I’ve never had much luck with academic advisors… They should understand their system and listen to my information, but in fact they seem to be almost universally just holding a job that has no way to prove malfeasance. Anyway, when I transferred between colleges, the new advisor told me I had to take a 200-level physics class in order to get my math degree. After the prof talked about how to do vector calculations by rote, I asked (after class) if it would be okay if I just use matrix manipulations instead. He told me to PLEASE just go away and come back to take the final because if I asked something in class it would likely confuse EVERYBODY. The situation would have been fun if they hadn’t charged me quite a lot of money to “take” that class… and as a transfer, I had no option to drop it and take something else. Sometimes it DOES pay to understand the next level up.
I had a math class in high school on probability. There were some very bright students who could outsmart the teacher with alternative proofs that came to different answers. I learned something from that.
We were learning component level troubleshooting in Air Force basic electronics. I’d been fiddling with radios in HS had my own little TV repair business (usually tubes and every drug store had a tester and a stock of new ones) I stuck my finger on the volume control, it went mmmm>/i> so the problem was before that. This PO’d the instructor who said it was the wrong technique. It was faster than what he taught. I finished first in every test in half the time. I really wanted to be a photographer but I’ve made a good living since and have the satisfaction that some stuff I worked on is sitting on the moon.
When we moved from math to algebra to plane geometry, I didn’t need a probability curve to determine I should proceed no further. Proved to be true almost immediately. Have used practical math and pg a number of times since in various projects, but I still admire those who went the distance and earned degrees in the higher levels. Without them the moon would still be something to watch on odd nights, the oceans would still be just something that made beaches attractive, and earth quakes would be shown on a bad to really bad scale. Life would be much less interesting.
I nearly failed high school algebra because my teacher graded on each step of the process. I got the right answers, but never through the process he wanted me to use. He never adequately explained how a person could score -3 on a 5-point question.
Colorado over 3 years ago
Why isn’t Caulfield in a talented and gifted program?
Concretionist over 3 years ago
I’ve never had much luck with academic advisors… They should understand their system and listen to my information, but in fact they seem to be almost universally just holding a job that has no way to prove malfeasance. Anyway, when I transferred between colleges, the new advisor told me I had to take a 200-level physics class in order to get my math degree. After the prof talked about how to do vector calculations by rote, I asked (after class) if it would be okay if I just use matrix manipulations instead. He told me to PLEASE just go away and come back to take the final because if I asked something in class it would likely confuse EVERYBODY. The situation would have been fun if they hadn’t charged me quite a lot of money to “take” that class… and as a transfer, I had no option to drop it and take something else. Sometimes it DOES pay to understand the next level up.
garcoa over 3 years ago
I had a math class in high school on probability. There were some very bright students who could outsmart the teacher with alternative proofs that came to different answers. I learned something from that.
cervelo over 3 years ago
I “graphed” the odds???
Flatlander, purveyor of fine covfefe over 3 years ago
We were learning component level troubleshooting in Air Force basic electronics. I’d been fiddling with radios in HS had my own little TV repair business (usually tubes and every drug store had a tester and a stock of new ones) I stuck my finger on the volume control, it went mmmm>/i> so the problem was before that. This PO’d the instructor who said it was the wrong technique. It was faster than what he taught. I finished first in every test in half the time. I really wanted to be a photographer but I’ve made a good living since and have the satisfaction that some stuff I worked on is sitting on the moon.
sandpiper over 3 years ago
When we moved from math to algebra to plane geometry, I didn’t need a probability curve to determine I should proceed no further. Proved to be true almost immediately. Have used practical math and pg a number of times since in various projects, but I still admire those who went the distance and earned degrees in the higher levels. Without them the moon would still be something to watch on odd nights, the oceans would still be just something that made beaches attractive, and earth quakes would be shown on a bad to really bad scale. Life would be much less interesting.
rshive over 3 years ago
Old engineering saying — “Don’t knock it if it works.”
Purple-Stater Premium Member over 3 years ago
I nearly failed high school algebra because my teacher graded on each step of the process. I got the right answers, but never through the process he wanted me to use. He never adequately explained how a person could score -3 on a 5-point question.