Need Math Help?

[AltF4]

School is starting right about now for everyone, and I'm a little bored. So go ahead and ask any math related questions.

Having trouble with a homework problem?

Don't remember how to do polynomial long division?

There's no such thing as a stupid question here. Ask away!

Myself or likely other members here will answer for you. (HeadIS and GoldShadow, likely)

Additionally (no pun intended) we can use this thread just to converse about math related topics like combinatorics. Good times.

 

[_kSo_]

I'll help too

 

[TGM]

Ask me if you want wrong answers!!!!!

 

[_kSo_]

Ask me if you want wrong answers!!!!!

LOL i'll be the first...but you'll have to wait until school starts on monday

 

[Mr.GAW]

Polynomial long division is so easy to forget...

Last year I took Algebra 2 Trig going into freshman, but before the year started I took an Algebra review course so that I didn't get lost in the Alg2trig class. It actually helped alot, but when we got to Polynomial long division she's like everyone already knows this, right?

Embarressed, I had to ask her to go through it again as I had forgotten. But that's what you gotta do, right?

Anyways, I'll probably be here a lot once school starts. Great thread, AltF4!

 

[AltF4]

We can also use this thread just to talk about mathy stuff and actually stay on topic. 1st post edited.

 

[jamminjohn]

How do you learn to like calculus?

 

[inside]

What if there are diagrams and such?

 

[DiamondFalcon]

PEPPERS
+PIGLIPS
IGIVEUP

Each letter stands for a different digit, 0-9.
P=? E=? R=? S=? I=? G=? L=? V=? U=?

Anyone else know what book this is from?

 

[AltF4]

How do you learn to like calculus?

Haha, I don't know if you LEARN to like calculus... But calculus is right about where math really starts to have a practical purpose outside of calculating prices at a grocery store. So I really loved it because I got to see all the cool stuff you could do with math, finally.

What if there are diagrams and such?

Ehh, just describe them or something. Or if it's THAT important, you can scan your book and post the pic... assuming you have a scanner.

 

[GoldShadow]

Hey, thanks for the first-post mention AltF4!

How do you learn to like calculus?

Yeah, what AltF4 said. Calculus is a very interesting topic, you can actually apply it to the real world and to most other sciences and subjects too, even if it's in an abstract sense. It makes it easy to visualize changes in graphs in economics, chemistry, physics, even biology (population dynamics, rates of light absorption, enzyme activity... the list goes on).

While I found that I was extremely good at calculus and math in general (highest grade on calc II final out of all 400 or 500 calc II students at my university! ), I'm not taking any math beyond what I've already taken because all the abstract concepts are not my cup of tea!

So I'll help out with things whenever I can.

 

[Bazooka Lucca]

Expalin why 1=0

 

[AltF4]

Let x = 1 – 1 + 1 – 1 + 1 …
X = (1 – 1) + (1 – 1) + (1 – 1) +…
X = 0 + 0 + 0 + …
X = 0
Let x = 1 – 1 + 1 – 1 + 1 …
X = 1 + (-1 + 1) + (-1 + 1) + (-1 + 1) …
X = 1 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0…
X = 1
Thus,
1 = 0

Satisfied? I have an entire thread for this stuff. It's on the next page of threads.

 

[cF=)]

Both calculus I & II we're easy, and I hope 'linear algebra and vector geometry' will also be a fun course. Friends told me the hardest one was either calc. II or advanced calculus, I'll see soon enough this year if they were right.

Might come back here with a few questions soon enough

 

[AltF4]

I thought all the Calc's weren't too hard. Linear Algebra was a bit tough for me mostly I think because of the format my class had.

Entire grade = 4 tests w/ 5 questions per test.

That was stressful **** right there.

 

[Osco316]

PEPPERS
+PIGLIPS
IGIVEUP

Each letter stands for a different digit, 0-9.
P=? E=? R=? S=? I=? G=? L=? V=? U=?

Anyone else know what book this is from?

