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RustyBattleship · 06-28-2006, 14:48 PM

I originally hated math (except geometry) in high school because the Algebra teacher had absolutely no idea what practical applications it had in real life. However, in Physics class I excelled because I could "see" the math working inside the structures of levers, wheels, block and tackle, etc.

There is a difference between a mathematician who only knows ways of juggling numbers around that are totally meaningless. But then there are engineers and practical scientists that use math to build things and explain how and why things work.

I invented an engineering formula myself because I had a couple of steel rings on my desk that had undergone strength tests. One stretched a quarter of an inch and the other did not. Rourke's Formulas for Stress and Strain had no formula estimating the strength of a steel ring in tension. Engineering books by Shanley and Timoshenko had a meaningless formula because they admitted that for some strange reason the rings were always much stronger (when tested to destruction) than their formulas said they sould be. Taking other tests done on steel rings back in 1947 I started putting the numbers together and BACK engineered them. One engineer in my office suggested using the modulus of PLASTICITY instead of ELASTICITY that the "standard" formulas used. Of course. When trying to stretch a CIRCULAR steel ring, you are not actually trying to pull it apart as with a long link or elliptical shape. You are compressing the sides into each other. There were also two "K" factors included and I found by swapping them I came out with a formula that was within 5% of all rings tested to yield failure (not breaking, but permanent stretching).

So, teach the right kinds of math to the right kinds of people who would benefit most from it. If a student loves science class and likes to blow up rockets on the football field, lead him in the right direction of thermo-dynamics and structural strengths. If the student only likes to bake cakes, send him or her to chef's school (NOT just home economics).

06-28-2006, 14:48 PM	#21 (permalink)
RustyBattleship *Defense Professional* Join Date: 01-12-06 Location: Long Beach, CA Posts: 2,670	I originally hated math (except geometry) in high school because the Algebra teacher had absolutely no idea what practical applications it had in real life. However, in Physics class I excelled because I could "see" the math working inside the structures of levers, wheels, block and tackle, etc. There is a difference between a mathematician who only knows ways of juggling numbers around that are totally meaningless. But then there are engineers and practical scientists that use math to build things and explain how and why things work. I invented an engineering formula myself because I had a couple of steel rings on my desk that had undergone strength tests. One stretched a quarter of an inch and the other did not. Rourke's Formulas for Stress and Strain had no formula estimating the strength of a steel ring in tension. Engineering books by Shanley and Timoshenko had a meaningless formula because they admitted that for some strange reason the rings were always much stronger (when tested to destruction) than their formulas said they sould be. Taking other tests done on steel rings back in 1947 I started putting the numbers together and BACK engineered them. One engineer in my office suggested using the modulus of PLASTICITY instead of ELASTICITY that the "standard" formulas used. Of course. When trying to stretch a CIRCULAR steel ring, you are not actually trying to pull it apart as with a long link or elliptical shape. You are compressing the sides into each other. There were also two "K" factors included and I found by swapping them I came out with a formula that was within 5% of all rings tested to yield failure (not breaking, but permanent stretching). So, teach the right kinds of math to the right kinds of people who would benefit most from it. If a student loves science class and likes to blow up rockets on the football field, lead him in the right direction of thermo-dynamics and structural strengths. If the student only likes to bake cakes, send him or her to chef's school (NOT just home economics). Last edited by RustyBattleship : 06-28-2006 at 15:05 PM.