Comments on: Learning Calculus: Overcoming Our Artificial Need for Precision

By: Terrence J McLaughlin

Terrence J McLaughlin — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 05:16:00 +0000

Great Book to read….Where Mathematics Comes From/George Lakoff & Rafael Nunez.

By: Dorji

Dorji — Fri, 14 Oct 2016 14:07:38 +0000

Kalid, this post had a profound impact on me personally. It made me realize that the need for highest precision was killing me most of the time. It used to confuse me in everything I deal with. Thank you. This was a life-changing experience.

By: Richard Walker

Richard Walker — Sun, 04 May 2014 22:48:47 +0000

Kalid,
I have become a devotee of your work. You are one the the great ‘splainers! And you are fun to read–I rarely have a smile and good laugh (quietly, as I’m at the library) when I’m studying math/calculus–in fact, often, I’m rather full of anxiety! But I enjoy reading your work. And you are thorough, even prolific, so there’s more to look forward too!

You are performing a great service: explaining difficult, complex ideas in humanly consumable form. Thank you! Thank you!

By: Kalid

Kalid — Wed, 22 May 2013 08:01:38 +0000

Hi Kiro! Great question. In those cases, the “e”‘is referring to numbers in scientific notation, but not the constant e that refers to growth (confusing!).

1e3 = 1 x 10^3 = 1000 (I.e, 1 with 3 zeros)

So 1e27 is 1 with 27 zeros, pretty big!

1e-3 = 1 x 10^-3 = .001 (1 / 1000). So 1e-11 is super tiny.

Often scientific notation uses a capital E but I should clarify in the post. Thanks!