I remember a High School math class in Freshman year where another kid asked the teacher “Does any of this stuff have any relevance to what we’ll be doing in life? Basic math, OK, but when are we gonna learn how to use the cosine?” And I spoke up and replied “We’re not, but our parents are paying school taxes, and they want to think we’re learning really advanced stuff, so the school teaches us stuff that our parents haven’t used in so long that they’ve forgotten it exists.”
The teacher gave me a look, and then a very, very small nod.
I remember a High School math class in Freshman year where another kid asked the teacher “Does any of this stuff have any relevance to what we’ll be doing in life? Basic math, OK, but when are we gonna learn how to use the cosine?” And I spoke up and replied “We’re not, but our parents are paying school taxes, and they want to think we’re learning really advanced stuff, so the school teaches us stuff that our parents haven’t used in so long that they’ve forgotten it exists.”
The teacher gave me a look, and then a very, very small nod.