I have always been horrible at math, but somehow a great programmer. I have found that writing a computer program that demonstrates a certain mathematical concept enables me to better understand the concept. I'm a psych major and I brought this up once in the research lab I've been working in. My prof said he recalls that someone did research and/or created a system in which a student writes a computer program that is pertinent to a certain mathematical concept and upon completion is given the regular math problem (as it would appear in a math class). This enables the student to better understand the math problem, solve, and learn math. Has anyone heard of this or anything similar? A learning system such as this would be a blessing to my education. Thanks.
posted by fightoplankton on Apr 13, 2009 - 15 answers

I've just started dating someone who studies serious hardcore applied math. I am a complete and utter math idiot who is lost at anything above multiplication tables. I would like to sort of understand what is going on inside his massive, beautiful brain. Help? [more inside]
posted by logovisual on Sep 11, 2008 - 33 answers

There's a smart freshman who's going to be in my school's Academic Decathlon team next year. However, Academic Decathlon tests over all of high school math, so I ask: How can I teach a fast learner an overview of high school math in around 7 months? [more inside]
posted by LSK on Apr 3, 2008 - 6 answers

Mathfilter: Have you ever found any really, really good explanations of complicated mathematics topics online? Where "good" here gives higher marks for clarity, analogies, examples, and even aesthetics than for strict formal completeness, though that's not taken lightly either. (E.g.) [More inside] [more inside]
posted by tss on Oct 3, 2004 - 8 answers