I’m currently reading selected parts of “Analytical Institutions”, the 1801 edition of John Colson’s translation of Maria Gaetana Agnesi’s 1748 text. Near the beginning of her second book, she presents the following theorem. Consider the diagrams: In each diagram, H, I, and M are points along the x-axis and are equally spaced. A, B, and E…
Author: Clio
Being and Nothingness
A reflection. To be, or not to be, that is the question. I am a White person in a male body, 52 years old. I am married to a woman. I have a child, a stable job, and a home. I am so ordinary. I could live the rest of my life out with my head…
Questioning, Not Answering
Another Rant on “Mathematical” Puzzles A few months ago, I complained about those internet memes which claim to be mathematics. My complaint about them is about the presentation, not the underlying problems: “Only 1% of people get this right!” The questions are framed to encourage people to feel stupid about math. Please don’t feel stupid about math….
About That Syrup Thing…
Why are some White people so upset about losing Aunt Jemima? Please note: I’m White. While I’m glad you’re reading this, make sure you’re reading Black voices. If you decide to skip this and do that instead, wonderful. Some suggestions: Ijeoma Oluo, Ibram X. Kendi, Matthew Kay, Carol Anderson, bell hooks, Patrisse Khan-Cullors, Angie Thomas, and…
Gnat
i am a gnat and one day i will die crushed by a wiper on a windshield of an indifferent car no eulogy no funeral just a snear for a gravesite as a reminder that i was here ptkh 052220
The Eye of the Dragon
We obscure the beauty of mathematics when we jump straight to the end. The last few weeks, for our virtual, quarantine edition of Algebra II, we’ve been exploring the unit circle. I’ve been trying to wrap my mind around how to describe the way I see too many mathematical concepts introduced, with a standard presentation…
Should we cancel cancelling “cancel”?
One word is being scapegoated for student misunderstanding. A recent trend in mathematics education is the idea that we should never, ever say the word “cancel”. The argument for the prosecution is reasonable, and I will lay it out first. But I think the problem isn’t the word itself, but rather how we approach language…
Non-Binary “They” and Style Guides
In this article, I will summarize the advice offered in modern style guides regarding the use of “they” in the singular. First, though, I’ll provide some background. Background I grew up on Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style, which clearly forbids using “they” in the singular. In fact, for those cases where we don’t know…
Ten Influential Albums
Last week I was finally tagged in one of those items: “Post a _____ every day for _____ days, without comment.” In this case, it was “Post an influential album every day for ten days, then tag someone else.” Right off the bat, by the way, I’m not tagging anyone else. Anyone who wants to…
Operations on Fractions
A tale of carts and horses. My child is in fifth grade. Last Friday, we received the second volume of his mathematics workbook. It starts with multiplication of fractions; the next chapter is division of fractions. Addition (and subtraction) of fractions with different denominators is in the first volume. I believe this order persists partly…