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I AM NOT A PLANT.


photosynthesis

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photosynthesis

so this is my third time trying to survive Math 100: Math For Plants. So easy even a plant could pass it, right? It's a math class they have here... Every time I try to take this class, I end up dropping it out of sheer frustration and boredom.

Well, now it's my last semester of college and I can't drop it now. I'm no plant, but this class is seriously hard!!! It's not even really math. You barely even have to deal with numbers! it's all Euler circuits, traveling salesman problems, power indexes and digraphs. Stuff I'll hopefully never have to encounter again. Once I figure out how to do it, usually I'm pretty good at Math. but now there's this chapter on gnomons and Fibbonacci numbers and golden rectancles and I have a quiz on it tomorrow.

I remember back in high school, we were doing the quadratic formula, and my old math teacher said "I promise, you will never have to see this again." she was wrong!!! she lied to me!!! The quadratic formula is back and it's meaner than ever! :scream:

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photosynthesis

[quote name='phatcatholic' date='Nov 15 2005, 07:42 PM']why don't u get a tutor?
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they have a place here called the Math Lab.. it's open every evening, and it's staffed by a bunch of senior math majors.

Unfortunately, most of them have no familiarity with Math for Plants, because it's a very different kind of math than what math majors do. I actually just got back from the Math Lab and they said they couldn't help me...

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Math is evil. :( Did you learn the quadratic formula song? It goes to the tune of "Pop the Weasel".

X is equal to negative B, plus or minus square root, B squared minus four AC all over 2 B.

I think I got that right...darn math. :P:

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photosynthesis

so far I am understanding the Fibbonacci sequence...

it's all about Fn = (Fn+1) - (Fn-1)

and somehow that has a lot to do with the Golden Ratio, which is the number Phi, and it's 1 + the square root of 5 divided by 2.

And somehow this has something to do with Gnomons, growth, symmetry and art.

I think that as annoying as this class is, it's kind of cool because I can see God in it. I mean, the textbook makes it all seem like a coincidence, but come on now... there's no such thing as a coincidence.

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That sounds like a very odd math class.

And I can't imagine a teacher saying you'd never see the quadratic formula again! It's only the most commonly used formula in all of mathematics. Sheesh.

I'd be glad to try to help if I could... can you explain what you're having trouble with?

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photosynthesis

[quote name='Dreamweaver' date='Nov 15 2005, 09:34 PM']Math is evil.  :(  Did you learn the quadratic formula song? It goes to the tune of "Pop the Weasel".

X is equal to negative B, plus or minus square root, B squared minus four AC all over 2 B.

I think I got that right...darn math.  :P:
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that's catchy! I'm going to sing it all the time (with the corrections :) )

this is going to be a fun all nighter! wheeeeeee!

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photosynthesis

[quote name='philothea' date='Nov 16 2005, 12:40 AM']That sounds like a very odd math class.

And I can't imagine a teacher saying you'd never see the quadratic formula again!  It's only the most commonly used formula in all of mathematics.  Sheesh.

I'd be glad to try to help if I could... can you explain what you're having trouble with?
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I think she was under the impression that after high school, one wouldn't be required to take math.

It IS a weird math course. I used to like it, kind of, because it started out very philosophical... but now they actually expect us to like... add stuff... and subtract stuff... and calculate gnomons.

hopefully tonight I'll do enough math in order to do well on the quiz... it's at 12:30 tomorrow so I have approximately 12 hours! yay! then maybe after i take the quiz I will sleep, because I am actually kind of tired!

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[quote name='photosynthesis' date='Nov 16 2005, 12:47 AM']It IS a weird math course.  I used to like it, kind of, because it started out very philosophical...  but now they actually expect us to like...  add stuff...  and subtract stuff...  and calculate gnomons.
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Yaknow...

I have dozens of math textbooks, from basic algebra through graduate level mathematical physics. (Not, mind you, that I understand half of them... but still, I peruse.) I had never even heard of a gnomon until tonight.

And doing research, I can't think of any practical use for them.

I'm sure this insight will inspire your studying. :)

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photosynthesis

it's a cool word anyway... gnomon! gnomongnomongnomon...

whee...

it certainly has no practical use to me... except it's fun to say. i need sleep...

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photosynthesis

[quote name='Theoketos' date='Nov 16 2005, 01:12 AM']I took the same class. PM me for help. I called the class Math Flavoring.
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math flavoring!!! :lol_roll: :lol_roll: :lol_roll: that's funny...

what was your texbook? Ours is "Excursions in Modern Mathematics."

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