2003-01-13 Americans and other users of FFU are no better of at comprehending fractions then those who use SI. I bet if you gave Joe Six-pack a test on manipulating fractions, he'd fail. Most people who encounter fractions in school spend their time in a dark cloud of confusion, learn (or cheat) just enough to pass the test and are relieved when it is over.
Even while watching old reruns of "Leave it to Beaver", it is comical to watch Wally complain of the hardship of learning fractions. I remember a couple of episodes where fractions was brought up in relation to doing math homework. It seemed the only subject mentioned when school math was brought up were fractions. The truth is, most Americans, as I'm sure most people everywhere else, are only comfortable with a few simple, basic fractions. That is half, quarter and eighth. Sixteenth is only used by people who make things and thirty-second and beyond is either rarely, or never mentioned. This is the extent of most peoples experience with fractions. Any type of actual math with fractions is not done. It is avoided like the plague. To say American brains are wired to use fractions is nonsense. John ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Joy" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, 2003-01-13 04:41 Subject: [USMA:24454] Re: the U.S., etc. > John said:- > > "It has been determined that three out of four Americans believe three out > of four is 68 %." (Scott Roeben) > **************** > > I think Mr Roeben has hit the nail on the metric head, so to speak. > > It's possible that Americans will have a much harder time accepting the SI > system because it's not a fractional-based system. > > If you're taught from day one to measure and calculate things in fractions > as US schools do, then of course the answer would be 68% instead of 75%. > > It's very hard to unwire all those brain cells and rewire them to think in > decimal terms - much easier to stick with FFU, even if it's the most > illogical system in the world. > > Would this account for the in-built resistance to the SI system? > > Food for thought. > > Mike >
