No seriously, I really want to know. I know that graphs and the like definitely have RL applications in building houses etc, but what about everything else?
As you say, there are a fair number of professions that use math all the time (engineering, medicine, public health, gambling, finance, accounting, all the fundamental sciences, and many others) beyond the simple grade school math used in everyday retail transactions. Even though computers have relieved many of these professions of the drudgery of calculations, it is absolutely crucial to know what the computer is actually doing in many cases when the problem being solved isn’t “routine” and requires an adjustment to the calculations that only those that understand the math can tackle.
But even for jobs/professions that don’t use higher math or farm it out by hiring a professional, the key thing about math is how it trains your brain to think in a way that is different than everyday life without it would lead to, or at least you wouldn’t have as high a level of that kind of logical “higher order” thinking, as it is commonly termed. What is meant by that is those that study math, logic, and related areas learn to look at certain aspects of the world in a more ordered fashion, and to be more analytical about cause and effect. Of course there is an intuitive level of this kind of thinking in all people, but it can absolutely be honed and refined and improved.
Because you take math from such a young age all the way through high school, for most people you don’t even realize it has happened. This is true for much of education, the process itself is causing changes in your brain that are crucial to thriving in our modern society. Those who struggle are often those who, for whatever reason, missed out on these things. Illiteracy is obviously a problem on its own, and by that I mean reading writing AND math. But it is more than lacking those fundamentals, it is also the lack of development of reasoning, inference, ability to quickly process numerous factors and synthesize a new conclusion (or forget “quickly”, just the ability to do it at all), etc.
So yes math (and chemistry and physics or at least some exposure to such subjects, but math is the most fundamental) is important, and it is important beyond knowing specific theorems and sines and arc tangents. You will forget most of that, but you retain the brain connections and training that allows you to think at the level you do. It may or may not end up being worth $64,000,000 to you, but I promise you there is a 99.99% chance it is worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars of extra earnings over your lifetime.
Where does one use a graph in making a house?
Blueprints are a type of graph, a 2-D scale representation of the house. Converting the 1"= 2 feet scale into actual production is a use of math, albeit simple math. On one blueprint the x axis is width and the y axis is height, and on another the x axis is depth and the y axis is height, for example.
Graphs, technically, do not have to be the plotting of a mathematical function. They can be the plotting of measurements or other observations taken in real life. Often this then leads to mathematical modeling, of course, but in the case of an artificial “something”, it can simply be the plotting of those things onto a scaled format, which is what graph paper is. Depending on the randomness of what it is that is being observed and translated onto the graph paper, it may or may not result in something describable by a predictive mathematical equation.
For example, it I plot the number of “shooting stars” observed in a night, with the x axis being 15 minute intervals and the y axis being the total number observed in those 15 minute intervals. will this turn out to be constant, or varying randomly? It is still a graph, even if random.
I find I use a lot of algebra in my daily life. Or maybe it’s not algebra but just plain old math.Things like, which product is cheaper, or which piece of clothing is the lowest cost per wear? But I like math and find I look for ways to use it.
Now that I’m semiretired and my income fluctuates, I’ve created some Excel spreadsheets to keep track of my income. The spreadsheets let me back into the amount that I need to take from my IRA monthly. And it’s let me plan for the future, anticipating Social Security starting at a certain date, and so forth.
I love using Excel. It’s very logical. That’s the part of math that I love.
(I’m also a Sudoku aficionado, so I guess that’s the way my brain works.)
Second career in the food business. I create new food items for large national companies. I had to learn Excel and I use it everyday. Of course you have to know what you are looking for in Excel which means you have to know what to ask it. You have to know enough to know if your answer is wrong in case you messed up.
I create many charts. Costing and financials, marination charts, breading pick up, yield charts, calculate the amount of materials factories need in order to produce something etc. Again you have to know how to set up the math equations in order to get the correct answers.
I love Excel. It is a tremendously powerful tool if you know what math you need to get your answers. But you HAVE to know your math.
Every day, adding, subtracting, etc to especially algebra. At its core algebra teaches you to solve problems by using available tools (eg what you do to one side of equation you do same to other side of equation) in an orderly way to solve given problem. A mom may have a problem at 4PM (eg getting hot meal on table at 6). Mom uses tools available (eg food, pots, pans, oven etc) follows recipe (aka orderly way), voila dinner served at 6. A surgeon’s patient has a problem (eg appendicitis). Surgeon uses tools available (arthroscope, scalpel, sutures, etc) and follows known procedure, patient goes home. Algebra takes one from pure memorization skills of arithmetic to begin to teach people to work with what you have available to solve problems, ie thinking, a skill used pretty much every day from mundane aspects of life to more complicated problems.
Not only everyday, but at my small company,---- every minute. Everything from visually checking prints for design flaws, chatting with engineers about product changes and mentally calculating profit margins. You would be surprised at all the figuring I need to do on the fly without the use of a computer. And all this from an Art History major.
