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I like this article, but I feel like it misses the value of teaching analysis to students. It's true that it's not-quite-right to say multiplication is repeated
by whatgoodisaroad 6y ago
I like this article, but I feel like it misses the value of teaching analysis to students. It's true that it's not-quite-right to say multiplication is repeated addition, but it's also a really nice demonstration of the analytical/generalization approach anyone could use to "invent" multiplication on their own.
This same pattern can be seen driving discoveries in math.
- Integrals are generalizations of Riemann sums.
- Fractional exponents generalize taking square roots.
- The gamma function sorta generalizes factorials.
It's okay to start with something not-quite-right and explore how it generalizes.