50 years of Math

[Mtn.man]

Last week I purchased a burger at Burger King for $4.58.
The counter girl took my $5 and I was digging for my change
when I pulled out 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
was almost crying. Why do I tell you this? Because of the
evolution in teaching math since the 1950s....read on:

1. Teaching Math in the 1950â?Ts -- A logger sells a
truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5
of the price. What is his profit?

2. Teaching Math in the 1960â?Ts -- 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?

3. Teaching Math in the 1970â?Ts -- A logger sells a
truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is
$80. Did he make a profit?

4. Teaching Math in the 1980â?Ts -- 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.

5. Teaching Math in the 1990â?Ts -- 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 they
logger cut down their homes? (There are no wrong answers,
and if you feel like crying, it's okay.)

6. Teaching Math in 2010 -- Un hachero vende una
carretada de maderapara $100. El costo de la producciones
es $80. Cuanto dinero ha hecho?

[Ranger]

A-w-e-s-o-m-e!!!!!!!!!

[SideShow Bob]

So sad but true, young folks nowadays can't make simple change without a comPutrized register or write a sentence without using textese.
And forget about getting your order correct at the fast food drive through unless you are fluent in espaneol.

[ChunkyMonkey]

She should have upsold you a supersize!

btw..I am stealing this one [Beer]

[patrick0685]

haha...wow that so good

[Colorado Luckydog]

Very nice Mtn.man!![ROFL1][Beer]

[2008f450]

Hope and change. Or was it Hope he doesnt have change because I cant count.[ROFL1][ROFL1][ROFL1]

[weirjf]

So sad but true, youg folks nowadays can't make simple change without a comPutrized register or write a sentence without using textese.
And forget about getting your order correct at the fast food drive through unless you are fluent in espaneol.

I went to a Village Inn for breakfast a few years ago. The waitress was useless and I never did get my damn pancakes. I went to the cashier and told her to take it off the bill, her reply was "you didn't pay extra for the pancakes". I had to get the manager involved after giving up trying to teach them how to do their job.

I still remember the bill when it was said and done was $15.64

Out of spite I took back the $20 bill and gave her $16.39 and refused to take the $0.39 back.

Pretty sure she was going to cry around the 2 minute mark. Then when she closed the drawer I asked her to break a quarter into change so that I could leave an appropriate tip for the waitress.

I've never been back but I consider the experience a draw

[Daniel_187]

You would hate me, I understand Math when it comes to money but any other math and am sweating harder the Dan Quail trying to spell Potato, But in HS I sucked at just about everything, Execpt Printing(letter heads, news Flyers) and Lunch

[Hoosier]

Hey, if you guys want to learn or re-learn math, from 1+1=2 up to calculus, you should check out this site:

http://khanacademy.com

Here's a random sample video:

http://www.khanacademy.org/video/algebra--linear-equations-4?playlist=Algebra

All free, now backed by Gates Foundation. Some people learn better this way than reading it out of books.

H.

[TFOGGER]

My first job out of high school was selling wheels and tires. Out on the sales floor, we had a book with prices in it, and we had standard prices for labor and accessories such as valve stems and chrome lug nuts. My manager was utterly amazed that I could figure a total package deal for a set of wheels and tires, with all the accessories, including tax and labor, in my head, while talking to the customer, and be accurate within a buck or 2. I learned to do math in my head because I had horrible issues learning to write quickly in elementary school, and by high school, I had given up on a calculator, as I was always losing 'em. Kids today never learn to do the math without a calculator or computer....[Rant1]

[Not_A_Llama]

You went to Burger King, and expected....?

[weirjf]

You went to Burger King, and expected....?

a mocha Joe

not a mocha yo

[GhostRider]

[ROFL2][ROFL2][ROFL2][ROFL2] but at the same time [Bang][Bang][Bang][Bang]

[rockhound]

that was fu....g hilarious, funniest thing i have read in forever.

[cebeu]

heh heh

[trlcavscout]

The true math question for this is:

I ate at Burger king, how many calories were in it? How long does it take to burn them off? And how many hours of life did I lose by eating that?

[jerrymrc]

A couple of years ago I gave a twenty for a $4.45 purchase or so. After getting my wad back (nobody else behind me) I put it on the counter. The girl was standing there so I went four fifty, five, five is ten and ten is twenty. putting down the nickle, two quarters, a five and a ten.

Her reply was "how did you do that?" [Bang][Bang]

[BPTactical]

Thats a Zing! for MtnMan!

True story- when my oldest was in 5th grade, 95 or 96 he was in a pre algebra class. I was helping him with some of his homework and I saw one of his math papers and checked it out. Now I am no calculus genius but I know that 5 x X = 20 that X is 4. In going through his paper I noticed that the majority of his answers were wrong but he still got a B on the paper. I hung on to the paper and went to the school the next day and put the paper on the teachers desk and asked her about it, how he could get a B when most of the answers were wrong. Her reply: "Well I am not concerned with the correct answers, I am grading the concept."
WTF??? I was livid.
I told her that we did not go to the moon on a concept nor was the Eisenhower Tunnel built on a concept.
The only way he is going to get the "Concept" was to solve the equations correctly. Teach my child correctly or dont teach him at all.

It must have worked-his grades sucked until he got the idea down.
That teacher was not there the next year.

No wonder homeschooled kids typically perform better in testing.

[Irving]

... or write a sentence without using textese.


The other day I was at one of my jobs and was telling my manager how kids actually use textese on their school papers now. He didn't believe me until one of the other guys (who is a teacher) told him it was true. I was bragging about how even when I'm drunk, I still take the time to type out full words and can even correctly use a semicolon. One of the dumber employees asked, "What's a semicolon?" and our manager replied to her with, "It's the thing you use to make a winky face."

I about died and pointed out how that was the VERY thing that I was complaining about. In order to explain what a certain punctuation mark is to someone today, you have to tell them what kind of smiley you can make with it?! Dios mios!



Also, I suck at math.

[Mtn.man]

Ok here's another rolleyes funny.
Yesterday we called about a product we use and were trying to get a discount on a case lot.
The kid answered in his dept and said Oh we can't give a discount on certain things.
So I asked well we would like a case, to which he relied we only sell individual units, how many do you want, I said we need six. He said Oh that comes in a box. DUh... I can't believe this is what we are coming too.