3 Ways Math Helps You in Your Every Day Life

It seems that mathematics is everywhere in the news.

Students are being told that they must get as much math as possible in order to be competitive in today's global economy.

That's all well and good, but what about the average person? Many adults went through school a long time ago and really aren't sure what "global economy" even means.

Is math important in every day life for these people? Absolutely! 3 Ways Math Helps You In Your Every Day Life: 1.

A solid basic math foundation allows you to understand and evaluate what you read.

Numbers are literally everywhere you look.

It is difficult to pick up a magazine or newspaper that isn't filled with data of some sort. The magazine USA Today was developed on and became successful with its concept of visual representation of information.

Many people pick up the magazine just to see what the chart or graph in the lower left corner of the front cover is about.

Of course, an understanding of graphs and charts and often per cents is required if one is to understand what is being pictured.

Yesterday, while in an office waiting room, I pickup a magazine and found an article about the 2010 shooting in Arizona at a political event.
What first caught my attention was the huge picture of a handgun with statistics printed all over the gun.
The gun was intimidating yet mesmerizing and the statistics about gun deaths and murder were shocking.
It was a very effective illustration.

As a society, we also seem to have a "need to know.

" A local example of this involves the United States Air Force Academy.
Recently, "they" started some kind of building project near the South Gate entrance and I-25.

The Academy has so much land that it seldom puts anything near I-25--especially since 9-11.
This construction is unlike anything I have ever seen and the fact it is next to I-25 has everyone in Colorado Springs and probably everyone who drives through the Springs wondering what "they" are building.
There are hundreds of short poles sticking out of the ground over a very large area; and these poles just seem too short for anything.

We all want to know what it is and why is it being placed there? Finally, the local newspaper gave us a glimpse with just a picture and caption underneath--no article.

"It" will be a solar panel facility for generating electricity for the Academy.

The caption included an amazing amount of data related to area covered, number of panels, cost per panel, amount of electricity each will generate, cost of the project and more.
Lots of answers were given, but many more questions were created.

For one, "Is the cost per kwh (kilowatt hour) worth what we tax payers are paying?" 2. A solid foundation in basic math skills including good estimation skills can save you a great deal of money.
At the grocery store, an understanding of the unit pricing information on the price label and making proper decisions as to which quantity to buy can save a few cents or many dollars each week.

Over the course of a year, that savings can become substantial.
Understanding the fine print on sale labels at clothing stores can, again, save a great deal of money. Need to buy a new car? A thorough knowledge of interest rates and how payments are calculated can save you thousands of dollars.

3.
One of the most important reasons for having a strong math foundation is that it keeps you from being cheated.

As an example, several years ago I was helping my mother buy a new (to her) car.

I had discussed with her what monthly payment she could afford, and I had gone to the credit union to find out monthly payments amounts for several different loan amounts and interest rates.
We walked into the dealership very well-informed.
She found the car she wanted and we settled on price with the dealership surprisingly fast.

What happened next would have been funny if it hadn't bordered on illegal.
With price established, the only remaining task was to set up the financing.

When the salesman walked into the cubicle with papers for my mother to sign, I realized the payment amount was over $100 too much per month.
I told him he needed to go recalculate because that amount was too big. He came back ever so apologetic saying that some kind of special insurance had been added in "by mistake.
" His second amount was still over $50 too much per month.

I finally told him that I knew exactly what the monthly payment needed to be, and that needed to be what he came back with on the third attempt.
Had I not been prepared, my mother would have been cheated out of thousands of dollars over the full course of the loan. Every year literally thousands of senior citizens get cheated on home repairs, car repairs, car purchases, etc.

, because they don't check out the math. Senior citizens are by no means the only victims of cheating, but they seem to be more frequently targeted.
Young couples are probably the second most targeted group.

I suspect that car salesmen get absolutely giddy when a young couple walks in the door--fresh meat to cheat! Certainly, the issues of understanding what you read, saving money, and avoidance of cheating are very important, but they are not the only ways people use math everyday.

The logic and problem solving skills you gained in your math classes get used so often and so automatically that you don't even notice when you use them. Yes, I'm very serious.
You know more that you think you do!