Earlyface

was wondering why most of Asian kids
do better in math
and sciences during most international
competitions, with
my little research on other people and
myself I've
discovered that one could actually do most
mathematical
calculations with less/no use of
calculator....am i saying that
i don't use calculator?.(hell No!!! But not
frequently) off
course i know calculator where made to safe
time and
energy and for accuracy , but so some folks
(students) have
become too use to the calculator that
ordinary 8x8 (64) they
cant do except with calculator.
A friend of mine told me that, when he went
for his p/ume at
uniben,("use of calculator, not allowed)
during the exams,
the person that sat next to him was asking
him the result of
6 x4 (24) hmm just imagine that, and he's
aspiring to study
engineering o , it's really funny..indeed..
("could this be exam
tension? Probably)
OK, Here are some tips that could be of help
to any one who
wish to do mathematical calculations with
relatively less use
of calculator and for exam sake & be a
math genius.
1.] LEARN/MEMORIZE FORMULAS .
One of my lecturer told us that, before we
graduate, we
should know at least 2000 formulas, hmm
(kinda impossible
abi?... Not really) we gat powerful brain that
could memorize
almost anything and not just memorizing
but knowing how
to derive/prove it, it really helps when you
know so many
formulas (especially when the question is
straight forward)
and not only that, but applying that formula
to different
questions (as you know every real life
problem have
different ways of solving)
2..] REGULAR PRACTICE
During my secondary school days, one my
math teacher will
say, "solve without thinking" , sounds insane
right? , what he
actually meant was for us to be able know
mathematics to
the extend we could attempt the question
without thinking
much (just within seconds we know what the
question is
saying and how the final answer will look
like.).
when you learn something new in math,try
to know different
methods that could be used to solve
different problems,try
to know quicker and more accurate way of
solving a given
problem, then practice and practice and
practice
until it becomes part of you (maybe even in
your dreams
you could still solve the same problem),
solve as many
exercises as your hands can lay on,if you
come across a
"pretty tough" problem,and after much trial
but not getting it
right, be humble enough to meet your
friend or someone
else with higher knowledge in math than
yourself to put you
through, then learn from your mistakes..and
keep practicing.
3..] TIME YOURSELF
..when i read about Philip, a Nigerian icon ,
how he finished
an hour math exams in less than half the
time(i think,
5mins) and had a perfect score , i almost
didn't believe, i
know many people wont, either so did his
teachers then in
his basic school days, some claim he was
using magic and
all sort..("dono o, only read it)
When i was in sss1, i start timing myself,
i was solving problems on quadratic
equation, gat about 40
of them,since i have learnt different
methods of solving and
was getting it right, i then say let me try and
solve some of
the exercise in less than half the time , at
first i solved about
10 in 6mins,(with 96% accuracy) i was not
satisfied with my
time.., then i continued , solved about 16
more in less than
10min (with about 90% accuracy) all without
using calculator
that was when i began to develop on my
speed and
accuracy, even when i got to the university,
i finished a 1hr
30mins maths exams(MA105 , Trig.) in less
than 20mins (no
joke, no lies no pride) and got more than
90%,.....
4..] TALK LESS /THINK MORE br /> Most real
genius don't talk much , to really be a maths
genius, you must learn to discipline your
tongue , Cause the
more you talk , the less you assimilate /
build up your
creativity & IQ , i was a victim till i realized
the above point .
5..] G-FACTOR br /> ..."EXCEPT GOD BUILDS A
HOUSE , IN VAIN IS THE WORK OF
THE LABORERS , EXCEPT GOD WATCHES A CITY
, THE
WATCHMEN 'S EFFORT IS INFINITESIMAL ...."
see, whether you like it or not , God remains
the giver of life
& knowledge ( he's omniscience ) .
most scientist /mathematicians got their
inspiration /ideas
from God , so pray to him & trust him even
in your
academics (...trust in the lord with all your
heart , and lean
not unto your own understanding, in all your
ways
acknowledge him & he shall direct your path
.
6..] KILL THE PRIDE br /> The mark of a
true hero is humility. To be frank with you ,
you may be a "genius" being proud /
egoistic , but only for a
shot time neither will you make substantial
impact/impart in
your immediate environ & generations to
come , you hardly
get to learn much , people get to hate you &
they hardly will
share useful information with you .
there was this friend of mine , real math
genius , when he
was in secondary school , one of my my
aunt then in a
higher institution was given an assignment
on calculus,
which she didn't know how to solve , tried &
tried ,no way.
took it to some folks ,still no green light ,
then i suggested
she should show that my friend but said this
is advance level
stuff oo , how could a secondary school dude
know the
solution. (you see pride ? ) but she later did
& to her
surprise he devoured the question with
confirm solution ,
since then she always humbled herself to
learn from him .
those worked/ are working for me
you could try too.
Hope this little write up impart,
please add more tips that would be of help....
thanks for your time