Mathematics Knowledge Offers Best Job Prospects
Mathematics Behind Everything, Even Fun
Perhaps, now the word is out that Napster creator Shawn Fanning is mathematically inclined- he has to be to write code- more students will be interested in the subject. Before the computer age, literacy seemed the only thing that workers needed. Now mathematics knowledge is prized far more. This is because it's central to so many disciplines - physics, astronomy, computer technology, statistics, intelligence, the military, financial services and so on. If you are proficient in it, you are likely to earn big bucks.
Recently, Job search site CareerCast.com evaluated 200 professions and named mathematicians as their top pick, estimating that they earn annual salaries of $94,160.00 writes Tracey Coenen on Walletpop.
Facebook is One Big Graph
Software developer, Samuel Jack explains the importance of having a mathematics degree in his blog Functional Fun, "Learning mathematics trained me to think precise, logical, step-by-step thoughts: the only kind that a computer understands". Besides, he continues, it uses a lot of Boolean Algebra, Genetic Algorithms, Tabu Search (a mathematical optimization method), Simulated Annealing and Graph Theory. He points out that Facebook is one big graph.
It's also used in movies like "The Matrix" and "Speed Racer." The Wall Street Journal reports that Jennifer Courter of San Francisco's Mental Images Inc. helped develop the necessary mathematics-based 3-D visualization computer software. So mathematics is cool.
Nature of Multidimensional Space
However, there's sometimes dissension in the mathematical ranks. Steve Campbell on Tech-Archive.net grumbles that economists have managed to capture their clients' imagination with promises to predict the future while looking at the past. "That's a powerful draw," he says.
St. Petersburg, Russia-born Grigory Perelman opted out entirely according to an August 22, 2006 Associated Press article. As one of the world's leading mathematicians, he won the Fields Medal, the equivalent of the Nobel Prize, but wouldn't collect it. Neither would he pick up a check for $1.5 million for proving the Poincare conjecture, a theorem about the nature of multidimensional space. He didn't want to be seen as the figurehead of the mathematics world.
Action Games with Cool Characters
Numeracy, as proficiency with numbers is called, is considered so important that the United Kingdom government is keeping a watchful eye on how students are getting along with it. The government is scandalized, reports the the Guardian; general proficiency has not improved despite10 billion pounds spent on teachers and support staff. Although, it's mostly girls who think the subject boring, last year 30,000 kids went to secondary (high) school with the maths skills of a seven-year-old.
In the United States, even though there is no national curriculum, Federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation and the US Department of Education are trying to improve mathematics education across the country. Both fund research into finding better teaching methods. They also want to know how kids learn about numbers (ams.org).
Some "edutainment" companies have jumped on the bandwagon and introduced action games with cool characters. Perhaps it will work. However, possibly the fact that mathematics is a component of so many nifty jobs will encourage more students to get stuck into it. All the companies that need them certainly hope so.
Facebook Headquarters
|
What do you think about this article?
More in Business & Finance
Latest Articles