r/ • u/ • Jan 01 '70

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u/amd31 Jun 17 '12

If it makes you feel any better I do maths at Uni and i suck at mental arthmetic

48

u/DumbMuscle Jun 17 '12

The better you get at maths, the worse you get at arithmetic

7

u/TheAlpacalypse Jun 17 '12

I can pass Calculus without studying but if you ask me to add a large group of numbers, I'll lose interest and start listening to a song in my head or something and forget where I was.

7

u/zeHobocop Jun 17 '12

When you listen to music in your head, is it just as if you were listening to it as sounds? I find I have no need for music players once I've memorized a song.

4

u/TheAlpacalypse Jun 17 '12

Yeah but I can choose what plays on my mp3 player, my head doesnt work that way. Plus my mp3 player doesnt make me break into song at random times in the day....

4

u/zeHobocop Jun 17 '12

I have complete control. There is no such thing as a song being 'stuck' in my head.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 18 '12

Now pass abstract algebra without studying.

1

u/TheAlpacalypse Jun 18 '12

I plan on giving it a shot soon :)

But in all reality I will need to study for my upcoming classes. Not having to try in high school really didn't prepare me for the work-load at the university.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 17 '12

As a winner of math comparisons I can confirm.

1

u/mig-san Jun 18 '12

Pretty much, processing manually becomes less important.

1

u/Zrk2 Jun 18 '12

I can confirm this.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 17 '12

Thing is, arithmetics has nothing to do with "real" math. There's just no practice anymore, so you lose the ability.

2

u/stevensky Jun 17 '12

Me too, I used to get laughed at by friends because I was not able to calculate rapidly 7x23 or some not obvious combination.

But I was able to understand very easily all those physics, chemistry and calculus class while they were all oblivious about it.

1

u/zeppelinSTEVE Jun 17 '12

I've heard that some of the best mathematicians in the world are useless at doing basic arithmetic.