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You mean we don't have math competitions like the spelling bee for language. I'm not convinced that there is a lot of value in being a human calculator. Knowin

You mean we don't have math competitions like the spelling bee for language. I'm not convinced that there is a lot of value in being a human calculator. Knowing how to do the math is important, being able to do it all in your head is not.

rscho 5y ago
It is. I couldn't do my job without it. Using a calculator would slow me down considerably.
smolder 5y ago
There are math competitions. See Mathletes.
yumraj 5y ago
> Knowing how to do the math is important, being able to do it all in your head is not. Respectfully that is such a myopic argument that it is not even funny. If all one knows is how to press buttons to get some answers, one doesn't truly understand what one is doing. Also, what if one doesn't have a calculator and needs to do some math? Or, do it quickly as a sibling comment made...
- annoyingnoob 5y ago
  Knowing the operations and being able to do them, say on paper, is important. In my teens I worked as a cashier, I was able to calculate change in my head - pretty straight forward and no one dies if I get it wrong. If I need to do something more complicated, or where a wrong answer would have a bad outcome, then I want to be sure I'm getting it right by using a machine to help me. I'm talking about knowing the math and recognizing that I'm human.
- sureglymop 5y ago
  I don't think that this is what the person you're replying to meant.. For example, say you need to do matrix multiplication. What's more important, knowing how to do it and when to apply it or meticulously doing the whole computation without a computer? I chose this example because it's nothing more than a focus exercise and as the complexity increases, the chance of you making an error increases too. Most people know what multiplication and addition are but there would still be a high chance that they make small errors due to not paying attention. On the other hand if you come across this problem, know that you need to do this now and let the computer do the operation you decrease the chance of such mistakes. The same is true for many other concepts... What's more important, knowing every system call by heart or knowing how to look up their documentation? No, the important part is knowing what system calls are and when you might need them, for the rest it's just about looking up information. The thing is, you can study a lot of things so that you can do them by heart and it's just an exercise of remembering. But if you grasp the logics of something or start seeing patterns etc. that's ultimately more valuable. It's true for learning a language too.. of course you can learn everything by heart but if there are certain logical rules for how certain words are built up, those are more important.
  - yumraj 5y ago
    The context here is 13 year olds and doing Math in your head.

rscho 5y ago

It is. I couldn't do my job without it. Using a calculator would slow me down considerably.

smolder 5y ago

There are math competitions. See Mathletes.

yumraj 5y ago

> Knowing how to do the math is important, being able to do it all in your head is not. Respectfully that is such a myopic argument that it is not even funny. If all one knows is how to press buttons to get some answers, one doesn't truly understand what one is doing. Also, what if one doesn't have a calculator and needs to do some math? Or, do it quickly as a sibling comment made...

annoyingnoob 5y ago
Knowing the operations and being able to do them, say on paper, is important. In my teens I worked as a cashier, I was able to calculate change in my head - pretty straight forward and no one dies if I get it wrong. If I need to do something more complicated, or where a wrong answer would have a bad outcome, then I want to be sure I'm getting it right by using a machine to help me. I'm talking about knowing the math and recognizing that I'm human.
sureglymop 5y ago
I don't think that this is what the person you're replying to meant.. For example, say you need to do matrix multiplication. What's more important, knowing how to do it and when to apply it or meticulously doing the whole computation without a computer? I chose this example because it's nothing more than a focus exercise and as the complexity increases, the chance of you making an error increases too. Most people know what multiplication and addition are but there would still be a high chance that they make small errors due to not paying attention. On the other hand if you come across this problem, know that you need to do this now and let the computer do the operation you decrease the chance of such mistakes. The same is true for many other concepts... What's more important, knowing every system call by heart or knowing how to look up their documentation? No, the important part is knowing what system calls are and when you might need them, for the rest it's just about looking up information. The thing is, you can study a lot of things so that you can do them by heart and it's just an exercise of remembering. But if you grasp the logics of something or start seeing patterns etc. that's ultimately more valuable. It's true for learning a language too.. of course you can learn everything by heart but if there are certain logical rules for how certain words are built up, those are more important.
- yumraj 5y ago
  The context here is 13 year olds and doing Math in your head.