Subj : Re: Hey Nick
To   : alt.tv.farscape
From : Jim Larson
Date : Tue Sep 06 2005 05:07:30

From Newsgroup: alt.tv.farscape

Tyler Trafford wrote:

> weirdwolf wrote:
>> Jim Larson wrote:
>>> weirdwolf wrote:
>>>
>>>> It amazes me the number of people who when you ask them what is 4 *7
>>>> automatically answer 28 but when you ask what is 7*4 have to pause. 
>>> 
>>> (Those people, assuming they've finished grade school, are stupid.)
>>
>> It a fnction of how the times tables are taught at school. Repetion
>> through them, starting with 1*0 is 0 through to 12*12 is 144. Without
>> somebody actually pointing out the blindingly obvious ,ost people
>> never think about it.In the far east apparently instead of teaching
>> them in that way they only continue from the ones they haven't done
>> before, so after 7*12 they start the next at 8*8 in effect you can
>> imagine the tables as a triangle and not a square. It cuts down on the
>> amount of memorization required and allows for more flexible thinking
>> about what is actually going on.
> 
> This is where being lazy comes in handy.  I never memorized any more
> than absolutely necessary.

(Because, and I already regret saying this, you are not stupid.)

To be fair, I think a lot of grade and high school teachers are on autopilot 
most of the time[1]. Can't say as I blame them, since except for the 
dedicated few, most have no incentive to do more than the minimum. It doesn't 
much matter for the brighter students or at least those with 
involved/interested parents, but it hobbles everyone else from the start. 

-- 
Jim

[1] Speaking only of my experience, of course.

.