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What first got you interested in Mathematics?

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I first became interested in it as it was the first subject I noticed I was good at, early on in primary school it was pretty much the only thing I did well in - it compensated for my lack of ability in English inparticular. It was always a good feeling being above the rest, and this made the subject enjoyable. Plus through secondary school I had my friend (who was the only person at my school to match me in maths), and we'd have competitions between us, always trying to one-up the other, which turned what was a very boring GCSE syllabus into a competition of who could lose the least UMS. (I won :woo:

)

Nowadays, I like it for the challenge, overcoming problems and stuff, trying to work things out. I find it more interesting at A-Level than I did at GCSE (and even AS).

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 21

Tobedotty

a^n+b^n=c^n

Spoiler

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 22

kerily

I hated it until I was in Y10 :lol:

My maths education until then was utter ****e; we had teachers who taught us simplistic rubbish (one highlight involved learning how to add one-digit numbers. IN YEAR EIGHT) and none of them had realised that I had any brain cells whatsoever, let alone that I might have an aptitude for maths. But I got a really, really good teacher in Y10 who realised that I was pretty good at it and actually took me seriously, which I appreciated.

I took maths and further maths for a-level because I initially intended to study astrophysics. I then realised that maths was substantially more fun, and am doing that for a degree instead.

Reply 23

Raiden10

Original post by hassi94

I was attracted to it from an early age because I was good at it. When you're the best at something between everyone you know, you make sure it stays that way haha. I always wanted to study medicine for my degree until a level. Most people say they only started enjoying maths in a level. I was a little different, I realised I didn't enjoy bio/chem at a level. I did begin to enjoy maths even more and realised that it was something I loved. I started to read more, care more and soon enough I realised there was no subject id rather study.

oh and im on my phone so sorry for spelling errors, I could've been more clear with somethings but i made sentences concise cause I don't like typing a lot on this.

I did Biology and Chemistry at A-level as well as maths, probably enjoyed chemistry more. I don't remember enjoying maths that much at A-level, but I was very good at it. Same with chemistry, which I thought about doing at uni. I ended up doing maths, although I wasn't sure. Seems stupid now, because I loved uni maths. Some people I knew didn't. Ho-hum.

Reply 24

Miryo

I think the main reason I got to like it was because I was good at it, now its just an essential part of my life that I now could make me some money in the future.

Reply 25

3nTr0pY

I study mathematics because I want moar POWER.

When applied to physics, maths is a great way of packaging complex ideas without having to go through the whole rigmarole of physical insights every time a new question is posed. In itself, maths is a beautiful and subtle language which sheds light about the nature of reality in all sorts of impressively mind-boggling ways.

Reply 26

Dirac Spinor

Never really had any natural ability for maths, still don't tbh. I moved to a different country where I couldn't speak the language which meant the only subject I was capable of doing was maths. After that I figured it was OK.

Spoiler

Reply 27

Apeiron

Finding that I was reasonably good at it in Year 11 and then in the sixth form being shown the proof for Euler's formula and thus:

e^{i\pi} + 1 = 0

Reply 28

Contrad!ction.

I really did not like it at GCSE, it bored me and one of my friends was getting bullied during the lessons so I spent most of the time talking to him.

Only took A-level maths to begin with. It was a new teacher, he'd just joined as head of maths, and his lessons are amazing. He's the sort of teacher that doesn't just say 'oh, this is the answer' but makes you think about things/prove results etc. I decided to take up further maths as well. Couldn't get a place in the lesson because it clashed with chemistry, so I forgot about it for a bit. Then, I saw one of my friends doing complex numbers and thought 'wow, this looks good'. 1st lot of exams went past. Saw a friend doing some S2 and asked him if I could have a flick through his book during a free. Ended up doing most of the first chapter. Decided to ask my head of maths for the FP1, M1 and S2 textbooks and taught myself them. Dropped chemistry after AS and ended up in A2 further maths lessons, once again with my head of maths. Decided to teach myself some of the modules we don't cover in lessons (S3, S4 and FP3).

And now I'll hopefully be going to Bath to study maths :biggrin:

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 29

WarriorInAWig

No real moment but just enjoying the fact that at college I sailed through it and liked solving the problems. Differential equations and learning about complex numbers was exciting at the beginning. :P

Reply 30

rachel0593

Since I can remember I was pretty average in every other subject and maths was the one subject that I was exceptionally good at so I chose to take as many subjects that had a strong maths element at A level which was maths, further maths, physics and chemistry ( and french but that was a huuge mistake). I dropped physics because the syllabus and teaching was incredibly uninspiring at AS but ended up enjoying maths, further maths and chemistry hugely and enjoying that it challenged me a lot more than at GCSE. I guess I just really enjoy problem solving.
I'm on a year out atm and I still really enjoy maths, I'm doing STEP and some further modules in the summer so I can learn a bit more before uni.

Reply 31

TenOfThem

When I was 7 I moved schools

The new school used Alpha and Beta Maths books (you probably have to be 40+ to know what I am talking about) these let you work at your own pace

Suddenly I realised that I was much better than other people at maths ... that was cool

Reply 32

ReTurd

Original post by oh_1993

According to the BBC, around 50% of people taking A2 Further Maths in 2010 I think got an A or A*.

isnt it that only the top 10-20% can get A and A* because of UMS?

Money.

Original post by ReTurd

isnt it that only the top 10-20% can get A and A* because of UMS?

NO

UMS does not create a Normal Distribution

Reply 35

Darkarium

I think A level. I was always good at Maths but I had a terrible teacher for GCSE and hated it - it just felt so tedious and irrelevant. When you get to A level and it it becomes more pure and you understand the relevance of what you're doing then it is really enjoyable.

Reply 36

I Kant Spall

I once heard mathematics described as "the language of nature" and that helped me fit the study of it in the big picture. Prior to that, I was studying math like any other subject when really, I have to treat it like a human language. The normal way we express and communicate our thought is through language and mathematics becomes a formal extension of this process.

I can't fly through 5 pages of a textbook like I could with an English text; instead, I have to carefully read over the reasoning, methodology, and real-world applications in order to actually "learn it" instead of memorize it. The same is true for a foreign language. Memorizing vocabulary lists and grammar rules (formulas and theorems) is just not the way I go about language learning.

Reply 37

limetang

I like it, because it is the only field of study where you can show something to be always true, and unarguably correct.

It's fascinating. That everything in maths is pretty much based upon only a few actual rules (that we impose upon it), and that everything we could ever want to know about maths. All the complexity with regards to it etc. is all just an extension of taking these rules and using them logically.

And I suppose what I find even more amazing is that this whole abstract world of mathematics fits remarkably well, and is very applicable to the world we live in. And how the whole abstracness (not a word I know) of concepts formed in pure maths that at first glance appear to be inapplicable to the real world eventually find some way of relating to it.