[ 3 / biz / cgl / ck / diy / fa / ic / jp / lit / sci / vr / vt ] [ index / top / reports ] [ become a patron ] [ status ]
2023-11: Warosu is now out of extended maintenance.

/sci/ - Science & Math

View post   
File: 163 KB, 600x596, FE71B11B-AB5E-401E-A196-B3003D21581F.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9383615 No.9383615 [Reply] [Original]

>Thought I sucked at math
>Struggled through school with fucking Algebra II
>Decide to study on my own, starting from basic kindergarten shit and finish in 10 months having mastered Calculus

I’m confused

Am I stupid or smart?

>> No.9383621

>>9383615
You really need to relearn addition?

>> No.9383653

Neither, hard work pays off and that's that. The smart / dumb dichotomy is a meme. Unless you're literally retarded you can succeed at difficult tasks if you work hard enough.

>> No.9383708

It doesn't matter.

What matters is that you had a desire to pursue something, and you took the steps you needed to get there. Whether you have doubts about your abilities, or someone designates you with a number or a quality, you really don't know what you can do until you test your limits.

>> No.9383733

>>9383615
Probably just had shitty school education or something, if you've mastered
Calculus in less than a year you can't possibly be that stupid.

>> No.9383744
File: 217 KB, 1066x600, 1513058426177.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9383744

>>9383653
I will be the first Fields medalist with an iq lower than 120

>> No.9383751

>>9383615
You struggled through Algebra II because of some combination of the follow: you didn't work hard enough, you didn't fully understand a prerequisite, or you approached learning math wrong. By going back from the beginning at your own pace, you were able to fill in gaps and gain a deeper understanding, making it much easier to tackle new things. It's also better because you were focused on improving your understanding overall instead of just doing what was needed for a grade.
You are smart, not because you have a math gene (that doesn't exist), but because you recognized what was wrong, and you put in the necessary work to correct it. Almost everyone stumbles in their math education at some point, but very few put in the effort to move past it, and you should be proud that you were able to do so.

>> No.9383754
File: 548 KB, 700x4180, 1st algebra.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9383754

>>9383615
Education majors are some of the dumbest fuckups in university. Of course they can't teach for shit.

>> No.9383760

Math 'education' has students turn their brain off and memorize formulas, making them dependent on the teacher as the ultimate authority on mathematical truth. The teacher could teach them that (x+y)^2 = x^2 + y^2 and the students would obediently copy it into their notes and "study" it as just another fact to memorize, another arbitrary procedure for juggling numbers around and arriving at an answer.
Math can't be passively absorbed like history. No matter how well you explain a concept to someone, nothing you say can make them understand it if they don't put in the uncomfortable effort of working it out themselves.
For these reasons, the education system is perfectly designed to produce people who are absolutely terrified and traumatized by math, and who subsequently blame it on themselves for "being too stupid".
I like what Richard Feynman says about it in this interview:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VW6LYuli7VU

>> No.9383872
File: 199 KB, 786x826, 1440001491331.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9383872

>>9383754
wish i was Brad

>> No.9384465
File: 65 KB, 500x382, 1322796219001.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9384465

>>9383751

>> No.9384528

>>9383744

IQ isn't some inherent constant that you are born with, your IQ can increase by the certain work you do.

>> No.9384599

>>9383615
I want to be just like you OP. Except I'm starting at precalc and hope to master calculus in a few months.

>> No.9384904
File: 17 KB, 259x224, 7145773.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9384904

>>9383615
You made a wise move. Move along only after you have perfect confidence that you master some subject. Keep doing sample exercise until you grasp the knowledge. Sometimes one hard ass test done honestly wrong is better than memorized followups in which you forget the stuff you seen after the exam.

Best of luck, I bid you well.

>> No.9384940

>>9383754
This is an incredibly heartwarming pic. Thank you for sharing.

>> No.9385389

I did the same OP.
Started from the beginning and now I'm in the middle of calculus.
Enraged in a way that words can't even describe at how badly these concepts were taught to me in school. I am now realizing that I am not stupid, but that my teachers were.
So many years I wasted. If I knew what I was capable of then, I could be on algebraic geometry or some shit by now.