Photo courtesy of luca pedrotti

As I announced earlier this week, I’m retiring Film Friday.  While I had a lot of fun looking for videos to share with you, the posts didn’t get a lot of traffic.  Remembering that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results, I’ve decided to get off this merry-go-round.

That doesn’t mean I’ll never include videos again.  In fact, I’d like to do video posts where I’m actually on screen to teach you a few things.  But for now, I’m taking a different route.  (Get the details here.)

So for today, we bid adieu to Film Friday here at Math for Grownups.  And as a parting gift, I share my favorite videos with you!

This video is so gorgeous.  I could watch it over and over again. (And I have.)

Ursus Wehrli is both infuriatingly precise and hilarious.

Do you remember the difference between the deficit and the debt ceiling?

Now that's bored! (Photo courtesy of CoreForce)

I’m bored with my blog.

There.  I said it.  And I think some of you feel the same way.  I don’t blame you.

While I think we’ve gotten off to a good start here at Math for Grownups, I also think it’s time to shake things up.  There are so many more opportunities to show you how you use math in everyday life — and perhaps teach you some new tricks.

So starting on November 2, there are going to be some changes around here.  Good changes.

I’m keeping what’s working (Math at Work Monday) and chucking what isn’t (Film Friday).  I’m also shifting my posting schedule a little. Instead of posting on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, I’ll post on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Plus, I’m introducing monthly themes.  Not only will this help me come up with great, timely ideas, but it’ll also tap into things that you are probably already wondering about.  Here’s a taste:

• November is for Nesting: As the seasons change (for some of us), we turn our thoughts to cozying up our home and spending time with family.
• December is for Holidays: Whether you celebrate religious or secular holidays, there’s a festive buzz in the air.
• January is for Resolutions: Even if you don’t make New Year’s resolutions, starting something fresh is probably on your mind.

You can still visit on Mondays to see how ordinary folks use ordinary math in their ordinary jobs.  But now my interviews will follow that month’s theme.  So in November, you can expect to meet folks who help you transition into winter or focus more on home: a radiator technician, a landscaper, a fabric designer and a chef.

On Wednesdays, I’ll post about the math used in these fields.  For example, I may teach you how to figure out if your heating bill is accurate or show you the math of winterizing your windows.  Or I may investigate how ratios are used by chefs.

And on Fridays, I’ll be scouring the internet and my brain for projects.  I might show you how to build radiator covers or sew new curtains or how to be sure the turkey comes out of the oven perfectly cooked.  Of course these projects will involve a little math.

Oh, and in November or December, I’ll roll out a new design for the blog.  Yay!

This is your chance to make requests. (Okay, it’s not your only chance.  You can always tell me what you think.)  If you’ve been waiting to see a job profiled or learn about something that’s always bugged you, post in the comments section.  These can be monthly theme ideas, projects or general math concepts that you’d like me to illuminate for you.  I promise I’ll take everyone’s thoughts into consideration.

And I’m always looking for folks to interview for Math at Work Mondays.  Right now, I’m on the prowl for a chef, a landscaper and a candle maker.  (Not a butcher, a baker, a candlestick maker — but pretty darned close!) Feel free to email me with your ideas or post in the comments section.

Ah… not bored any more!

Welcome to my first Math for Grownups contest!  Here’s the background.

Maybe you’ve seen this image on Facebook or somewhere else on the web:

Get it? Funny, huh?

There are so many different ways that this fellow could have represented $536.49, and I think this is one of the misunderstood beauties of math.  We were often taught that there is only one way to do a problem — but for the most part, there are many, many different ways to arrive at the correct answer.

And that’s the beauty of being grownups.  We get to choose our own paths, right?

And here are the contest deets:

How would you have expressed $536.49?  Get creative.  Get complicated if you want.  The only catch is what you describe has to equal approximately $536.49 (in other words, rounded to the nearest 10th or cent).

Here’s an example: (67 x 8 ) + (0.7)^2.  (^2 means “squared,” which I use because it’s not easy to use superscripts in these blog posts.)

And here are the rules:

1.  Post your response in the comments section here or on the Math for Grownups facebook page, by Monday, October 24 at midnight EDT.

2.  Your response must be unique.  That means, you must read through the other responses before posting yours.  If there are two or more comments with the same correct response, I will accept only the first response.

