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I realize not everyone is the same as myself, but I really wish that this etymology was explained when the concept of the rational number was introduced. I have

I realize not everyone is the same as myself, but I really wish that this etymology was explained when the concept of the rational number was introduced. I have trouble with rote memorization, but little trouble so long as I can derive a thing from first principles. Realizing that rational number comes from ratio seems so obvious in hindsight, but would have been so very helpful to my in-school self oh so long ago.

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lawpoop 10y ago
When I took math in high school, our textbook had little blurbs that pointed out historical curiosities in regards to math. (The only one I remember clearly is an ancient Greek Queen? maybe Middle Ages, who did a lot of work on conic sections. So maybe it's not such an effective teaching tool since I didn't remember who exactly she was or when or where she lived). Anyway, all the people who said stuff like "When are we going to use X math topic in real life" were even more flummoxed by random math historical facts that weren't going to be on the test. Anyway, at least for me, I think I passed a point of maturity where I don't feel "bombarded" when I encounter additional information in regards to a math topic. I did poorly in math in high school, and, at the time, I felt that the less information, the better-- I could only integrate so much. But now at my age (almost 40) learning additional historical facts seems to help me understand the topic better.