/sci/ - Science & Math

not practicing enough

>>8666747
Nature and nurture

>>8666747
Not being born good at it.

I am currently a math major and my two brothers suck at math so like a year ago my dad said he would pay me 20 bucks each weekend if I helped one of my little brothers git gud. I obviously accepted because I don't really mind.

But I am not an asshole. My plan was not to do his homework for him. I came up with really interesting problems for his class. First some obvious ones to be sure he knows the basics, and then some ones that needed some extra reasoning. I gave them to him and he couldn't even do the basic ones.

His method was literally just guess.
>Hey, is that triangle obtuse acute or right?
Umm... obtuse?
>No, not quite. Why did you say obtuse? (I always asked this so that he would explain his reasoning and therefore I could correct the source of his mistake)
Umm... Acute?
>Yes! But why did you first say obtuse?
ACUTE!
ACUTE!

sigh...

>>8666747
>tfw too smart to be good at math

>>8666747
Lazy, not willing to explore and test, don't enjoy logic that much and think math is all written down and easy to do.

>>8666847
This. Math is "hard" in the sense that you have to put a bit of effort into it, explore the concepts and come up with examples on your own to truly understand them, attack problems from different angles, etc. If you break down and give up as soon as you realize you have to put in the minimum of effort, then of course you'll be "bad."

>>8666785
roflmao

some people are just literally retarded

another example

>asks some dumb question that can be answered in two sentences
>too long for entitled faggot
>on the second one, cuts me midsentence and pretend he got it and 100% agrees
>the reasoning doesn't make much sense if said fag doesnt let me finish

can't help the unwilling

Just lack of interest. I failed maths in years 9, 10, and 11 in school. I wasn't interested in even trying to learn.

>>8666888
Checked

Same as for being really good at it:
Refusal to accept the state of conventions.

I once heard you can escape a whirlpool by swimming into it... so maybe that's the approach. Just accept the conventions, until you eventually break through.

>>8666847
>think math is all written down and easy to do
Quite the opposite. Most people who are bad at math think it is too hard, that they are innately unable to learn it and don't understand how it is useful.

>>8666869
>>on the second one, cuts me midsentence and pretend he got it and 100% agrees
>>the reasoning doesn't make much sense if said fag doesnt let me finish
I hate this.

>>8666944

It's useful if you do a job that requires math. Engineer? Physicist? Work with computers? Not only helpful but necessary.

Flipping burgers doesn't require high level math. Neither does being a waiter or PE teacher. Math, it's not for everyone.

Hell, finance itself doesn't require high level math. I should know. Finance degree.

I'm a writer but I am horrible at mathematics. I do fancy myself a decent writer. Unless my story is a science fiction one, I don't see how much math would improve my writing.

Though I'm sure it's good for your brain to practice math.

anyone can be good at math if they spend enough time on it
i guess you gave up before that happened

>>8666922
>>8666944
>>8668577
>>8668799
Nice gets guys.

>>8666747
Depends

If you are bad at math since primary school, then your mind can't intuitively into abstract thinking and imagination or you had shitty teachers that didn't explain you enough, but that should be solved later.

If you can't into advanced math(analysis, calc), you simply lack interest and motivation to practice

Tbh not understanding basic math intuitively means you are a brainlet, but I can understand if you don't want to go through integrals and calculus

>>8666747
In my case, I find it completely overwhelming. I don't think it's "hard" (maybe a little on certain subjects), just extensive beyond my ability to ever get good at it. As an example just look at PatrickJMT videos. That's all the videos I should watch, learn and practice about to be even slightly decent at math and it's not even all there is to it. It's just impossible, I would have to spend the next 5 years of my life practicing math and even then I probably wouldn't even be that good at it. I guess that's fine for those that like math, butIi never found it particularly appealing.

>>8669895
What do you study/work in, anon?

>>8668784
>It's useful if you do a job that requires math.
Most jobs (at least most of the high paying ones) require math.
Also, you need to know at least basic math to control your money.

>>8670798
Not who you're replying to, but even if you're a quant working at an investment firm, or a statistician running regressions or writing ML algorithims, or an actuary or engineer or whatever, most of the math they incorporate into their day to day work has little to nothing to do with most of the math courses they took in Uni.

I mean outside a handful of courses, most of the math they learn is forgotten after they graduate. Really the only job there is that requires you to use everything you learned in college level math is... well, a college professor.

>>8666747
Depends on the person

>>8666888
>>8666922
>>8666944
>>8668577
>>8668799
holy moly repeating digits

Bad genetics basically.

>>8666888
You weren't interested because of genetics.

>>8670872
It's funny because there are actual people in /sci/ who believe that.

>>8670792
Environmental engineering. I'm at the second year barely making it.

The largest issue is motivation. Unfortunately our hyper competitive consumerist society has reduced everything to a pissing contest.

Do you want to do math because you like it, or because you think it makes you smarter than people and it will get you more money? Only an honest interest in it will make you good at it.

>>8666785
Yo, I do the same for my sister. Except I don't tolerate retards, so I shout at her till she gets it right. She learned long ago that right answer isn't enough, I want an explanation of how she got the answer, regardless of whether it's right or wrong. A wrong answer with a sensible explanation leads to less shouting than a right answer with no explanation. She hates doing math with me, but it's for the good. She must learn, she must join me in mathematics.

>>8671069
lol-ing at that pic

>>8671023
Why did you choose that if math is so overwhelming to you?

>>8671471
I just understand that every degree worth a damn requires math so I try to cope with it even if i'm a worthless brainlet. Also my brother can give me a cushy job if I manage to graduate and besides it's a fairly easy engineering compared to others like computer or electrical engineering so I manage, just barely.