When I was in school, I absolutely loved math until I reached calculus in the 12th grade. Numbers have always made sense to me. Addition and subtraction in elementary school were a breeze. Then when I was introduced to multiplication, division, fractions and decimals my mind was blown. Algebra intuitively made sense to me. I still use algebra nearly every single day. Geometry was different with more theory and rules to memorize. Still, I excelled at doing proofs and was fascinated when calculating angle measurements and line lengths.
I miss math. So a few months ago, I decided to do something about it. I searched for math books at the library to see if any would pique my interest. That’s when I found the book, “The Magic of Math” by Arthur Benjamin. It was a cool read, with each chapter dedicated to the different courses of math I listed above as well as imaginary numbers, “special numbers” like pi and e and other math theory. For me, one of the prime takeaways was Benjamin’s explanation of why Calculus was important and when it should be used. I wish anyone would have explained that to me 40 years ago! (Instead, my calculus teacher said, “You’ll need this for college.”)
The next book I read was “The Secrets of Mental Math” by the same author. This is where I found the fun I was seeking. The entire book is focused on how to do math in your head. I do math my head all the time. I am constantly calculating %s, ratios, estimates, quantities, prices and statistics. The book taught me some straightforward processes to add, subtract, multiply and divide large numbers in my head, without relying on paper, a calculator or google.
It was awesome.
Since finishing the book, I’ve been forcing myself to use mental math instead of asking Alexa or checking my phone to do calculations. It’s been a blast.
Some of the techniques he detailed were things I already use. Many were new to me. Most, I think I’ll be using for the rest of my life.
Who knows… at some point I might even be tempted to pick up another book and relearn calculus.
