Do you use algebra in everyday life???

I know a lot of you will think this is ridiculous lol, but for a small homework assignment Im supposed to ask two people if they ever use algebra in their daily lives...and if so, how?
a little help would awesome!
-Emoguy

sure.

in cooking, home repair, etc.

sure, i may not actually write down "(x*4) + 6 = 18" on a piece of paper, but the concepts come into use all the time.

Nope. And I can answer for the rest of my family as well: Nope.

Other than Plus, minus, divide, and multiply, I haven't used any math outside of the education system.

not everyday but i do use algebra often. One time it helped to get myself and 4 of my fellow employees 1000 dollar raises.

wow, I wish I had 1000 dollar raise
thanks everyone!!!

Algebra no, geometry all the time. And it doesn't hurt to understand the concepts behind it, numbers, facts, figures, statistics are thrown around all the time. Best to know your way around!

dosent everyone technically use it?, If i want to work out a percentage of something in a shop then it would be

x percent = x/y * 100

Most of us would use this same formula to work it out even if were not conscious of it.

All the time:
At work we sometimes need algebra to calculate prices, break-even points, advertising budgets etc.

And having just moved into a new apartment and fitted a kitchen I'm glad for all the geometry I've been forced to learn as well

We use it at work once a week to calculate the ad to editorial ratio in our paper

All the time, calculus use is a rarity though...

I'm glad you asked that question.
I'm taking algebra, for my second year (since our state raised the requirements, now everyone has to get knocked down and start way back in algebra), and i don't like it. lol.
The basics is the only really thing IMO that we should really care about, that's really the only thing we will care to use!
Like, I don't know WHO is going to use the quadratic formula in REAL life, except for someone with a job like that.
Sometimes it gets irritating.

Same thing with physics,
i dont know ANYONE who calculates the IMA (Ideal Mechanical Advantage) of ANYTHING. Maybe some people do, but i'm going to go out on a limb, and say most people DONT. It seems like they (education system) tries to shove so much crap down our throat before we're outta there, it goes so fast we don't even remember or understand most of it.

But to answer your question, i'm going to go with goobimama and say no, excluding school.

Yes, at work.

There was this one time, when a lecturer put a math problem on the board. I solved it in my mind and shouted out the answer. So he asks me to explain how I got the answer. I had no idea how I did it, but I was sure of the answer...

It is also exercise for your brain. Using logic to figure out solutions (it is more prevalent in geometry) is never a bad thing.

Haha, absolutely not. I haven't taken math since my junior year in high school, and thanks to me testing out with an "A," I never have to take it again. Anytime I do anything math related, I pull out the TI-89, lol.

Emoguy55 said:

I know a lot of you will think this is ridiculous lol, but for a small homework assignment Im supposed to ask two people if they ever use algebra in their daily lives...and if so, how?
a little help would awesome!
-Emoguy

Click to expand...

Only algebra?! I use math all of the time. Here's an algebra example.

I have a car that gets at least 20mi/gal around town, and it has a 15gal tank. I've gone 200 miles on the current tank, and am about to take a small trip that is 30 miles in each direction. Do I have enough gas to make the trip? If I don't buy any gas, how much gas will I have after the trip? This is usually followed by the very subjective question, "Am I pushing my luck by not putting any gas in the car before I go?" ;D

Hope this helps!

i am a fashion merchandising major and we will have to use algebra and simple math to figure out gross sales, profit/loss, gross wages, etc.

and if something is on sale when i am shopping, i pull out my phone and calculate how much i am getting off the retail price.

januhhh said:

...
if something is on sale when i am shopping, i pull out my phone and calculate how much i am getting off the retail price.

Click to expand...

I've done that, too.

I'm generally 'tethered' to my cell phone calculator because I don't calculate well in my head. I don't use algebra every day, but at least a couple times a week.

I use it often, for billing and pricing informaiton.. but I also use in final cut to to manipulate objects in the motion tab.