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This is how i often work with things. I break them down into things that i know how to work with. I search my knowledge for elements that most closely represent

This is how i often work with things. I break them down into things that i know how to work with. I search my knowledge for elements that most closely represents the problems and then combine them. For example, rather than remembering 12 * 6 = 72, i recall that 10 * 6 = 60 and 2 * 6 = 12, hence 60 + 12 = 72. I don't need to remember as many things and for me i can do that much faster than trying to recall it. My memory has never been very good, so perhaps this is why i take such an approach, as i find it overall easier.

Retric 11y ago
* is a special character on HN you want to have spaces between 12 * 6 or it can look like: 126 106. Note: it works in pairs so the final 2*6 shows up.
- elementalest 11y ago
  Ah, thanks :D
agumonkey 11y ago
That's how I felt about math for a long time. The so-called good laziness. You don't bother doing the hard way, you search for tricks. Symmetries, difference from simple cases as the girl did. Instead of memorizing algorithms, kids should be shown this. It's free gamification and, after some years, I believe it's a core idea of what is, and why math can be pleasing.
- ddingus 11y ago
  Parents can do it and it can really help. I actually was taught this and a number of other "tricks" in primary school. Estimation was a defined thing, and the idea of getting quick math results in your head was a real goal. Reasons given: job interview, pricing goods and services to understand value, fuel consumption, making things (that deck, how many boards, cost, etc...), navigation. They took us through a lot of those cases. The first time I applied this was powers of 2 for computing. Learn the first 16 bits worth, and that helps with all sorts of things in computing, same as powers of ten and common easy to compute things do in most other areas of life. So, what I did was make it a car game. Figure out how tall things might be, or prices, whatever comes up. Practice doing it helps to actualize the skill and once it's done, they will apply in in ways they find useful.
anon4 11y ago
Remembering the multiplication table up to 12 seems to be an American thing. We only did up to 9 and from then on learned how to multiply many-digit numbers going digit by digit.
Afton 11y ago
Incidentally, this is now explicitly taught in elementary school math classes. They call it 'number bonds' and it often drives parents crazy because "OMG IT ISN'T HOW I LEARNED IT!", but it is clearly a better strategy than 'just memorize this multiplication table'

Retric 11y ago

* is a special character on HN you want to have spaces between 12 * 6 or it can look like: 126 106. Note: it works in pairs so the final 2*6 shows up.

elementalest 11y ago
Ah, thanks :D

agumonkey 11y ago

That's how I felt about math for a long time. The so-called good laziness. You don't bother doing the hard way, you search for tricks. Symmetries, difference from simple cases as the girl did. Instead of memorizing algorithms, kids should be shown this. It's free gamification and, after some years, I believe it's a core idea of what is, and why math can be pleasing.

ddingus 11y ago
Parents can do it and it can really help. I actually was taught this and a number of other "tricks" in primary school. Estimation was a defined thing, and the idea of getting quick math results in your head was a real goal. Reasons given: job interview, pricing goods and services to understand value, fuel consumption, making things (that deck, how many boards, cost, etc...), navigation. They took us through a lot of those cases. The first time I applied this was powers of 2 for computing. Learn the first 16 bits worth, and that helps with all sorts of things in computing, same as powers of ten and common easy to compute things do in most other areas of life. So, what I did was make it a car game. Figure out how tall things might be, or prices, whatever comes up. Practice doing it helps to actualize the skill and once it's done, they will apply in in ways they find useful.

anon4 11y ago

Remembering the multiplication table up to 12 seems to be an American thing. We only did up to 9 and from then on learned how to multiply many-digit numbers going digit by digit.

Afton 11y ago

Incidentally, this is now explicitly taught in elementary school math classes. They call it 'number bonds' and it often drives parents crazy because "OMG IT ISN'T HOW I LEARNED IT!", but it is clearly a better strategy than 'just memorize this multiplication table'