> This is probably not a view shared by many here, but if math problems were to be communicated in more natural ways, far more people would be interested in the

> This is probably not a view shared by many here, but if math problems were to be communicated in more natural ways, far more people would be interested in the sciences. To the mathematician, this is the most natural way. Sparse, simple, down to business. Providing extra information can be confusing (if I tell you some random facts, you might be worried that your answers aren't using them at all) and the last thing you want to read on the exam is a page of problem motivation. I think you are asking for too much out of a post like this. These problems are really constructed just to test you. The techniques you use to solve them will be important ones that they want to see that you have mastered, but the problems themselves are not really that meaningful.