Comment by IllustriousTie8174 on 24/07/2024 at 19:25 UTC

0 upvotes, 3 direct replies (showing 3)

View submission: Ask Anything Wednesday - Engineering, Mathematics, Computer Science

If someone isn’t particularly great at math or gifted at math, do you believe there’s a way for them to be able to excel and take advanced math courses? If so how could one do so?

Replies

Comment by Direct_Bus3341 at 24/07/2024 at 19:38 UTC

8 upvotes, 0 direct replies

The problem will ultimately become one of interest, and it’s difficult to study something without innate interest in it especially at higher levels. If your course requires a math class then you might be able to get through - plenty of courses require higher level math to be studied than is used - but if your course involves visualisation and computation it’s always good to not be afraid of math.

As for what is humanly possible, there is no answer to this question. Math itself has so many subfields and people who excel at, say, algebra may not be the best at geometry, although they will be competent.

Comment by mfukar at 24/07/2024 at 21:54 UTC

7 upvotes, 0 direct replies

The same way everybody becomes good at math, practice.

Comment by Future-Many7705 at 24/07/2024 at 20:42 UTC

3 upvotes, 0 direct replies

Practice, talent is overrated. Hard work beats talent unless talent works just as hard.

Brian Cox, a leading physicist, wasn’t good at math but had a passion and worked his way to the top of his field

Math isn’t something you have or don’t. Math is an intuition you build by working problems.

Most people who are “good” at math are because they enjoy the work and so enjoy playing with the equations and develop an appreciation for the process rather than just the answer.