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Quiz about Fainting By Numbers
Quiz about Fainting By Numbers

Fainting By Numbers Trivia Quiz


Did math class make you faint, weep, wail, or black out? Chronicled here in quiz format are some of the more common student pains and complaints I have received as a math teacher. I hope that you enjoy it more than some of my students have.

A multiple-choice quiz by avrandldr. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
avrandldr
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
313,776
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
8814
Awards
Editor's Choice
Last 3 plays: Guest 45 (9/10), Guest 165 (9/10), Guest 4 (9/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. You may not think of 'counting' as a frustrating math topic, but that also may be because you aren't learning to do it anymore. Learning to count can be a frustrating, tantrum-filled experience for some toddlers. When children learn to count, what set of numbers are they learning for the first time? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. When I taught middle school, I quickly found that the section that involved negative numbers was the cause of much weeping and gnashing of teeth for some of my students. This section required students to work with the set of numbers that included both positive and negative whole numbers. What was it called? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Also in middle-level math, I would introduce an often-hated topic: fractions. The fear of fractions could be so great that some of my students would groan at the mere mention of the word, and some of them did even feign fainting right there in the classroom. Once we got down to business with the fractions, what set of numbers were we working with? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Some time later in school (typically a few years after discovering rational numbers) students learn that there is another set of numbers that is its exact opposite. Irrational numbers are numbers that cannot be expressed as a ratio, and they have caused more than one student to put his head on his desk and cry. Which of the following is not an irrational number? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Some pre-algebra students express severe distaste for learning the previously-mentioned number sets. These students are singularly nonplussed when I tell them that they have to learn one more number set, that combines the integers, rational numbers, and irrational numbers into one big set of numbers. This set is called the: Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. After students have learned about real numbers, there is often some surprise to find that they have by no means discovered all the numbers there are to learn. (This surprise may lead to the fainting by numbers that the title of the quiz refers to.) This discovery--that there are numbers beyond the reals--could lead to which of the following whiny comments about numbers? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. The timid math student typically does grow faint around about the time the Algebra teacher starts combining numbers from different number sets, especially into the form (a + bi). (a + bi) is a representation of what kind of number set? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Outside of pure number sets, there are some other types of numbers that are both singularly important, and singularly painful, for students. I sometimes hear howls of near-physical pain when I mention that measuring angles in degrees is a fairly dated system (believed to go as far back as the Babylonians, who were fascinated by the number 360--but I digress). I then note that we will have to learn a more mathematically efficient way to measure angles. What topic am I introducing when I make such comments? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. I have found that some students also tend to have mysterious ailments and illnesses on the days that we learn alternate graphing systems. I find this somewhat surprising, as most students seem to enjoy Cartesian graphing. What is the first alternative that most students learn to the Cartesian graphing system (which is also called coordinate graphing)? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Finally, along with all of the moaning, groaning, and crying that one sometimes hears as a math teacher, I do frequently get the wonderful, meaningful, and intelligent (if sometimes whiny) question that teachers love to hear. The question is, "When are we ever going to have to use this?" Okay, sure--but from a math teacher's perspective (who wants to keep his students from 'fainting by numbers'), what is the answer? Hint



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quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. You may not think of 'counting' as a frustrating math topic, but that also may be because you aren't learning to do it anymore. Learning to count can be a frustrating, tantrum-filled experience for some toddlers. When children learn to count, what set of numbers are they learning for the first time?

Answer: Natural numbers

The natural numbers are the counting numbers--either {1,2,3...}, or {0,1,2,3...} depending on the context. "Eponymous" isn't a number set; it refers to naming something after a person. The other answers, rational and transcendental, are legitimate number sets, but go well beyond simple counting.
2. When I taught middle school, I quickly found that the section that involved negative numbers was the cause of much weeping and gnashing of teeth for some of my students. This section required students to work with the set of numbers that included both positive and negative whole numbers. What was it called?

Answer: Integers

The integers include all counting numbers, both positive and negative. Remembering the rules for adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing integers gave some of my students fits before they figured it out.
3. Also in middle-level math, I would introduce an often-hated topic: fractions. The fear of fractions could be so great that some of my students would groan at the mere mention of the word, and some of them did even feign fainting right there in the classroom. Once we got down to business with the fractions, what set of numbers were we working with?