You win for quoting the Wayside School math book.

 

[WaterTails]

AltF4, mind just giving a review of the latter sections of Algebra I? I forgot everything over the summer!

Or just the stuff you need to know going into Geometry?

 

[AltF4]

Oh, snap. That sure would be a lot to type. Do you have anything in particular that isn't perfectly clear?

Geometry doesn't require too much previous math. You kinda start from scratch, at least more so than in other math courses.

 

[Mr.GAW]

WaterTails, I found geometry incredibly easy. It might've just been because our teacher was cool and let us use our notes for tests, though.

It's really just a matter of remembering certain rules that you'll never have to deal with ever again to prove things.

EDIT:

Watertails, I found my notebook from my Algebra review class last summer. Since I'm such a nice guy, I'm gonna type the important stuff out.

EDIT 2:

Actually, I'm not. You don't need to remember this stuff until algebra 2 trig.

 

[AltF4]

Please, no "You're never going to use this stuff" comments. It's completely wrong. I understand where you're coming from, I thought the same thing in high school. But now I'm an engineer and math is my bread and butter. I use it every day, and guess what: I get paid a lot. And if you know math, you will too.

What I CAN do for you right now WaterTails is give you a brief heads-up for the things to expect out of geometry:

-Geometry is inherently more visual than other math classes you've had so far. That is usually a good thing. Anytime you talk about a particular concept in class, try to keep the corresponding shape in your head. For example, if you spend a period on ellipses, always keep a clear mental picture of what an ellipse looks like in your head. The ability to visualize what you're working with is invaluable, and separates the good from the bad mathematicians.

-An introduction to formal proofs. Just think of these as a game, seriously. Like a puzzle. You'll be given some pieces of the puzzle and a few rules you're allowed to use, and you have to end up with a certain goal. It's pretty cool. Remember to think very literally, pretend you're a computer.

...more to come probably soon

 

[KevinM]

Alt are you going to keep this running through school

that would be amazing, as i'm entering Algebra3 and i've never been good with creating the work for a problem. I can get the answers well enough.. its i don't understand how i got there <_<

 

[Falco&Victory]

Algebra 3? Rhode island is crazy, down here it goes pre Al, Geo, Alg2trig, precal, cal, cal2, then AP Cal.

Geometry was really easy(but I slacked off and ended with a 92.9% XD)
The switch to Geo and Alg2Trig is going to be hard, especially since I HATE trig, it's easy but some of the problems take a whole page of paper to solve when you have to show your work.

Anyway, nice thread, I might use if our teacher gives us a bonus "Do this Calculus problem".

 

[AltF4]

I'll keep it up as long as people have questions to ask! Hopefully I'll be able to post at least once per day. Expect more timely responses on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Algebra 2 (Also known as Algebra 3-4) was the hardest math class I ever had. Way harder than calculus.

I know what you mean about not knowing exactly how you got an answer. Sometimes they just come to you and you don't know how to describe it. But it is important to know how to solve problems the long way. The only ones you'll be able to do in your head are going to be trivial problems. Any one that is actually worth knowing the answer to will be much harder.

Sometimes you wind up with a problem like "find the X value where these two lines intersect" and you'll just look at the equations and see that it's 2. Unfortunately that's not good enough. Think really hard, how did you discover the answer? Chances are that you did some really quick calculations and hardly realized it.

What you likely saw was that both equations had even numbers in them, and that made you substitute the number 2 in for x. Then it worked out. This might all have been subliminal, but really try to be aware of HOW you're solving problems just as much as if they're right.

Honestly, it's the same with smash right? When you're practicing, it's more important to keep in mind how you're playing than merely on whether you win or lose.

F&V: Yea, some schools go in different orders than others. I used to live in New Jersey, and the high school there went: Alg1 Alg2 Geo PreCal Cal. But here in Arizona they go Alg1 Geo Alg2 Precal Cal. It doesn't make that big of a difference really.

