Mathophobia!
Ever came across someone who said Yuck! when you said you love Maths? Of course, you would have. And why not? There is no dearth of people suffering from Math-ophobia after all!
Call it a chance to improve or call it destiny. Today I realized something I thought I must share with you. In the most unlikely of places - the bath to be precise, it occurred to me that most people who "hate" maths actually tend not to see its potential as a tool to understand the world. They see it as something that is handed down by the teacher and is supposed to learned by hook or crook. Of course, the mind that nurtures these ideas is also the one that believes that Maths is a tough subject.
Look at me. I am a character who looks for mathematical explanation in everything that I observe. This interest led me (in High School) to believe that I could be a great engineer who uses Maths like a tool to explain one thing, generalize it next and later explain many more unobserved phenomenon. You see, I thought ahead of my time then. By the time I was out of my undergraduate study, I believed that I could never be an Engineer! I didn't know ANY maths, although my transcript indicated otherwise. Where did it all go so wrong?
Here is where I started thinking today.
There are two attitudes, each being a permutation of the other and yet with a mort of difference between them. One is that there is the Math and there is the World. The second is that there is the World and there is the Math. Hit in the face by the silliness of it all? Read on..In the first one, you see the Math on one side and on the other side, you see the big wide World. When you analyze the world, you don't have time for the Math and vice versa. You develop different attitudes for the two parties here. The result? You got to choose between one of them and the World is the obvious choice (because you live in it and you can lead your life based on mere experience without having to have a logical and precise explanation of everything that exists in it).
Now think of the other one. You see the World and you sit down to analyze every aspect of it in detail using maths (both World and Maths are on the same side now). You bring out equations that explain why something happened. Next you go ahead and study what you have discovered and Voila! You find that the equation tells you much more than you expected! You are now able to predict to greater accuracy some of the unnoticed facts. Here is the same Maths, but now as a tool - a natural tool you can resort to to study your world! And what to say about the satisfaction at the end of it all!
The difference simply lies in the perception. Change your perceptions today and you begin to feel the fun of it all. Then you will understand why Einstein, Feynman and every man worth something in this world loved Maths. Hey! I don't mean to say that people who are not into Mathematics are worthless. All I mean is, IF YOU ARE AN ENGINEER AND FEAR MATHEMATICS, change your mindset and you will love what you are doing. You will start handling the equations with ease and fear will change to joy.
So, dear Engineers, are you ready to plunge into Kreyzig? :-)
Call it a chance to improve or call it destiny. Today I realized something I thought I must share with you. In the most unlikely of places - the bath to be precise, it occurred to me that most people who "hate" maths actually tend not to see its potential as a tool to understand the world. They see it as something that is handed down by the teacher and is supposed to learned by hook or crook. Of course, the mind that nurtures these ideas is also the one that believes that Maths is a tough subject.
Look at me. I am a character who looks for mathematical explanation in everything that I observe. This interest led me (in High School) to believe that I could be a great engineer who uses Maths like a tool to explain one thing, generalize it next and later explain many more unobserved phenomenon. You see, I thought ahead of my time then. By the time I was out of my undergraduate study, I believed that I could never be an Engineer! I didn't know ANY maths, although my transcript indicated otherwise. Where did it all go so wrong?
Here is where I started thinking today.
There are two attitudes, each being a permutation of the other and yet with a mort of difference between them. One is that there is the Math and there is the World. The second is that there is the World and there is the Math. Hit in the face by the silliness of it all? Read on..In the first one, you see the Math on one side and on the other side, you see the big wide World. When you analyze the world, you don't have time for the Math and vice versa. You develop different attitudes for the two parties here. The result? You got to choose between one of them and the World is the obvious choice (because you live in it and you can lead your life based on mere experience without having to have a logical and precise explanation of everything that exists in it).
Now think of the other one. You see the World and you sit down to analyze every aspect of it in detail using maths (both World and Maths are on the same side now). You bring out equations that explain why something happened. Next you go ahead and study what you have discovered and Voila! You find that the equation tells you much more than you expected! You are now able to predict to greater accuracy some of the unnoticed facts. Here is the same Maths, but now as a tool - a natural tool you can resort to to study your world! And what to say about the satisfaction at the end of it all!
The difference simply lies in the perception. Change your perceptions today and you begin to feel the fun of it all. Then you will understand why Einstein, Feynman and every man worth something in this world loved Maths. Hey! I don't mean to say that people who are not into Mathematics are worthless. All I mean is, IF YOU ARE AN ENGINEER AND FEAR MATHEMATICS, change your mindset and you will love what you are doing. You will start handling the equations with ease and fear will change to joy.
So, dear Engineers, are you ready to plunge into Kreyzig? :-)
posted by Sandeep | 1:08 PM
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