[Gllug] Light the blue touchpaper...

[Rich Walker]

Pete Ryland <pdr at createservices.com> writes:

> On Wed, Mar 17, 2004 at 05:25:43PM +0000, Christopher Hunter wrote:
>> On Wednesday 17 Mar 2004 1:42 pm, Pete Ryland wrote:
>> > Did you learn how to calculate tan x by hand before someone gave you a
>> > book with a table in it?  I doubt it. 
>> 
>> Yes.  It was considered to be the correct way to demonstrate the principles 
>> when I was at school.  One you understood the priciples, then books of tables 
>> were introduced.  That is why I probably have a much better understanding of 
>> mathematical principles than my daughter (who's at University, studying 
>> mathematics and astonomy at present).
>
> Calculating tan x with pencil and paper, I would argue, certainly doesn't
> help you understand any principles behind it.  

What - you draw a triangle with the relevant angle, and take some
measurements? Then you draw a different one with the relevant angle, and
take some more? I reckon it made  SOH CAH TOA much more comprehensible...

> It may give you RSI and help
> you remember your times tables and better your attention to detail, but the
> way you'd calculate it is different from its application.

Well, true, getting people to expand the taylor series and plug in some
values would only help if they were going to approximate functions...

>
>> > We have the technology, why not use it? 
>> 
>> Because the mechanised approach doesn't really explain what's going on!
>
> Neither does calculating it by hand in the above case.  You'd just waste an
> afternoon you could have spent learning something else.

True, but it's probably more useful than whatever they're teaching in
the Geography class next door (What do you mean, *remember* it? I'll use
the CIA, thanks...)


>> > I'll be the first to admit that my numeracy is far worse than my parents',
>> > but I don't think I'm any worse for it.  My maths is certainly far far
>> > better than theirs.  Most of my uni maths exams didn't have any numbers in
>> > them anyway.
>> 
>> Likewise, but an appreciation of the manipulation of numbers is a
>> prerequisite for higher mathematics!
>
> Perhaps, but wrote-learning times tables hasn't helped me in over 15 years.

Maybe rote-learning would have helped?

In most engineering-related stuff, the ability to approximate quickly is
a real boon, as is (in almost all lines of endeavour) the ability to do
some multiplies and additions in your head so as to (for example) give
the client a quote (or check the suppliers quote) without pausing for
paper.

Plus, how else do you size disk partitions - let's see, 700 16432's are
... 


cheers, Rich.

(tongue somewhere, maybe near cheek...)

-- 
rich walker         |  Shadow Robot Company | rw at shadow.org.uk
technical director     251 Liverpool Road   |
need a Hand?           London  N1 1LX       | +UK 20 7700 2487
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