You’re going to need maths when ...

... Watching the news

The polls are in! 71 per cent of people believe ... Well, wait! What does that mean? And 71 per cent of which people? How are these results calculated? If you don’t know what the statistics that you’re being given mean, you’re stuck having to listen to the reporter or the person telling you about the study, rather than being able to decipher the complicated results on your own. Maths is necessary in both gathering and interpreting the data.

... Driving

Operating a car or motorcycle is ultimately nothing but a series of calculations. How many miles to the destination? How much gas is in the car? How many miles per hour am I able to drive? How many miles per gallon does my car give? Oh no, I’ve hit a traffic jam, and now my pace has slowed. Am I still going to make it to work on time? All of these questions are very easily answered with basic maths skills.

... Decorating

How many gallons of paint do we need for this wall? What’s the difference between a foot and a square foot? What if we only have a yardstick, or a metre stick? What do the two different sides of the measuring tape even mean? Is there enough space in here for the couch we want? These are all questions that come up fairly often when one is decorating a home, and, you guessed it, it is all mathematics.