3.  You can respond up to five times.

4. The winner will be chosen randomly from all of the correct responses.  (In other words, if your math doesn’t work out, your name will not be entered into the drawing.)

5.  If you have five correct answers, your name will be entered five times.

6. One winner will receive a signed copy of Math for Grownups and a Starbucks gift card valued at $[(4 x 2) - (8-10)].  (Figure that out!)

7.  I will contact the winner for his or her address so that I can send out the gift card.

Good luck!

Photo courtesy of maaco

Is your Kindle or Nook hankering for some math?  Is your tablet or computer sorely lacking in number crunching?

Today is your lucky day.  Actually, this week is your lucky week!

Until Friday, September 10, you can download Math for Grownups for free — yep, $0 0¢ — on your eReader or computer.  That’s how much I and my publisher (Adams Media) love you.

So what are you waiting for?  Click on over to the Adams Media blog to get your free electronic copy of Math for Grownups.

Oh, and if you’re a traditionalist, you can purchase Math for Grownups at your local bookstore or online at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

Email from Amazon says to anticipate an earlier delivery of your book– between June 22-25 instead of mid-July!

Wowee!

In fact, Amazon and Barnes and Noble are showing that it’s in stock.

If you haven’t ordered your very own copy, you can do it here: Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

All ten of my advance copies. Woo-hoo!

It was just a little brown box on my porch.  Inside were ten copies of Math for Grownups.

Unlike the baby I had nearly 11 years ago, I had no clue this one was on its way.  The book doesn’t hit the shelves until July 18, but this novice book author had no idea about advance copies. Duh.

I have to say that these little guys are just about as adorable as my daughter.  (Okay, not nearly as adorable, but still.)  The cover is like a composition notebook with a rough feel — really neat.  And it’s not a huge, intimidating tome, like lots of math books are.

Great day here at my house.  My first baby graduated elementary school and my other baby landed on my doorstep.  Time to celebrate!

Photo courtesy of theunquietlibrarian

So when does math make you crazy in your everyday life?  Are there situations that make your hands sweat?

On selected Fridays, I’ll host an open thread where you can ask your questions or share your specific frustrations with everyday math.  And if you see a question from someone else that you can answer? Go for it!  I’ll select questions for future posts here at Math For Grownups.  In those posts, I’ll show you easy ways to get around these frustrations.

So let ‘er rip in the comments section.  Ask about fractions or grocery store math or the best way to place a bet on the ponies. Just remember that we’re not here to do your homework for you.  And leave your calculus, trig and diff eq questions for another blog.

Whatcha got?

Photo courtesy of Aaron Escobar

The biggest fights my father and I had were about math.  I kid you not.

The year was 1984.  I was a junior in high school, taking Algebra II.  Radicals were kicking my scrawny, little butt.

(Remember radicals?  They look like this: [pmath]sqrt{24}[/pmath]. In Algebra II, you mostly learned to simplify them, as well as add, subtract, multiply and divide with them.)

My father wanted to help, and he had the patience of Job.  But he was not great at accepting that I didn’t understand.  And I wasn’t great at controlling my emotions.  I hollered, cried and probably threw things.  Somehow, I got the impression that my dad thought I couldn’t do math, and I did what any strong-willed girl will: I dug in my heels.

That’s when I started drinking coffee, actually.  I was so determined to show my dad–and my Algebra II teacher, Mr. Gardner–that I got up at 4:30 a.m., sat in my dad’s easy chair with a cup of coffee and a stack of sharpened pencils, and did problem after problem after problem.

I did every single radicals problem in the textbook.  And then I did them again. I took what Mr. Gardner and my dad taught me and figured the darned things out.  It took time, but I was determined not to give up.

Why on earth would I do this?  Well, I’m stubborn, for one.  But probably the biggest reason is Mrs. Ivey.  She was my geometry teacher the year before, and she changed my perspective about math.  You see, before then, I knew I couldn’t do math.  Mrs. Ivey convinced me that I was wrong.

She and my father are the reasons I majored in math.  I found out I’m a math teacher, not a mathematician. (Sometimes we’re one or the other.)  I’m fascinated by the ways people choose to do math, not by complex computations or proofs.

Math geeks aren’t always born.  Sometimes a teacher inspires us.  Sometimes we’re dragged kicking and screaming. And sometimes we just learn to deal with math–because we have to.

What’s your math story? Share it in the comments section!