I am accustomed to buying coffee by the pound. My benchmark is $9.99 per pound. Now when I go to the grocery store I see 12 oz bags on sale for $6.99. Sometimes the 20 oz bags are on sale for $10.99. Incredibly, somtimes the 12 oz bags are cheaper per oz than the 20 oz bags (same Starbucks coffee) and I wonder how many people can’t even figure that out. I always convert to $ per pound. Here is another tricky one. Jobs are quoted as $150/10 which means they pay $150 for 10 hours, so people assume it is $15 per hour, but actually the pay is based on an hourly rate for the first 8 hours + time and a half for the next 2 hours. So if the hourly rate is not $15 per hour, what is the actual hourly rate? Some basic math is required. $150 = 8 times the hourly rate + 2 times the 1.5 hourly rate or a total of 11 times the hourly rate, so 150/11 = $13.63/hour. Many people can’t figure that out, and then when they work a long 16 hour day they don’t know how much they are supposed to get paid.
I assume you are a student who doesn’t like math. (If I’m assuming wrong, you can skip the rest of this. . .)
TBH, I didn’t like math much when I was a student. (I have degrees in English Lit., but later became a math teacher/tutor). There are problems with the way math is taught in schools, and there has been a lot debate about this.
IMO, there is not enough emphasis on practical math for students who are honestly not going into math-related fields.
Personal finance/consumer math would be more useful for most people. A lack of understanding of how credit cards/student loans/mortgages/insurance, etc. work gets a lot of people into trouble. How to find the best deal when shopping or converting recipes and measurements are some of the most common real-life uses of math.
When trying to get through high school math courses, it is best to stop asking the question “When am I ever going to use this in real life?” You will just get angry and frustrated, because the answer for most students is, most likely, “Never.” What most students are really asking is: “How am I going to get through this pointless required class with a decent grade?”
One problem at a time is how you do it. It is hard to let go of your frustration with a boring class that you consider useless to your future. But changing your attitude will help you succeed in your class. To do that, you have to think of the “little picture,” not the “big picture.” Think of each problem as a little puzzle to solve. This is exercise/entertainment for your brain. Don’t look at the “forest”(long course/thick textbook/lifetime of uselessness), focus on each little “tree”(problem/lesson). One tree at a time. One tree. This tree. This tree. Only this tree. By the end of the year you’ll have a beautiful forest. (Useful or not, still beautiful). I admit this may sound corny to some, but I have seen students improve/succeed by changing to this “tree not forest” approach.
BTW In the last 32 years of owning this company I have only had to fire three employees for incompetency. And all due to the fact that they couldn’t do the math. Hopefully that answers the 64 million dollar question.
You have two straight objects that you want to place at right angles to each other. You do not have any object with a right angle to align them with. You have a tape measure. How would you do this task?
And this!! I cannot believe how often someone has punched something into their calculator, and hit multiply when they meant divide and decided that it is OK to tell me that they need 4 billions eggs to make a cake! Being familiar with math also helps identify when things are nonsensical.
I also echo the person that talks about being able to calculate, or at least estimate, in ones head instead of having to use the calculator every time. It is a very valuable skill.
Math teachers of all kinds need to know math well in order to teach it effectively.
^^^^LOL!!! Uh, yeah, I can’t believe I forgot to include them!!
I needed to know math as a journalist. Reporting on annual reports, tax assessments, city budgets, health data, the list goes on and on.
If you earn any money at all, you need to understand how interest works for bank accounts and mortgages, deciding where to invest your money.
A homeowner has to do a lot of simple algebra calculations. For example, how many cubic yards of beauty bark I need to order to be able to cover approximately 10% of my horse acre yard with a 2 inch layer of said bark?
In a nutshell, if there’s an aspect of your real life that involves money, time, distance, or some other measure that we discuss in numbers, there’s every reason to think that applying math to that aspect can make it less expensive, more profitable, quicker, faster, or just more predictable.
If you mow a lawn, a knowledge of calculus, topology, and some physics can “trim,” for example 5 minutes off a 60 minute job. Do this 20 times over a summer and there’s an hour forty of your life back.
Add some statistics & probability into the mix, and you have the means to make useful comparisons of different types of investments, calculate the expected rate of return on buying a new lawnmower vs a used one, lease vs buy, whole life vs term, etc. Now you’re discussing the difference between being able to retire at 55 or 59.5 instead of 65 or 70. That strikes me as a really useful thing to know.
Does one have to optimize everything? Of course not. No one has to overpay for everything either. Over time, the little differences do add up.
I’m a scientist, and I use math constantly, especially statistical analysis. Algebra too. My daughter, who is far better at math than I am, even writes and programs differential equations sometimes as part of her job…
When I go to a store and an item retails for $60 and is marked 25% off. The UPC code is read at checkout and I am charged $50. I know there is a mistake without using a calculator. Now trying to convince the cashier that I am correct is another issue because the computer system cannot be wrong!