View Full Version : What's the highest level of math you've taken?
Uberjager
05-18-2011, 15:07
I'll be getting a poll up soon, but the highest level of math I've taken so far has been Calc II. I felt as if I had been lobotomized every time I dealt with series.[Tooth]
ghettodub
05-18-2011, 15:13
I didn't even make it past algebra and geometry I in high school. I had to get math credit through a correspondance course...
When I took the ASVAB, let's just say I sucked at the math section...
Lex_Luthor
05-18-2011, 15:19
Got all my college math done while still in HS. Thankfully I never had to take a math class again.
patrick0685
05-18-2011, 15:46
i had to take it for college not that i have used it ever...(calc 1)
Computers take care of thing now! I did take up to calc III. Also a lot of physics and aerodynamics. I use very little of any of it today.
I'm as smart as a 5th grader.
I'm taking my college math right now.
took the evaluation test when I enrolled and it showed I was deficient in my math knowledge to say the least.
The semester just ended, I took the super intro basic stuff. No calculators allowed. I have to work up to the college stuff, but when I'm done, I'm done.
but it's coming back to me, and much easier to deal with as a mature adult rather than the petulant child I was in jr. high.
my math problems in school are a perfect example of a failure in the public school system.
anyway, got an 87 on the final, and an A in the class.
on the written/verbal part of of the eval test I got a perfect score.
BPTactical
05-18-2011, 16:24
In machining classes we took some Trig but the majority of my math has been practical on the job stuff. Weight and balance, displacement etc when I went to AeroTech. I do pretty well as long as I can apply it to a real world situation.
You know, the useful kind of math.
5 out of 4 adults have issues with fractions...............
I took Algebra II/Trig as a sophomore in high school. I use math everyday as a motorcycle mechanic, but haven't used any of the advanced trigonometry since graduation. The algebra is used on a daily basis, which frustrates my apprentice no end, as he sucked at math in HS...[LOL]
I have yet to do any math that I can't figure out on a 35' tape measure.
Well, there was this one time, (No, it wasn't at band camp.) Had to figure the arc of a circle from two rooms away, to hang some lights.
The tape didn't help too much. [Rant1]
All I needed for college was "Mathematical Modes of Thought" (how to start thinking about maybe someday actually doing some math). All through high school I had to take the lowest level math classes, hardly a step above special ed. It was funny too, because once done with those I would head off to my honors english and history classes.
BuffCyclist
05-18-2011, 16:41
Studied astrophysics in college, so I've done everything from calc 1-3, diff eq, classical mechanics, every form of algebra, general and special relativity, quantum mechanics and the list goes on.
Looking back, it was a LOT of hard work and TONS of equations that take up an entire piece of paper to write down, but it was a LOT of fun. It also made me feel like I really got my moneys worth out of my college degree, since I was challenged daily and felt like it would never end.
Still ain't found a tape with 2/3 of an inch measurement.
Hey, if you're looking to learn (or re-learn) math, you can go from 1+1=2 to calculus for free at http://khanacademy.org.
This method works better for some people than reading out of books or listening to teachers at a whiteboard.
H.
ghettodub
05-18-2011, 17:17
Hey, if you're looking to learn (or re-learn) math, you can go from 1+1=2 to calculus for free at http://khanacademy.org.
This method works better for some people than reading out of books or listening to teachers at a whiteboard.
H.
great site, I've been using that over the past few weeks to relearn a lot of that stuff
Not_A_Llama
05-18-2011, 17:21
If it makes you feel better, one of my degrees is in math, and Calc II still holds a special place in my heart as a "most hated" class.
If I hadn't gotten it out of the way with AP Calculus BC in high school, it probably would have impacted my college path.
Calc3 was actually kinda cool. I will say, too, the accents of my professors at CU made some classes a lot harder. I don't think I showed up to more than 25% of lectures. Recitations were hit-or-miss.
Oh, and I definitely recommend Khan Academy's courses. Also check out MIT's OpenCourseWare. It's a great time to be learning.
Got out of HS with no math. Took a year of statistics and two years of accounting in college. Couldn't do algebra to save my life. The first two jobs out of college were math based. Ever tried to figure the square footage of a room with sixteen sides?
i made it through diff q and matrix theory before i switched majors, but honestly i don't remember a thing about any of the math i learned really. i suppose it taught me how to solve things on my own with that background but when friends ask me about calc 3 and on i can't tell them anything. its literally a blur. calc 2 was probably the hardest all things considered. math is great but frankly a lot of it ends up being useless unless you are dealing with physics directly in your profession.
Uberjager
05-18-2011, 20:56
If it makes you feel better, one of my degrees is in math, and Calc II still holds a special place in my heart as a "most hated" class.
