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Most people would just grab a calculator on their phone to do it. We invented calculating machines because doing arithmetic ourselves is annoying and error-pron

Most people would just grab a calculator on their phone to do it. We invented calculating machines because doing arithmetic ourselves is annoying and error-prone. It's the smart move because we know the calculator is better than our heads for arithmetic. I think we should care if kids can't do it because they learned it recently, but who cares if an adult does it in their head vs. uses a calculator correctly?

ColinWright 5y ago
The submitted article says it: > "being able to do quick approximations in mid-conversation is a superpower." So here's something to think about: * People who can do quick, rough estimations in their heads say that they find it useful, and that the experience is that they have a sort of superpower. * People who can't do it say that there's nothing special about it, and using a calculator is just as good. Perhaps people in the second group don't have the information needed to make an accurate assessment.
- vsareto 5y ago
  I don't know, if your superpower only saves a minute or so during a conversation compared to pulling out a calculator and getting an estimate that way, I wouldn't really call that a superpower. The math doesn't add up for me, and I'm hesitant to believe anyone who says it feels like a superpower because that sounds like an exaggeration. What does that comparatively make people who use calculators to do estimates? Simple primates using an iPhone? Plus the article's reasoning is really bogus to me too: "When I’m on Zoom with a client, I can’t say “Excuse me a second. Something you said gave me an idea, and I’d like to pull out my calculator app.”" This feels like a forced problem to justify his conclusions. It goes away if the other party is willing to wait for you.
  - ColinWright 5y ago
    The bit about the Zoom call was one instance. For me, the ability to do rough estimates and calculations permeates everything I do ... it's everywhere, all the time, and when I'm with people who don't do it, they seem to be missing something indefinable. It's not about pulling out a calculator to do some sums in the middle of a Zoom call, that's just a hint, just a flavour. But we're repeating ourselves. I'm saying I agree with the submitted post, that it's everywhere, and in everything, and feels like a superpower. You're saying you don't understand, therefore it can't be that important. That's fine, the post (and my replies here) have tried to give you an insight into this experience ... you don't have to believe it. Back in a previous job we'd be in a meeting and people would be discussing strategies. The ability to sketch out options, choices, rough costs, and expected benefits on the fly meant that it all flowed without pause, without hesitation. Pulling out calculators and working out the numbers would have made things horribly staccato ... I've been in meetings where that happened. > What does that comparatively make people who use calculators to do estimates? Simple primates using an iPhone? It makes them ordinary people (in this sense) without this superpower. They may have other skills that people find extraordinary and don't understand, they might not.
    - vsareto 5y ago
      >The ability to sketch out options, choices, rough costs, and expected benefits on the fly meant that it all flowed without pause, without hesitation I think the issue that we're leaving out is how right were those calculations? You can throw out a number to move the conversation on, but if you have to double back because you got something wrong, you lost time there maybe some further conclusions were also wrong. I'd rather just try to get it right the first time, and I know I'm flawed as human, which is why I rely on devices rather than gray matter. But I feel like this is optimizing for the wrong thing: flow of conversation vs. accuracy of calculations. That really starts to seem like the same tradeoffs as experience vs. raw speed.
      - ColinWright 5y ago
        > You can throw out a number ... Part of this entire thing is to know when a number is "right enough". Anyone can choose to just throw out random numbers ... we're talking about being able to come up with numbers that are right enough. Otherwise the whole thing is genuinely pointless.
lanstin 5y ago
“Siri what is three percent of 200” I don’t know if the calculations are essential (tho I guess they are) but having the feeling for the numbers and the ways things become inevitable because of numeric truths and relationships is essential for understanding reality.

ColinWright 5y ago

The submitted article says it: > "being able to do quick approximations in mid-conversation is a superpower." So here's something to think about: * People who can do quick, rough estimations in their heads say that they find it useful, and that the experience is that they have a sort of superpower. * People who can't do it say that there's nothing special about it, and using a calculator is just as good. Perhaps people in the second group don't have the information needed to make an accurate assessment.

vsareto 5y ago
I don't know, if your superpower only saves a minute or so during a conversation compared to pulling out a calculator and getting an estimate that way, I wouldn't really call that a superpower. The math doesn't add up for me, and I'm hesitant to believe anyone who says it feels like a superpower because that sounds like an exaggeration. What does that comparatively make people who use calculators to do estimates? Simple primates using an iPhone? Plus the article's reasoning is really bogus to me too: "When I’m on Zoom with a client, I can’t say “Excuse me a second. Something you said gave me an idea, and I’d like to pull out my calculator app.”" This feels like a forced problem to justify his conclusions. It goes away if the other party is willing to wait for you.
- ColinWright 5y ago
  The bit about the Zoom call was one instance. For me, the ability to do rough estimates and calculations permeates everything I do ... it's everywhere, all the time, and when I'm with people who don't do it, they seem to be missing something indefinable. It's not about pulling out a calculator to do some sums in the middle of a Zoom call, that's just a hint, just a flavour. But we're repeating ourselves. I'm saying I agree with the submitted post, that it's everywhere, and in everything, and feels like a superpower. You're saying you don't understand, therefore it can't be that important. That's fine, the post (and my replies here) have tried to give you an insight into this experience ... you don't have to believe it. Back in a previous job we'd be in a meeting and people would be discussing strategies. The ability to sketch out options, choices, rough costs, and expected benefits on the fly meant that it all flowed without pause, without hesitation. Pulling out calculators and working out the numbers would have made things horribly staccato ... I've been in meetings where that happened. > What does that comparatively make people who use calculators to do estimates? Simple primates using an iPhone? It makes them ordinary people (in this sense) without this superpower. They may have other skills that people find extraordinary and don't understand, they might not.
  - vsareto 5y ago
    >The ability to sketch out options, choices, rough costs, and expected benefits on the fly meant that it all flowed without pause, without hesitation I think the issue that we're leaving out is how right were those calculations? You can throw out a number to move the conversation on, but if you have to double back because you got something wrong, you lost time there maybe some further conclusions were also wrong. I'd rather just try to get it right the first time, and I know I'm flawed as human, which is why I rely on devices rather than gray matter. But I feel like this is optimizing for the wrong thing: flow of conversation vs. accuracy of calculations. That really starts to seem like the same tradeoffs as experience vs. raw speed.
    - ColinWright 5y ago
      > You can throw out a number ... Part of this entire thing is to know when a number is "right enough". Anyone can choose to just throw out random numbers ... we're talking about being able to come up with numbers that are right enough. Otherwise the whole thing is genuinely pointless.

lanstin 5y ago

“Siri what is three percent of 200” I don’t know if the calculations are essential (tho I guess they are) but having the feeling for the numbers and the ways things become inevitable because of numeric truths and relationships is essential for understanding reality.