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>I was taught long division as a child. Didn't like it; who does? Nor do I use it. Really? I mean, I guess I don't like long division; nor do I dislike it. But

>I was taught long division as a child. Didn't like it; who does? Nor do I use it. Really? I mean, I guess I don't like long division; nor do I dislike it. But I like being able to get its results, and I do it all the time in my head. What do you use instead?

kamjam 13y ago
A calculator. Or more likely, the calculator app on his iPhone. Personally, I like the ability to at least be able to get a rough approximation of an answer without having to resort to tech... but hey, call me old fashioned.
- samatman 13y ago
  I had a very old-fashioned mathematics education. If I was good at doing math in my head, I'd be a professor. Instead, I had to learn to pick problems apart, or I couldn't do them. I'm also bad at remembering the precise steps involved, so when I found out you could write a problem once and then stop thinking about it, well, I never looked back.
  - kamjam 13y ago
    I had to learn to pick problems apart Well, that's what all good programmers do, so it doesn't look like not being good at math as been a disadvantage - quite the opposite I'd say. Sometimes you need to tackle things from a slightly different angle.
- mistercow 13y ago
  >A calculator. Or more likely, the calculator app on his iPhone. That sounds so inconvenient. Sometimes I like to design programs or solve problems in my head when I'm in the swimming pool. I don't think they'd let me bring a calculator or phone in there.
samatman 13y ago
Oh, I'm quite incapable of doing long division in my head. Far too ADD. Professionally, I write parallel OpenCL software used by the mathematics, physics and chemical engineering communities. The irony is not lost on me. EDIT: When I need to approximate long division, I multiply up from the divisor towards the dividend. I find this dramatically easier. My mother is incapable of subtracting in the normal sense, and does the same operation with addition.
- mistercow 13y ago
  I'm guessing that's ADD, predominantly hyperactive-impulsive type. I'm predominantly inattentive, which is actually probably why I spend so much time doing mental arithmetic instead of paying attention to what's going on around me.
  - samatman 13y ago
    Correct! Most of my clock cycles, when I'm thinking, are playing a complex and ever changing set of arpeggiated notes. While I suspect that this is my linguistic ability functioning in some kind of overdrive, I have no particular insight into the exact process.

kamjam 13y ago

A calculator. Or more likely, the calculator app on his iPhone. Personally, I like the ability to at least be able to get a rough approximation of an answer without having to resort to tech... but hey, call me old fashioned.

samatman 13y ago
I had a very old-fashioned mathematics education. If I was good at doing math in my head, I'd be a professor. Instead, I had to learn to pick problems apart, or I couldn't do them. I'm also bad at remembering the precise steps involved, so when I found out you could write a problem once and then stop thinking about it, well, I never looked back.
- kamjam 13y ago
  I had to learn to pick problems apart Well, that's what all good programmers do, so it doesn't look like not being good at math as been a disadvantage - quite the opposite I'd say. Sometimes you need to tackle things from a slightly different angle.
mistercow 13y ago
>A calculator. Or more likely, the calculator app on his iPhone. That sounds so inconvenient. Sometimes I like to design programs or solve problems in my head when I'm in the swimming pool. I don't think they'd let me bring a calculator or phone in there.

samatman 13y ago

Oh, I'm quite incapable of doing long division in my head. Far too ADD. Professionally, I write parallel OpenCL software used by the mathematics, physics and chemical engineering communities. The irony is not lost on me. EDIT: When I need to approximate long division, I multiply up from the divisor towards the dividend. I find this dramatically easier. My mother is incapable of subtracting in the normal sense, and does the same operation with addition.

mistercow 13y ago
I'm guessing that's ADD, predominantly hyperactive-impulsive type. I'm predominantly inattentive, which is actually probably why I spend so much time doing mental arithmetic instead of paying attention to what's going on around me.
- samatman 13y ago
  Correct! Most of my clock cycles, when I'm thinking, are playing a complex and ever changing set of arpeggiated notes. While I suspect that this is my linguistic ability functioning in some kind of overdrive, I have no particular insight into the exact process.