• Question: Are there any parts of maths you don't like?

    Asked by PhoebeA on 24 Nov 2020.
    • Photo: Tom Ranner

      Tom Ranner answered on 24 Nov 2020:

      I really love almost all parts of maths. The part I don’t really like is maths competitions and the idea that maths isn’t for everyone. I think it’s much better when we all get to work together to solve important problems – everyone has some thing to contribute.

    • Photo: Chris Budd

      Chris Budd answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      All mathematics is great! However, I don’t like some of the ways that mathematics is used (but this is true of nearly every subject which has a practical application). Also I don’t like the way that mathematicians are often portrayed in the media or society as being freaks and mad. Mathematicians are human beings like everyone else.

    • Photo: Alan Walker

      Alan Walker answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      I was never very good at statistics, which meant that I developed a distaste for it, which meant that I did not work on it enough to appreciate it fully. We can’t all be good at everything!

    • Photo: Eduard Campillo-Funollet

      Eduard Campillo-Funollet answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      I honestly do not like repetitive tasks (like solving the some equations again and again). But often we can use a computer for that boring work 😀

    • Photo: Thomas Woolley

      Thomas Woolley answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      Not a part of the maths, per se, but part of the maths process. I hate writing up my results. After you’ve spent 6 months+ working on something you can often lose what was novel about it in the first place. Equally, now that I’ve discovered the answer I don’t want to have to spend another couple of months to write up my knowledge, I want to pust forward to the next question.

      But writing up is important. It helps other people solve similar problems. If we didn’t tell each other about our results science wouldn’t grow as quickly.

    • Photo: Sarah Brown

      Sarah Brown answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      I have always learnt about and worked with very applied maths – where you can see the real life uses of the calculations. I therefore struggle with pure maths – where the maths is not motivated by an application but just by a concept.

    • Photo: Cesare Giulio Ardito

      Cesare Giulio Ardito answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      Yes, but I can’t tell you which one (my colleagues read this!)

    • Photo: Christos Klerides

      Christos Klerides answered on 25 Nov 2020:

      I used to dislike pure mathematics during my first year at university. At A-levels I didn’t get enough exposure proving things and hence didn’t appreciate its usefulness. From my second year onwards, I started appreciate that and hence started to like it. I do prefer though stats and applied maths. Every bit of maths has its applications!

    • Photo: Freya Addison

      Freya Addison answered on 26 Nov 2020:

      Yes, I don’t particularly like Statistics, but I use it every time I do data analysis, so it’s important. My favourite aspect of maths is pure maths, however, one of my colleague loves statistics and hates pure, its good working with a mix of people.

    • Photo: Sophie Carr

      Sophie Carr answered on 26 Nov 2020:

      Fourier Transforms. They have been my nemesis since I was at university.

    • Photo: Hannah Speed

      Hannah Speed answered on 27 Nov 2020:

      I don’t enjoy statistics – it’s a lot less clear cut than a lot of other areas of maths. It’s useful to have a basic understanding of it though, and is really helpful for research.

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