Re: [FRIAM] Arthur Benjamin's formula for changing math education | Video on TED.com

> I am reading Spivak's book(s) on differential geometry (there are 5
> volumes).  This includes topics like vector bundles, tensors, Lie  
> groups,
> Riemannian metrics and de Rahm cohomology.  I find the notation to be
> beautiful and succinct and I think it would be very difficult to  
> treat those
> topics with only the symbols on a standard keyboard.  Obviously TeX  
> or other
> tools can convert such symbols to the elegant notation but...
>
> Frank
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: discuss-bounces@...
> [mailto:discuss-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Joseph Traub
> Sent: Monday, June 29, 2009 8:20 PM
> To: Owen Densmore; friam@...
> Cc: Joseph Traub; discuss@...
> Subject: [sfx: Discuss] [FRIAM] Arthur Benjamin's formula for  
> changing math
> education | Video on TED.com
>
> Owen,
>
> I find nothing to argue with in Benjamin's talk. He says that students
> studying economics, science, engineering, or math should learn  
> calculus
> but that it may not be needed by other students who should study
> probability and statistics.
>
> However, I don't understand your comment that math notation is the  
> roman
> numerals of our times. Which branch of math do you have in mind?  
> Certainly
> not calculus, where, as you know, we use Leibniz's elegant notation.
>
> I also don't follow your comment about discrete versus continuous.
> Among theoretical computer scientists, people who want to understand
> the power of the computer and questions such as P vs NP study discrete
> problems whereas people like me who want to solve problems
> coming from, say, physics or computational finance think about solving
> continuous problems such as path integration.
>
> Best, Joe
> <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>
> Joseph F. Traub,   Edwin Howard Armstrong Professor of Computer  
> Science
>                    and External Professor, Santa Fe Institute
>
> traub@...          http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~traub
>
> Phone: (212) 939-7013    Messages: (212) 939-7000    Fax: (212)  
> 666-0140
>
> Columbia University
> Computer Science Department
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> USA
>
> Administrative Assistant: Sophie Majewski
> sophie@... (212)939-7023
>
>
> **************************************************************
>
>  From: Owen Densmore <owen@...>
>  Date: June 29, 2009 12:07:14 PM MDT
>  To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
> <friam@...>,
>  General topics & issues <discuss@...>
>  Subject: [FRIAM] Arthur Benjamin's formula for changing math  
> education |
>  Video on TED.com
>  Reply-To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
>  <friam@...>
>
>  This is kinda cool and less than 3 minutes long!
>
> http://www.ted.com/talks/arthur_benjamin_s_formula_for_changing_math_educati
> on.h
>  tml
>
>  The thesis is a different spin on my claim that modern Math  
> Notation (MN)
> is
>  the roman numerals of our times.  Arthur Benjamin clearly explains
>  that  statistics and probability should be the "pinnacle" of our  
> basic
> math
>  education, not calculus.  His reasoning includes the discrete vs
> continuous
>  argument that resonates with my MN vs Algorithm (or MN vs script)  
> concern,
>  which I'd love to see resolved in a parsable reworking of MN.
>
>     -- Owen
>
>
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