If I hadn't gotten it out of the way with AP Calculus BC in high school, it probably would have impacted my college path.
Calc3 was actually kinda cool. I will say, too, the accents of my professors at CU made some classes a lot harder. I don't think I showed up to more than 25% of lectures. Recitations were hit-or-miss.
Oh, and I definitely recommend Khan Academy's courses. Also check out MIT's OpenCourseWare. It's a great time to be learning.
For me, Calc I was a huge curveball. I was expecting it to be an expansion of pre-calc like going into quntic lines, more details on linear regression, finding intercepts, et cetera. After mastering differentiation, I felt like Riemann sums were the most hard, retarded things ever.
I did fairly well in Calc II, integration by parts seemed very easy, so did converting from polar to parametric, and also the integrals of polar equations seemed like cake. Yet, when I did series, it felt as if I was dealing with the hardest things the world has seen.
In high school I never really had any problems with math. Typically I would sleep through the class and I didn't ever do my homework. I'd ace all the tests, so the teachers didn't bother me too much. After Algebra and Geometry I didn't care to take any other math courses because I couldn't find a use for them.
I've never really met anyone that completed Calculus and had any real world use for it.
DSB OUTDOORS
05-18-2011, 21:12
You might be a Redneck if the highest level of math you completed was counting your pinky toe!! [Tooth]
Got a math minor while getting my engineering degree. Didn't want to, but just meeting the minimum requirements forced me to.
I read an interesting book a while back called "100 math concepts you need to know", or something like that. Pretty dorky, but the author made a very interesting observation about the amount of math a person has affecting overall success in life. Apparently, good math skills translate into good analysis of some of life's decisions, and in the long run predict a higher standard of living. I think Calc I is the practical limit of usefulness and all the rest has little added benefit.
d_striker
05-18-2011, 21:50
Got a math minor while getting my engineering degree. Didn't want to, but just meeting the minimum requirements forced me to.
I read an interesting book a while back called "100 math concepts you need to know", or something like that. Pretty dorky, but the author made a very interesting observation about the amount of math a person has affecting overall success in life. Apparently, good math skills translate into good analysis of some of life's decisions, and in the long run predict a higher standard of living. I think Calc I is the practical limit of usefulness and all the rest has little added benefit.
Agreed.
Making your brain perform math equations "trains" it to solve problems algorithmically which is vital to most any profession you go into.
BPTactical
05-18-2011, 21:58
Something about this thread just doesn't add up............
When I worked on a survey crew we got into some interesting math, closing polygons and such. Confused the bejesus outta me for a while but just about the time the "cross training" assignment ran out I started to get it.
Want to confuse the hell out of somebody? Hand them a calculator set up for Reverse Polish Notation[Muaha]
I changed majors in college because I struggled with whatever calculus class I had to take. I actually switched Economics, which is all math classes, but did better and was glad for the change. I really wish I was better at math. I'm the guy who can't do algebra, but got A's in statistics. Statistics was actually the only math class I ever got an A in.
Want to confuse the hell out of somebody? Hand them a calculator set up for Reverse Polish Notation[Muaha]
Or hand me a traditional calculator. I've been using the same HP with RPN since 1985. Damned if I can run a normal calculator without breaking out in a sweat.
ShooterJM
05-19-2011, 08:10
I've never really met anyone that completed Calculus and had any real world use for it.
Can't speak for other industries, but you need calculus for finance. Especially hedging and pricing derivatives.
I changed majors in college because I struggled with whatever calculus class I had to take. I actually switched Economics, which is all math classes, but did better and was glad for the change. I really wish I was better at math. I'm the guy who can't do algebra, but got A's in statistics. Statistics was actually the only math class I ever got an A in.
Same here. Statistics made sense and had a point. Never could get my head around algebra.
Never could do fractions either, until I started taking drafting classes.
If it makes you feel better, one of my degrees is in math, and Calc II still holds a special place in my heart as a "most hated" class.Calc II is the highest math I took and by far it is my most hated. I even went so far as to burn the book once I passed the class [Muaha]
Calc II also convinced me to switch my major from Computer Science to Computer Information Systems. I get a laugh out of looking at my transcripts and seeing Calc II listed as an elective [LOL]
In my day to day job dealing with Enterprise IT Security I use some algebra type concepts but that is as advanced as it gets.
Same here. Statistics made sense and had a point. Never could get my head around algebra.
Never could do fractions either, until I started taking drafting classes.
Doing conversions is what kills me. Also, I'm embarrassed with how many times in my adult life I've had to look up how to do long division, and even long subtraction.
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