 

[WaterTails]

thanks, altf4, I was clueless on Trig last year (I Think, Sin, cos, tan, and their inverses). How much do you need those in Geometry? Also, I'm teh pwn when it comes to visualization (can't express it worth a ****, but you don't need to be a good drawer in math, really).

If I have questions, you'll be one of my math buddies!

 

[Mr.GAW]

There's really only one chapter of Trig in Geometry, but there's some random problems throughout the book that require you to know the principles.

 

[Falco&Victory]

thanks, altf4, I was clueless on Trig last year (I Think, Sin, cos, tan, and their inverses). How much do you need those in Geometry? Also, I'm teh pwn when it comes to visualization (can't express it worth a ****, but you don't need to be a good drawer in math, really).

If I have questions, you'll be one of my math buddies!

I missed a few days of intro to trig, then came in a test day. Needless to say I got a 30%, my record low on a test EVER. I eventually memorized every equation to find the measures of different parts of a shape, usually the triangle. If you can visualize well, then you'll do excellent in geometry, especially when it comes to flipping and translating planes on a grid and everything.

 

[WFL]

Lol New York is one messed up state in Math. Our school has Math A (1 1/2 years) and Math B (1 1/2). You take New York state regents at the end of each program. After that you don't have to take math anymore, but since I'm good (5th in the county behind 4 asians) at it I'm going to take pre-calc and AP calc.

How long are each of the math courses you guys in other states take. Is Algebra I, II, III or whatever each one year? Do you devote more than one period to each different subject in math?

 

[nuro]

I forgot how to do long division is that bad? ;p

Seriously though now adays all I do is use a calculator and im going to be studying calculus this year.

 

[WaterTails]

So flipping and translating? the few questions I got right in Math-track (state math competition)!

 

[B-Will]

Dan = too good at math.

haha, doesn't surprise me that you would make a topic like this.

 

[cemo]

This makes me miss my calculus class.
Why did I stop going to school. D:

 

[MVPaintballer]

Can you teach me everything i need going into pre-cal !?!?!??!?!

 

[AltF4]

Haha, no. Unfortunately I can't teach you an entire subject over the smashboards. You'll have to be more specific.

Anyone got any homework yet or something? If you need a hand, post it up.

 

[Sir James]

Hey Alt have you ever taken a Statistics course? I've taken all my required Math courses for my major except this one Statistics course. It's the last Math course I need! I did pretty well in my Calculus courses a few years ago but I am new to Statistics. I heard it wasn't too bad but I'm still a bit worried.

 

[AltF4]

Yup, I had an Engineering Statistics course. It was a really dry class for me. Meaning that there was a lot of equations and formulas, but not necessarily a lot of theory. Lots of magic numbers.

 

[Sir James]

Oh great...sounds like a ton of fun If I get stuck I'll be sure to post here.

 

[xyouxarexuglyx2]

This is a Geometry question having to do with parallel lines intersected by a transversal.

Well,

If m<1 = 8x + 2 and m<2 = 6x + 80, and they are alternate interior angles, find m<1. I got 314 degrees, but that didn't seem to make sense for this problem.

What I did was...

Since they're congruent, that means that their measures are equal. So..

8x + 2 = 6x + 80
8x - 6x = 80 - 2
2x = 78
x = 39
m<1 = 8x + 2
m<1 = 8(39) + 2
m<1= 314(?)

and another one I just came across.

m<5 = x-20
m<6 = 5x - 60
Find m<5

They're alternate exterior angles, so congruent.

x-20 = 5x - 60
x-5x = -60 + 20
-4x = - 40
x = 10
m<5 = 10 - 20
negative angle?

 

[Doraki]

if they are congruent, they may not have the same measure.

Instead they have the same measure modulo 360, which means there should be more different answers.

 

[GamerGuitarist7]

Dan, you should come over to tucson and start doing my Pre-Cal homework for me so i can get rid of this D

 

[Ensee]

When will geometry not be so boring?