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August 8, 2007
Precalculus Mathematics in a Nutshell
I'm reading a book that I found for $6 on the Barnes & Noble 'good deals' table called, Precalculus Mathematics in a Nutshell. Since birth, I've avoided math. In fact, I fact, through my early twenties I tried to avoid all subjects that contained some manner of objective truth: Math, Physics, Economics etc. My worst subject in college was French -- I abhorred the memorization. In my younger years, I preferred the more subjective pursuits. As an English major, all I had to do was read the book and form some sort of opinion. It could be completely off the wall, but if you were able to write in a somewhat compelling fashion and support your theories then you got an A. The older I get, I regret those inclinations. I really do enjoy learning the objective truths about our world. I'm not particularly adept at math, especially the higher concepts, but I do enjoy the challenge. I can also see how the pieces fit into the larger scheme of my life so it doesn't seem so fruitless, but I digress.
As I was reading through this book at the rate of about a 1 page per day. It's very condensed. I ran across these two great quotes at the start of the 2nd chapter on Algebra.
"By relieving the brain of all unnecessary work, a good notation sets it free to concentrate on more advanced problems, and in effect increases the mental power of the race....By the aid of symbolism, we can make transitions almost mechanically by the eye, which otherwise would call into play the higher faculties of the brain. It is a profoundly erroneous truism, that we should cultivate the habit of thinking what we are doing. The precise opposite is the case. Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking about them."
--Alfred North Whitehead (referring to the symbols and notation in mathematics)
"The more I work and practice, the luckier I seem to get."
--Gary Player (professional golfer)
If you skipped math like me, or just want to refresh your memory, then you might find this book useful. It's only 3/4 of an inch thick, and doesn't contain any fluff. In the author's words, "I have eliminated most of the repetitious and unnecessary material often included in precalculus mathematics textbooks. I have also tried to achieve the utmost brevity that will still permit students who are willing to work at it to understand the material."
So far so good.
Posted by mark at August 8, 2007 9:17 AM Subscribe (FeedBurner)