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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.
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.
great site, I've been using that over the past few weeks to relearn a lot of that stuffQuote:
Originally Posted by Hoosier
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.