A in DE. If I never had to take another math class that would be absolutely wonderful. But I'm looking forward to taking both Discrete Mathematics and Statistics in my sophomore year. "Looking forward"? NOT!

 

Colin

[Conner]

I must admit that was the most clever piece of irony that I've read in a long time.

 

In one fell swoop, it indicts the educational system while taking shots at environmentalists and America's concerns around illegal Mexican immigrants. Irony is a most precious way of getting one's point across. From the socio-political point of view, unfortunately, it creates havoc amongst the populace. However, that is the very nature of irony.

 

Later today, I'm sure Robbie will present us with his solution to this serious educational issue.

 

Conner

[BeaStKid]

Serious or no serious...I needed that smile especially after giving my Math exam today!!!

 

Thanks Robbie

[Rigel]

Math teaching has been a target of humo(u)r for longer than you think. Witness the Tom Lehrer song "New Math" which was written in the 1960s:

 

http://curvebank.calstatela.edu/newmath/newmath.htm

 

--Rigel

 

 

ps to Graeme: in the US, half-dollars exist, but they hardly ever circulate, and you'll almost NEVER see them.

[Benji]

Math teaching has been a target of humo(u)r for longer than you think. Witness the Tom Lehrer song "New Math" which was written in the 1960s:

 

http://curvebank.calstatela.edu/newmath/newmath.htm

 

--Rigel

 

 

ps to Graeme: in the US, half-dollars exist, but they hardly ever circulate, and you'll almost NEVER see them.

 

 

......Clever, sad and true, but the real question is Robbie did you get your fifty cents back? Or did you get more? I can sadly tell you many times that I have to give back change because they gave me to much.

[Ieshwar]

Maths isn't as bad as you guys are saying. I like Maths. It's much better than writing essays. *shudders*

 

The problem of mathematics (at least in Mauritius) is that we're all too depended on calculators and other things. Can you believe that there are 18-years old who don't know long divison? *roll eyes*

 

Take care,

Ieshwar

[Graeme]

Math teaching has been a target of humo(u)r for longer than you think. Witness the Tom Lehrer song "New Math" which was written in the 1960s:

 

http://curvebank.calstatela.edu/newmath/newmath.htm

 

--Rigel

ps to Graeme: in the US, half-dollars exist, but they hardly ever circulate, and you'll almost NEVER see them.

I LOVE Tom Lehrer I remember listening to this song back in the early 80s. Somewhere at home, I may still have most of his songs on tape.

 

We don't have 25c pieces in Australia. We also don't have 1c and 2c coins -- we got rid of them years ago. Our coins are 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1 and $2. The smallest note is $5.

[rknapp]

Lol I didn't have that experience at the McDonalds. I haven't been to McDonalds for years in fact. I just copied the whole thing from another of my forums. In fact, one of the guys that posted in that thread had an experience where one of his buddies paid for something with a fifty dollar bill and got ninety-two (92) dollars in change. He said, "Thank you VERY much!" haha

 

I believe the US still has half dollars and whole dollars in circulation. The problem is that some aren't anymore, just like the $2 bill, so it gets annoying when old people pay for something with these pieces because they still have them from their childhood. I wonder what will happen if the government decides to take the penny out of circulation now that its copper content costs more that what the penny is worth...

[Rigel]

I believe the US still has half dollars and whole dollars in circulation. The problem is that some aren't anymore, just like the $2 bill, so it gets annoying when old people pay for something with these pieces because they still have them from their childhood. I wonder what will happen if the government decides to take the penny out of circulation now that its copper content costs more that what the penny is worth...

 

Two dollar bills still exist and are legal tender.

So do half-dollars and dollar coins.

They just don't circulate much.

 

The chances of you getting one in your change is quite minimal (unless you use certain vending machines at the U.S. post office, which give change in dollar coins). The half-dollar coins are too big for most people, and the dollar coins are too close in size and feel to the quarter to become popular (people get them mixed up). When I go to the bank and get a live teller who asks me how I'd like my withdrawal money, I often reply "in two-dollar bills." They laugh, because they don't have any to give me. Well, sometimes, they've got ONE hiding in a drawer somewhere, but most people won't use them.

 

One time, a few years ago, I had to pay a toll at a bridge which was $2.50. I handed the toll-taker a two dollar bill and a half-dollar coin; he looked non-plussed, and it took a while to convince him they were legal tender.

 

--Rigel

[Rigel]

A wonderful book that discusses the teaching of math, and how it ought to be done:

 

http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=9822

 

It is actually aimed at the people who are going to teach math teachers to teach math, but it's fascinating reading for anyone.

If you click there, you can actually read the entire book for free using "open book"--and Chapter 3 in particular is great, because it discusses the mathematical principles that underlay the arithmetic you probably learned. If you had trouble with math, this chapter (and book) might show you what you didn't grasp when they were teaching it to you, and help you understand it now.

 

Back when I was in fifth grade, we learned the "new math" that Tom Lehrer sings about. Fortunately, it didn't come at the expense of traditional arithmetic, but concepts like set theory and principles like commutativity and associativity opened my eyes to the world of math that lies beyond arithmetic--and there's a lot of it!

 

Practically, we need arithmetic to do things like make change and balance our checkbooks, but there's a lot more to the field of mathematics if you get interested in it.

 

--Rigel

[BeaStKid]

We don't have 25c pieces in Australia. We also don't have 1c and 2c coins -- we got rid of them years ago. Our coins are 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1 and $2. The smallest note is $5.

We have half-rupee, one-rupee, two-rupee and five-rupee coins. The smallest note in manufacturing is five-rupee but one can find one-rupee and two-rupee notes in the market sometimes.

 

We don't get anything in the market that comes cheaper than half-rupee!!

[rknapp]

A wonderful book that discusses the teaching of math, and how it ought to be done:

 

http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=9822

 

It is actually aimed at the people who are going to teach math teachers to teach math, but it's fascinating reading for anyone.

If you click there, you can actually read the entire book for free using "open book"--and Chapter 3 in particular is great, because it discusses the mathematical principles that underlay the arithmetic you probably learned. If you had trouble with math, this chapter (and book) might show you what you didn't grasp when they were teaching it to you, and help you understand it now.

 

Back when I was in fifth grade, we learned the "new math" that Tom Lehrer sings about. Fortunately, it didn't come at the expense of traditional arithmetic, but concepts like set theory and principles like commutativity and associativity opened my eyes to the world of math that lies beyond arithmetic--and there's a lot of it!

 

Practically, we need arithmetic to do things like make change and balance our checkbooks, but there's a lot more to the field of mathematics if you get interested in it.

 

--Rigel

 

It's quite staggering how so many aspects of life and the world around us can be showed happening mathematically. It's for this reason that Mathematics > Physics > Chemistry > All else.

[Conner]

It's quite staggering how so many aspects of life and the world around us can be showed happening mathematically. It's for this reason that Mathematics > Physics > Chemistry > All else.

Spoken like a true science-dude.