There is no doubt that mathematics is essential (you have to do it to be a doctor, scientist or even put your own furniture together). But it’s also quite boring! Here are some books to make mathematics more interesting. Good for your children (many of us failed maths at school as it was so boring!) and also good for you. Mathematics is an essential part of life (numbers are just as important as words). Hopefully these books can set up the next generation a bit better, than we did – falling asleep at the back of the class, due to uninspiring maths teachers!
The animal kingdom can also be quite good at maths. Parents have to count how many ducklings they have etc, and bees in particular perform a fascinating ‘waggle dance’ where they shake their tummies at the precise angle where the pollen is, to alert other bees to find it, to make honey. It’s also been noted how dolphins can count other dolphins when they go hunting, and crows can make tools and solve problems, that would baffle a 5-year old child.
For us, being good at maths helps us to exercise the left side of our brain, and it also helps us to handle money, tell the time, balance the budget, follow recipes, and generally find the world a little easier to live in.
Everyday Mathematics Made Easy is a quick review, of everything you forgot you knew, from school. This easy-to-understand handbook teaches real-life examples of maths that you can use in everyday life. Finally figure out arithmetic, fractions and decimals, averages, ratios, percentages and geometry. Then use sidebars to use these skills for cooking (adjust recipes and thaw food, convert imperial to metric), shopping (determine the best deals and know how much to tip at restaurants), finances (figure out mortgage and interest rates, determine the value of a car and find the best value petrol and determine currency exchanges) and home (take accurate room measurements, determine the correct size of furniture to fit into a space), know how much water to add, how much it costs to run appliances and if a rotting tree may hit your house!)
The Math of Life and Death looks at the 7 ways maths affects our daily lives. This ‘welcome addition to maths for people who hate maths’ takes us a dazzling tour of how maths affects DNA testing, and historic events like the Cherrnobyl disaster. You’ll end up with an enlightened perspective on the news, law, medicine and history, and be better equipped to make personal decisions and solve problems with maths in mind – from choosing the shortest checkout at the grocery, to halting the spread of a deadly disease.
Elementary: The Periodic Table Explained shows chemistry’s significant chart with its 118 elements, in this lively and accessible expose of the table created by a Russian chemist in the 1860s. The visual aid to chemical elements is accompanied by an engaging narrative. Learn of the first three elements (hydrogen, lithium and helium) that created ‘ the big bang’, then learn of oxygen and carbon (that sustain all life on earth) and many other elements including fluorine, krypton and arsenic!
