You know who sucks at maths? Almost everyone, that’s who. Newsflash: the majority of humans do not do maths because they love and excel at it. We mostly dislike it and are bad at it to boot.
That’s the gist of Teri Oda’s refreshingly succinct (and funny!) slideshow, which explains that gender does not predict who has mad maths skills. Watch and stop saying females suck at maths. Please just stop. [Slideshare/Teri Oda]
InformedGamer
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 10:10 AMAm I the only one who thought that slideshow was put together by a 12 year old school kid?
I actually feel dumber having read that…
villainsoft
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 10:24 AMWhat comes first? Sucking at maths or hating maths?
Regarding the maths gender divide, it’s just that the number of women that actually go onto higher mathematics is woefully disproportionate to males. They may not be any less/more competent than males, they’re just less interested in it.
jack
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 10:44 AM(Not making a claim in other gender-dominated area’s)
That’s exactly what it’s like in IT-based higher education. Roughly a hundred in the year I started CompSci in, about 5 females. And they ran the gamut from HD’s through to fails, just like the guys.
Fred
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 10:45 AMwell that was pointless
Tim
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 11:27 AMIve never said females suck at maths, i’ve known quite a few that were immensely better at maths that i ever was or ever will be, i can do simple math, some algebra (well ones someone reminds me what that is :P ) Basically i know enough to get me by which is all most people need.
David
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 11:49 AMAgree with the conclusion gender does not make you naturally more adapt at mathematics. But what a crappy presentation, no where does it actually offer any real evidence that biology doesn’t play a part.
More over, while I agree that gender does not make you naturally adapt at mathematics, I do suspect that cultural and social expectations would play a part and hence the distribution in can be bimodal. This probably says something about the author – who is female, but evidently not as crash hot at maths as she thinks she is.