I need Calculator Advice.

[Q Classic]

i say ti89.

although, if you want sheer power and pleasure, if not so much in graphic, go with hp...

you'll have to get it off ebay, these days, though. lord, how i miss those calcs.

[Immortal Wombat]

Ah. It all becomes clear.
I always found/find it more fun to work those out by hand.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
*ahem* You said:

Universities are about general enlightenment and education and understanding

Philosophy definetly falls under general enlightenment .

If you say so, I meant general enlightenment so you can better understand the world.

Reading someone else's words who died 2000 years ago rambling about the shinbag and the anti-shinbag conflicting in the time-space continuum and the multiple choices it brings is a waste of time, money, and is certainly not enlightening.

Yes I have... and I don't see why I should have to know how to do derivatives in my head (though I did at one time, when I wasn't allowed to use calculators to do so... grrr).

Well, I don't expect you to understand as a social-sciencey kinda guy, Imran. That's why you don't need to take much maths.

[Imran Siddiqui]

I meant general enlightenment so you can better understand the world.

DING DING DING! You just described the reason for studying philosophy in university . That's exactly what it is.

Though I don't expect you to understand as a math kinda guy.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
DING DING DING! You just described the reason for studying philosophy in university . That's exactly what it is.

Though I don't expect you to understand as a math kinda guy.

There's a reason poli sci was near the bottom of "what is your degree worth" rating, and politicians are considered the biggest scums of the earth.

Philosophy is teaching you what other people think. I guess that's fine for people who don't know how to think but like to pretend like they're intelligent, like Agathon for example...

[Imran Siddiqui]

Philosophy is teaching you what other people think.

Yes, in order to develop your own thoughts from reading a diverse collection of others. Like they say... standing on the shoulders of giants.

And, of course, it can be VERY enlightening. Reading Nietzche for the first time totally changed my entire world view around.

[Ramo]

I agree, my high school permitted graphing calculators, and when I got to university I had to re-learn so much stuff since I was overly dependant on the graphing calculator to do everything. I understand the mechanics and fundamentals of mathematics much better now that I was forbidden from using calculators.

What, exactly, are the "mechanics" and "fundamentals" of finding, say, 14! or exp(5.6)? It's not possible to evaluate these to any significant degree of accuracy/reasonable amount of time without a calculator.

I would agree that calculators should be prohibited in an arithmetic exam, but it makes absolutely no sense to prohibit calculators in a Probability course.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Ramo
What, exactly, are the "mechanics" and "fundamentals" of finding, say, 14! or exp(5.6)? It's not possible to evaluate these to any significant degree of accuracy/reasonable amount of time without a calculator.

The test is designed knowing students don't have access to calculators, so they don't ask for 14! or exp(5.6). The test is about, say, calculus, and not arithmetic.

[Dinner]

My high school never permitted graphing calculators but in college they just assumed you knew what you were doing if you'd made it this far. By and large they were correct.

[Ramo]

My Probability tests were not designed that way. A calculator was required.

[Asher]

If a calculator was required, I'd bet they let you use one, then? If they make the questions with huge, weird, long unimportant calculations, a calculator should be required.

But if the prof is halfway decent, he should be able to create questions with easy numbers and simply test the stuff the test is on...

[Ramo]

Not that I'm saying it's a good policy, but that's how Probability classes generally are.

[Asher]

Also, in many cases, they don't even require you to evaluate 14! or exp(5.6), they allow you to leave them in that form.

[Immortal Wombat]

Originally posted by Asher

The test is designed knowing students don't have access to calculators, so they don't ask for 14! or exp(5.6). The test is about, say, calculus, and not arithmetic.

So if it is designed (rightly) so you don't need calculators, why ban them?

[Asher]

Originally posted by Immortal Wombat
So if it is designed (rightly) so you don't need calculators, why ban them?

Because people can use the calculators to get the answers, ie do a matrix multiply, without understanding how it's done. The arithmetic, however, is usually very basic.