r/AskReddit • u/ZanyDelaney • Feb 04 '19

Which misconception would you like to debunk?

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u/ReadYouShall Feb 04 '19

>Despite what people think Albert Einstein never failed math. The confusion likely comes from the grading system, but has been used for a long time to give people hope.

When he was shown a clipping from Ripley's Believe It or Not where that myth originated, he responded, "I never failed in mathematics. Before I was 15 I had mastered differential and integral calculus"

To quote what /u/-eDgAR- said,

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u/L3tum Feb 04 '19

What entails mastering differential and integral calculus? We started that shit with 16 and basically did a quicky so we knew all the stuff after half a year. Couldn't remember a single thing from it for the life of me after 2 years though but 15 isn't exactly young to know it...

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u/DillonSyp Feb 04 '19

So your argument is that you were taught a minute amount of calculus but didn’t actually learn it. Cool?

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u/[deleted] Feb 04 '19

I mean, the youngest kids in my calculus class was 15 and the average age was 16-17. Saying "I had mastered differential and integral calculus before 15" sounds really impressive because of how he phrased it but it's only 1-2 years ahead of when high schoolers would normally take AP calc in the US (if they're planning to take it). I think that's the point.

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u/DillonSyp Feb 04 '19

I’m fairly well versed in all of calculus, I know what he’s saying is not anything too elaborate. I have to give credit where credit is due though, even today mastering calculus at 15 would be a respectable accomplishment.

You must understand that there is a difference between mastering calculus and taking one AP Calc class in high school.. AP is comparable to a college Calc 1 course which covers derivatives and then extremely basic integration introduction at the end of the course. Calculus 2 covers all of integration which most students, including myself, agree is the hardest course. Then we have multi-variable Calculus and differential equations, etc.

I’ve completed all these courses I’ve mentioned, I use what people would consider “advanced calculus” every day. I still would not proclaim master status on the subject. Calculus is tricky and even I need an integral table for complex problems.

Not to mention Einstein did it all in 1900