Everyone learns Mathematics. Some master the subject, some merely pass the subject and some just learn because it is a subject in school. Undeniably, Mathematics is a subject that is very useful in every field. Of course, it is important in our daily life too.

 

1. Schedule time-blocking

Whether you are a student, employees or stay at home parent, you will need a schedule to do your task. Employees who work from home need to time block their schedule to maintain a healthy work life balance.

As for a student, time allocation for study is important. So you will at least need to allocate 2 hours from a day which is 24 hours to do revision. Unknowingly, time calculation using Mathematics is used.

 

 

If you are a student, then you should prioritize more of your time studying. All work no play makes Jack a dull boy. Below is the example of a time-blocking schedule for a student.

 

 

 

2. Daily life or routine

  • Cooking or baking
  • Well, for people who are working in the animation industry especially 3D needs maths too. In Autodesk Maya, 3D animators need to calculate and set the frame per second to set the timing for animation.

 

 

 

The excerpt above is an example of cooking instructions using mathematics to help people get the same taste and enjoy high food quality. Cooking specific instructions will ensure the food is cooked properly. Meat or fish that are cooked undertime will cause food poisoning. By cooking the meat and fish with the correct time and temperature will guarantee food safety.

Imagine spending all the time and going through all the hassle preparing ingredients and baking processes. One wrong step will be a disaster for the end product.

 

 

 

 

 

  • Budget
  • As we grow into adulthood, we have to shoulder a lot of responsibilities. Learning to be wise in our finances does help to be financially savvy.

 

 

 

  • Driving
  • To reach the destination on time, we need maths too!

   

For example, if you drive 100 km/h to a place which is 300 km away, it will take you 3 hours to reach. Of course, traffic and other factors also need to be taken into consideration.

 

 

  • Counting calories
  • Excess calories will be stored as fat. It is recommended to count your calories to put into your body daily to avoid overeating which is bad for health.

  • Take Medicine
  • Yes. You read it right! You need to use mathematics to take your medicine correctly.
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When you are prescribed medicine, you will see an instruction label on your medicine box or plastic. How do you arrange your timing to take the medicine? We need Maths to calculate the correct time so that we will not take less medicine than prescribed or overdose.

 

 

For one day, we have 24 hours. To have the medicine 3 times daily, we need to divide 24 hours by 3 which the medicine will be taken 8 hours daily 1 tablet for every 8 hours. Maths is important to calculate this timing so that medicine can be taken at the correct timing.

 

The excerpt below is the example of instruction for glycerin thymol.

 

 

 

It means:

 

 

 

 

3. Use in jobs that are not Math related

  • Human Resource
  • Basic mathematical skill is needed to calculate payroll, salaries and overtime (OT).

 

  • Animators
  • Well, for people who are working in the animation industry especially 3D needs maths too. In Autodesk Maya, 3D animators need to calculate and set the frame per second to set the timing for animation.

 

  • Digital Marketing
  • The Industry Revolution 4.0 has made digital marketing a demanding job. Analysing statistics and algorithms with the help of maths will also increase the job to be done perfectly.

 

  • Pharmacy
  • Dispensing medicine for patients also needs correct calculation to ensure the patients get the correct amount of medicine for a certain period of time.

 

 

4. Math Syllabus

Often we hear people saying ‘ What is the use of learning trigonometry? We are not going to use it. Are we going to use it to buy fruits in the market or exchange money?” Some of the Maths syllabus are not used as much in our daily life but it is definitely useful at some point in our life.

 

  • Probability
  • Here is an example of permutation and probability of striking 4D.

 

 

So, the possibility to strike a 4D is 0.0001. Combining permutation and probability of striking a jackpot will make you understand chances are very slim. If you understand how permutation and probability work, you will know it is the best to quit gambling for good.

If we want to pick something randomly from a group of students (e.g: take out  the shorter stick among many many sticks, only 1 is shorter), do you think the 1st person will have the smallest chance to get the shorter one?

The answer is no. Everybody has an equal chance.

 

  • Simultaneous Equation

Consumers are spoiled with choices for mobile data provided by telecommunication companies. There are various packages for us to choose from and we can choose the package that suits us the most. For me, I will choose the cheapest data package.

 

 

How do I judge which package will be the best for me? Here, I will use Maths to help me with my choice. Let's say, I never use more than 50GB per month.

Which should I choose?

 

I will choose Telco B because it is cheaper than Telco A.

 

Citation:

“Why Highly Productive People Use ‘Time-Blocking’ “. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2017/04/19/why-highly-productive-people-use-time- blocking/?sh=6ff759c965e1“Top 10 Importance of Mathematics In Everyday Life. “. Retrieved from https://statanalytica.com/blog/importance-of-mathematics/

This article is written by: Sim Chia Yen & Tan Hong Lynn

Illustrator:  Tan Hong Lynn