[Rhodes22-list] JW in college

[Jim White]

Rik:
Part of my inability to succeed in college the first time around was just 
sheer lack of discipline. Girls, fishing and partying. It was a 
smorgasboard of carnal delight...

Funny you should mention math....
  I too had (have) a definite struggle with mathematics. I was a product of 
the California approach to teaching, back in the early 60's (grade school), 
was tested for "IQ", placed in accelerated classes in the 3rd grade and 
introduced to algebra without a background in basic math. So I struggled 
throughout public school, until graduating at almost the bottom of my 
senior (high school) class. I am also dyslexic, which wasn't understood in 
those days.

My training in the military (aviation structural mechanic) helped, at least 
in practical math, I later went to trade school worked as an airplane 
mechanic for a number of years, and went back to college as an "older 
student" in the late 80's through early 90's. I am not ashamed to admit 
that I had to repeat calculus and differential equations, struggled with 
biometry as a grad student, and am constantly on guard for dyslexia in 
numbers...especially in my line of work. I did maintain a 3.4 average as an 
undergrad (sans U of O scores) and the requisite same through grad school. 
I worked my butt off.

Today,  I quality check my own work, and am adamant about peer review, no 
matter how much it smarts! I  understand and use higher math almost daily 
to define and describe lots of aspects of research, but like so many other 
fellow biologists have become pretty lazy with computer modeling programs 
and routines available to handle mathematical functions.

Well that's about the extent of my story...hope it wasn't too much of a 
sleeper.

jw
Jim White
Le Menagerie

At 06:57 PM 10/29/2004 -0500, you wrote:
>JW,
>
>In an earlier reply to the list you wrote:
>
>"Flunked out after almost 2 years. But, got an "A" in fly fishing 
>addiction. Drifted back to Texas. Several degrees and lots of years later, 
>here I am"
>
>That statement raises my curiousity. Do you have a theory as to why you 
>couldn't get anywhere at the U of O, but were obviously able to do quite 
>well at other schools? I wonder about things like this a bit. I was a 
>terrible math student from the 5th grade on. I like to blame my fifth 
>grade teacher, Mr Peterson, who I absolutely couldn't seem to get along 
>with to save my life. But, now that I am out of school, I seem to enjoy, 
>at least simple math. I am now able, for instance, to figure 
>transmission/rearend ratios vs tire size and tell you what the ground 
>speed of a vehicle will be in a particular gear. Hardly basic addition and 
>subtraction. Never was able to get a handle on algebra though. It seems 
>that "sideways" math doesn't work for me, has to be up and down. Don't ask 
>me why the difference.
>
>I just find it interesting that I am able to figure these things out on my 
>own, but through this particular teacher, I failed at it miserably and was 
>never able to get a good grasp on the subject for the rest of my days in 
>school.
>
>Just curious, if you don't mind.
>Rik
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