Basic math is useful in day to day life and a grasp of the fundamentals of probability and statistics is useful as a foundation for critical thought. The fact that they still teach Euclidean geometry in schools (they do here, anyway), just as one example, is extremely lol.
Ok, I agree with you there. We could do high school philosophy instead or as well, but that seems like a tough sell to parents and has fewer secondary benefits.
I was lucky to have a philosophy class in high school. Was one of the best classes I took.
I don’t see how learning how to calculate the area and perimeter of a circle has more secondary benefits than a solid grounding in rhetoric. That alone would inure far more people to common tools of propaganda than any number of Euclidean theorems.
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That’s not really a fair comparison, but I agree with you so won’t argue it. My point was that understanding fractions, statistics, the presentation of data, compound interest and whatnot is more marketable that Aristotelian metaphysics or whatever.
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Milwaukee Bucks boycotting a playoff game. Wow.
All the Games are off today from player strike. In the Floyd and nba thread
I just get frustrated with the circle jerk that is often embraced on this site, reading the 1000th WAAF post without much insight. Also, I’ve never been much of a joiner.
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That’s understandable. Maybe better to do what I should have done and take a break if the revolving circle jerk starts getting to you.
What’s wrong with teaching Euclidean geometry?
Ruff ruff ruff!
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It’s a waste of time for most people. I know you work in building and possibly have a different perspective on that, but the vast majority of people don’t need it. Like OK maybe basic stuff like the angles of a triangle add up to 180, but if I need to know how to calculate the volume of a cylinder I’ll Google it.
I think in general a lot of education has not adapted to the fact that any knowledge people want is at their fingertips. More important is to learn how to think and how to filter that information.
Ehhhh, I think the only way to learn to think mathematically is to do mathematics, and the content is almost irrelevant.
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If an adult doesn’t know how to calculate the volume of a cylinder they probably can’t do it even with looking it up.
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That’s easy, you read the number of mL off the side of the beer can. Math!
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Just knowing how to be rigorous. For real though, not like some numbskull philosopher or lawyer.
I meet lots and lots of adults who don’t know how to calculate the area of a rectangle. It’s also pretty amazing how many people can’t even begin to visualize how much a cubic yard is.
If the forum is frustrating you and your frustration leads you to constantly act like a douchebag maybe log off
My recollection of Euclidean geometry in middle school is learning proofs. It’s a hugely valuable skill that transfers to a lot of other areas, should be required for everyone.
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