Trigonometry I'll never use that.

[ANT 666]

I used to like doing logarithms, do some working out, then look up the answer in a book.

 

[Profpointy]

Or you might have several, different, correct answers.

Well, no - only one of them will be correct; if you don't follow BODMAS, it'll either not matter or be wrong. Won't be merely an alternative !

 

[ColinJ]

SOH-CAH-TOA and BODMAS???? must have been away that day.(school, what a week that was!)

I'm old enough to remember them! (And using log tables/slide rules before calculators came along.)

SOH is short for Sine = Opposite/Hypoteneuse
CAH is short for Cosine = Adjacent/Hypoteneuse
TOA is short for Tangent = Opposite/Adjacent

BODMAS is to do with the precedence of mathematical operations - Brackets Order Division Multiplication Addition Subtraction. Brackets are higher precedence than everything else so can be used to make clear what an equation means without relying on the actual operator precedence. I did some of that in my quadratic equation example, though I didn't bother for the bits that I thought were really obvious.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

I used to like doing logarithms, do some working out, then look up the answer in a book.

What do you do for a mathematician`s constipation? Work it out with pencil and paper and if that doesn't work, use logs!!

 

[tyred]

Oliver Had
A Handful
Of Apples

was how I learned that.

What I really want to know was why did I get caned for stealing apples when it was Oliver all along

 

[ANT 666]

I had a calculator, it was like a tubular side rule bloody brilliant thing, then someone invented the jap brain and took all the fun out of working stuff out.

 

[ANT 666]

Was it a real handful or a slack handful of apples.

 

[ANT 666]

Today
I Got
A Hatfull
Of Eggs

Not sure what that equates to but its better than trying to carry them in my paws.

 

[Wafer]

Well, no - only one of them will be correct; if you don't follow BODMAS, it'll either not matter or be wrong. Won't be merely an alternative !

No, I was specifically taught that unless there were brackets you could potentially end up with multiple correct answers. Heard about BODMAS much later in life, personally I think the way I was taught at school is much easier.

 

[subaqua]

No, I was specifically taught that unless there were brackets you could potentially end up with multiple correct answers. Heard about BODMAS much later in life, personally I think the way I was taught at school is much easier.

http://www.skillsyouneed.com/num/bodmas.html

you would have been taught wrong then .

 

[Profpointy]

No, I was specifically taught that unless there were brackets you could potentially end up with multiple correct answers. Heard about BODMAS much later in life, personally I think the way I was taught at school is much easier.

Mmm, not sure "easier" is that good a description if you can get different answers ! What you were taught is plain wrong (or conceivably mis-remembered). Rules-is-rules when it comes to arithmetic / algebra. It is always possible for someone to mis-interpret if they don't know the rules, but there's still one and one only correct answer.

Though there is an argument (which I don't actually agree with) to put extra brackets in to "help" the reader, but I think it's better to know and follow the rules.
If I see redundant brackets, I tend to wonder if there's a misprint or the writer means something different rather than being grateful for so say clarity.

 

[fimm]

All High Class
Owls Attend The
Owl High School

Don't think I have ever used that since, but I do recall trying to work out how many different ways there were to pick three things from five options (or something like that) and asking on a forum and someone said "permutations and combinations" and it all came back to me (with the help of some googling....)

 

[Fnaar]

I'm far from stupid, but my brain just doesn't do maths very well.

It just doesn't add up!

 

[Profpointy]

I'm far from stupid, but my brain just doesn't do maths very well.

It just doesn't add up!

There's the wonderful story of Einstein playing his violin (he was a keen amateur musician apparently) with one of the top violinists of the day.
The pro in exasperation exclaims "the trouble with you Albert is you just can't count"

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I'm old enough to remember them! (And using log tables/slide rules before calculators came along.)

SOH is short for Sine = Opposite/Hypoteneuse
CAH is short for Cosine = Adjacent/Hypoteneuse
TOA is short for Tangent = Opposite/Adjacent

BODMAS is to do with the precedence of mathematical operations - Brackets Order Division Multiplication Addition Subtraction. Brackets are higher precedence than everything else so can be used to make clear what an equation means without relying on the actual operator precedence. I did some of that in my quadratic equation example, though I didn't bother for the bits that I thought were really obvious.

That went straight over my head. I was a dunce at maths, and now what I did learn I've forgotten.