Answer: Rational numbers

The rational numbers are defined as any number that can be expressed as a ratio, and they include fractions and decimals, as well as all integers. In my fraction lessons, I used to start and end every class by saying "fractions are our friends" to try to engender some appreciation for the topic. Needless to say, it didn't always work.
4. Some time later in school (typically a few years after discovering rational numbers) students learn that there is another set of numbers that is its exact opposite. Irrational numbers are numbers that cannot be expressed as a ratio, and they have caused more than one student to put his head on his desk and cry. Which of the following is not an irrational number?

Answer: Five-fifteenths

Five-fifteenths can be written in fraction form as 5/15 or 1/3; it is hence a ratio. The others cannot be so written, and are irrational numbers. In my experience teaching, irrationals have engendered enough ill will in math classes, that sometimes I fear that the only way to cause teenagers to be rational is to try to make them learn irrational numbers. (Sorry--that was terrible, but I couldn't resist making one teacher joke.)
5. Some pre-algebra students express severe distaste for learning the previously-mentioned number sets. These students are singularly nonplussed when I tell them that they have to learn one more number set, that combines the integers, rational numbers, and irrational numbers into one big set of numbers. This set is called the:

Answer: Real numbers

Teaching the real numbers often results in rolled eyes, and sarcastic comments such as, "thanks for letting us know that numbers like 4 aren't fake!" On the bright side, learning that set doesn't seem to be quite as difficult for the typical student as learning, say, fractions. Quaternary refers to a geologic time period; I just like the word.
6. After students have learned about real numbers, there is often some surprise to find that they have by no means discovered all the numbers there are to learn. (This surprise may lead to the fainting by numbers that the title of the quiz refers to.) This discovery--that there are numbers beyond the reals--could lead to which of the following whiny comments about numbers?

Answer: "If they're imaginary, then why do we have to learn them?"

Imaginary numbers are most simply derived by taking the square root of a negative, which is a theoretical impossibility. It is, however, a very commonly-occuring impossibility, given the number of formulae that include variables that are squared.

The complaint along the lines of "why do I have to learn something that's imaginary" is by far the most common complaint I have heard in my years as a math teacher, and has led me to wistfully wish that the imaginary numbers had been differently named.
7. The timid math student typically does grow faint around about the time the Algebra teacher starts combining numbers from different number sets, especially into the form (a + bi). (a + bi) is a representation of what kind of number set?

Answer: Complex numbers

Complex numbers consist of a real part (a) and an imaginary part (bi, where i is the square root of -1). All of the real numbers and all of the imaginary numbers are complex numbers. (For example, 2 is a complex number if one decides to write it in the form 2 + 0i.)

Again, in math classes, there is often much loud bemoaning of the fact that students have to learn something "complex." I suspect that the word "complex" on the syllabus has led to more than a couple dubious illnesses in my students.
8. Outside of pure number sets, there are some other types of numbers that are both singularly important, and singularly painful, for students. I sometimes hear howls of near-physical pain when I mention that measuring angles in degrees is a fairly dated system (believed to go as far back as the Babylonians, who were fascinated by the number 360--but I digress). I then note that we will have to learn a more mathematically efficient way to measure angles. What topic am I introducing when I make such comments?

Answer: Radians

Radians are a very clever and useful measure of circular angles, found by comparing the distance an angle measures around a circle with the circle's own radius. Radians also tend to make certain mathematical functions (especially in trigonometry) work out very easily. Still, I often have students dispute both my definitions of "clever" and "useful" in various ways when I introduce radians.
9. I have found that some students also tend to have mysterious ailments and illnesses on the days that we learn alternate graphing systems. I find this somewhat surprising, as most students seem to enjoy Cartesian graphing. What is the first alternative that most students learn to the Cartesian graphing system (which is also called coordinate graphing)?

Answer: Polar graphing

Cartesian graphing locates points by telling you how far left/right, and how far up/down, the points are from an initial point. Polar graphing uses a similar principle, but instead tells you how far away, and how far around (in angular form), the points are from an initial point.

Despite the similarities between the system, I do sometimes get wails of "I'll never understand this!" when teaching polar graphing (although the wails often subside when we get to do cool-looking flower graphs).
10. Finally, along with all of the moaning, groaning, and crying that one sometimes hears as a math teacher, I do frequently get the wonderful, meaningful, and intelligent (if sometimes whiny) question that teachers love to hear. The question is, "When are we ever going to have to use this?" Okay, sure--but from a math teacher's perspective (who wants to keep his students from 'fainting by numbers'), what is the answer?

Answer: All of these are legitimate responses.

As a math teacher, I hope everyone loves and appreciates math--if not for their own enjoyment, for the benefits that its study brings to us all. Math is a fabulous subject!
Source: Author avrandldr

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor crisw before going online.
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