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Algebra
for Parents
A Book for Grown-Ups About
Middle School Mathematics
Other World Scientific Titles by the Author
Ron Aharoni
Technion, Israel institute of Technology, Israel
Published by
World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore 596224
USA office: 27 Warren Street, Suite 401-402, Hackensack, NJ 07601
UK office: 57 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HE
Printed in Singapore
Contents
Introduction
Part 1
Variables and Unknowns
Unknowns
Part 2
Forward, or Backward to Elementary Mathematics?
The Meaning of the Arithmetic Operations
Subtraction
Multiplication
Division
Discrete and Continuous Quantities
Fractions
Two Rules on Fractions
Expansion and Reduction of Fractions
Division of Fractions
Part 3
Negative Numbers
Meanings of Directed Numbers
Operations with Directed Numbers
The Order Among Directed Numbers
The Directed Numbers on the Real Line
Absolute Value
Multiplication and Division of Directed Numbers
Directed Fractions
Part 4
The Grammar of Algebra
Opening Boxes — Distributivity
Birds of a Feather Flock Together
Opening Up Two Pairs of Brackets
Short Multiplication
The Square of a Sum
An Application to Geometry
A Bit Beyond: Newton’s Binomial Formula
Part 5
Powers and Logarithms
Powers
The Rules of Powers
Roots
Logarithms
Part 6
Equations: Going Back to Where You Started
Equations with Two Operations
Balancing Sides
Inequalities
Part 7
Similarity and Proportion
The Rule of Three
Problems of Capacity
Part 8
Functions
Rate of Change
Part 9
When Algebra Meets Geometry
Geometric Locations
Graphs
Ascending and Descending Functions
Admonition: A Function is Not its Graph
Functions Defined Separately in Different Domains
Deciphering Graphs
Lines, Once Again
Part 10
Arithmetic Sequences and Their Sums
Free Fall
Part 11
Polynomials
Dividing Polynomials
Part 12
Equations with Two Unknowns
Equalizing Coefficients
A Second Method: Expressing One Variable in Terms of the
Other
The Number of Solutions of a System of Linear Equations
A Bit Beyond — Determinants
Part 13
Quadratic Equations and Quadratic Expressions
The Vieta Formulas
Solving Systematically
Quadratic Functions
Part 14
Inequalities
Solving Inequalities
Inequalities Involving Absolute Value
Part 15
Geometric Sequences
The Sum of a Geometric Sequence
Introduction
Mathematics is for the lazy. It means letting the principles do the work for
you.
George Polya, a Hungarian-American mathematician and educator.
For the lazy? You must be kidding, Professor Polya. Everybody knows
that mathematics is the hardest academic subject! Go entice others
with promises of easy life.
But Polya means precisely what he says. In fact, this is true for
all abstract thinking. A short-term effort results in a long term
economy. We invent an abstraction, say “cat”, and using it we know
what to expect from every cat we meet, instead of learning anew
how to behave with such a creature every time we meet one. A one-
time investment bears long range fruit.
So, why does Polya speak of mathematics, among all
abstractions? Of course — because he is a mathematician. But not
only. Mathematics is the ultimate abstraction. It abstracts the most
basic thought processes. First and foremost — numbers. The
number “3” is an abstraction from three fingers, three apples and
three cats. We realize that when it comes to arithmetic operations, it
doesn’t matter what we are counting. If 2 apples and 3 apples are 5
apples, the same will be true for pencils and books. We summarize it
concisely: 2 + 3 = 5. It is true for any type of objects, and at any
time. Economy at its best.
Learning the abstraction “3” is like learning to recognize a certain
person — a useful feat in itself. A baby learns to recognize that the
figure that appears on and off is actually the same person. The next
step of abstraction is making generalizations on all human beings. All
people have heads and legs. In mathematics, this corresponds to
stating generalizations about all numbers. This is algebra. Algebra
says things like “adding 1 to any number enlarges it”. This is a much
more demanding abstraction. No wonder that we wait with it for
adolescence — the age in which the power of abstraction makes a
leap forward. The famous x’s are the tool for that. See, for example,
how compactly a formula says the same thing:
One merit of poetry few people will deny: it says more and in fewer words
than prose.
Voltaire, Dictionnaire philosophique portatif
(“A Philosophical Dictionary”) (1764), Poets.
What is the simplest example? There are two contestants for this
title:
One should first look for the simplest example possible. There is no
such thing as “too simple”.
Identities
What does “a” signify in the last formula? Of course, any number.
The rule is valid, as we deduced by experimentation, for all
numbers.
A letter-name denoting a general number is called a “variable”. It
“varies” over all possible numbers. This is a first use of algebra:
formulating an equality that is true for any number. Such an equality
is called an “identity”. Algebra uses letters to formulate identities. Of
course, it does not matter what letter is used. We could just have
written b × b = (b − 1) × (b + 1) + 1 as well.
Use the identity a × a = (a − 1) × (a + 1) + 1 to
calculate 19 × 21 and 99 × 101.
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Götrik Fincke nousi ylös lähteäksensä Filippuksen puheille.
— Miksikö? Siksi että olen nähnyt, miten sinä olet ollut täynnäsi
pahuutta kuin myrkyllinen, käärme. Sinä et edes voinut pitää kavalia
hankkeitasi salassa; sinulla piti oleman joku, jolle aiheesi ilmoittaisit,
voidaksesi jo edeltäkäsin riemuita pahuuttasi. Arvaappas mitä minä
tunsin puhuessasi, miten etsit sopivaa tilaisuutta saattaaksesi Niilo
Iivarinpoikaa hengiltä. Hän, jota minä rakastin ja jonka puolesta
mielelläni olisin mennyt kuolemaan. Minä varoitin häntä, mutta hän ei
ymmärtänyt varoitustani, vaan on nyt kuolleena.
Samassa astui Niilo sisään, juuri kun Olavi taasen aukasi silmänsä
ja puoleksi kohosi jaloilleen.
— Ai, ai, sanoi nauraen Niilo. Jos minun täytyy jättää Ebba rouva
ja lähteä sotaan, niin tulet sinä siivosti mukaan, ja miten käy silloin
torpan, kun Kreeta yksinään saa sitä hoitaa.
— Sen hän osaa oivallisesti, kehui ylpeänä Pekka. Hän pystyy itse
kyntämään, jos niin tarvitaan, sillä siihen ovat Pohjanmaan reippaat
tyttösiipat nyt saanet oppia, kun niin monta miestä on hukkunut
tuohon tyhmään sotaan. Mutta sotapa ei sentään ollutkaan niin
tyhmä. Tällä haavaa on Pohjanmaalla miesväen puute, enkä muuten
kai olisi saanutkaan Kreetaa muassani tänne.
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