When was the last time you used the quadratic formula?

[chomalungma]

Linked to the maths thread but a very specific example.

(-b +/-square root (b squared - (4ac) ) divided by 2a

Or do you just Google it?

Last week supervising homework before that 1992

Who needs it right

You asked the question. So what's the answer?

I expect the answer is only teach people exactly what they need and no more.

Maybe even less, if you can help it. Basic literacy and some adding and subtraction. Anything more is a bit presumptuous

School. I have a BA and MA in Fine art and work in the cultural sector. So I've never needed it. I've never had to Google it jist not used it.

I use it for fun when my DH surprises me with random maths questions, and sometimes it comes up in conversation, but we know a lot of science people.
I also used it for work when I worked in archaeology research, to disprove a long-held theory about a certain monument/site.
I just remember the formula; it's fun to play with if you enjoy maths.

Basic literacy

Given you completely misunderstood the thread, did you miss those lessons?

oh right

So a thread about when’s the last time you used this equation wasn’t intended to imply it was pointless? it’s just a judgement free question?

In that case, when’s the last time you used a keyboard that doesn’t type disingenuous guff? Just curious, like

I genuinely can’t remember why it exists as a formula ... I graduated in joint honours mathematics 10 years ago

I'm a maths teacher so use it regularly, but only up to GCSE. Anyone doing A Level has a calculator that has a function to solve quadratics, so they use that as it's much more efficient.

So even as a maths teacher I don't use it all that often.

And when b squared minus 4ac is negative that means there are no real solutions to your quadratic (meaning, if you drew the graph of that quadratic it wouldn't cross the X axis)

A couple of months ago, dp is a builder and was laying a patio with a pattern.

Lol I don't remember this at all. I did go to a shite school though.

Beard you are my sort. Maths graduate here too but 30 years ago and I struggle with helping with GCSE maths homework.

My A Level Pure Maths 1994, GCSE Maths revision for DD 2018 and looking forward to doing it all over again for DS in a few months. Other than that, never ever. I never really understood why you would ever need it in actual real life, so it's good to know that it's useful to someone!

Fairly regularly but that's because I'm a weirdo who likes to do maths problems for fun. Keeps me sharp for when I'm tutoring so its a helpfully weird hobby.

Couple of years ago. Just for funsies.

I was set 2, second half of the 90s. We may have covered it towards the end of the course, but it never sank in. Simultaneous equations never really sank in either. I did encounter them in a cover lesson for y11 top set maths about 10 years later.

I had certain blind spots in maths, long division being one of them. I can handle long multiplication, but not reverse the process.

Dh uses it regularly ( engineering)

well back in the eons of time - when learning about aerial navigation & taking wind direction effects into account - don't ask! & no, I cant remember how I did that! (My past life was full of esoteric information/training)

Tbh, I did find it a bit pointless. I understand where it comes from, but always worry I've got the numbers wrong — it's a bit of a black box if you're using a calculator!

I'm faster completing the square because I don't need to triple check it — I can see I'm right.

(did logarithms at school learnt to use slide rule - random words like cos & tan & sin seep through my skull & I do remember using those tables! - just shows my age as the great philosopher Simpson says: Every time I learn something new the old stuff seeps out of my head

I have no recollection of ever having known this formula! My highest qualification in maths is a B at O level, so perhaps it was possible to get a B without knowing this information.

1975

At uni. They didn't allow anything about a basic casio scientific calculator so we had to know it and use it. Used it mostly in physic modules

Now I use it at work as a maths teacher

There is a thread about my thread .

I did a fun lesson series with an excellent Year 10 set, where they designed a fountain, then worked out all of the equations for the water jets. They then drew the fountain on Autograph in glorious technicolour, superimposed in on a background and wrote me a marketing presentation as to why I should choose their fountain.

Winning entry was the Taj Ma H20. Loved that class.

To be fair though, we didn't use the quadratic formula, more factorisation...

@51SudowoodoVoodoo omg are you me? I could never do long division, probably didn't help when I was at school they took times tables off the curriculum so I never learned them. I only know my 9's using a cheat technique with my fingers, if someone says tell me what 6 x 8 is I have to actually count it