The pizza deal
Same price: one 18 inch pizza or two 12 inch pizzas. Which one gets you more pizza?
One 18 in?
Two 12 in?
Make your guess to see the answer.
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Math is the language behind everything
Students often ask when they will ever use this. The honest answer is every day, usually without noticing. Play with the examples below and see for yourself.
Inside every computer
A computer only understands two states, on and off, written as 1 and 0. Put eight of them together and you have a byte, enough to store a number from 0 to 255 or a single letter. Every photo, song, game and message you have ever seen is built from these.
Bits
128
64
32
16
8
4
2
1
Number
77
Letter
M
Tap the bits to switch them on and off.
Behind every motion
A pendulum takes the same time to swing whether you push it gently or hard. That time depends only on its length, through a square root. This simple fact kept the world on time for nearly three hundred years.
One full swing
2.01 s
T = 2π √(L / g)
Change the length and watch the swing speed up or slow down.
In every sound and signal
Music, Wi-Fi, radio and light all travel as waves, and every wave is described with sine and cosine from trigonometry. Higher frequency means a higher note. Bigger amplitude means a louder one.
y = A · sin(2π f t)
Drag the sliders to reshape the wave.
In the patterns of nature
Start with 1 and 1, then keep adding the last two numbers: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13. This is the Fibonacci sequence, and it shows up in sunflower seeds, pinecones, shells and galaxies. Squares with these side lengths fit together into a nearly perfect spiral.
Watch the spiral grow, one square at a time.
In every bridge and engine
Engineers use algebra, trigonometry and calculus to decide how thick a beam should be, how fast an engine can spin and how much weight a bridge can carry. Triangles show up everywhere because a triangle is the one shape that cannot be pushed out of shape.
As an engineer, I use the math I teach every week. When students see where it leads, they stop asking why and start asking how.
In your future
Compound growth is exponential, and exponents are Algebra 2. Saving a little early beats saving a lot later, and the math shows exactly why.
Grows to
$3,207
A = P(1 + r)ᵗ
An example only, not financial advice.
Impressed yet?
If not, let's prove it again with your own day. Pick a part of it and play. Every game here runs on the same math and physics we teach.
Dinner and shopping, where a little geometry and a few percentages save you real money.
The double discount
A $100 jacket is 40% off, and checkout takes another 20% off. Is that the same as 60% off?
$100
- You pay
- Extra at checkout
- First discount
You pay
?
Real discount
?
Make your guess to see the answer.
So, impressed?
Imagine what an hour a week with a patient tutor can do.
Sports and driving, where physics decides what happens next.
The free throw
Set your release angle and speed, then shoot. The ball follows the curve Galileo described almost four hundred years ago.
Your shot. The rim is 10 feet up and about 14 feet away.
Shot 1 of 10
0 made
Stop before the crosswalk
A child steps into a crosswalk 130 ft ahead. Pick your speed and hit the brakes. Can you stop in time?
Find the fastest speed that still stops in time.
Thinking distance
88 ft
Braking distance
76 ft
Dry road and a 1.5 second reaction time.
So, impressed?
Imagine what an hour a week with a patient tutor can do.
The math that keeps your accounts safe and finds what you need in a blink.
Crack the password
Type a password and see how long a computer making ten billion guesses a second would need to try every combination.
Characters in play0
- a to z
- A to Z
- 0 to 9
- Symbols
Possible passwords
?
Time to try them all
?
Type something to start. Challenge: make one that would take longer than the universe has existed to crack.
It stays on this page. Nothing is saved or sent.
Or try one of these
I can read your mind
Think of a whole number from 1 to 100. I will find it in seven tries or fewer. Just tell me higher or lower.
My guess
?
Keep it secret. Every answer you give wipes out half of the grid.
Still not impressed?
Tough crowd. Go around again, the math is not going anywhere.
Every great achievement begins with a strong foundation
The same ideas that run computers and launch rockets start with an equation on a page. We help students build that foundation, one clear step at a time.
Ready to build your mathematical confidence?
Every great achievement begins with a strong foundation.
Whether you want better grades, a strong score on an exam or a deeper understanding of math, we are ready to help you take the next step.
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