Back in my day wasting study time with a ping pong ball involved a table and some friends. These days the table is optional.
Tag: party tricks
YouTube Tuesday: Party Trick edition
So keen am I to bring you this regular column that I’m posting these having not actually watched them. We’re still working with a tethered iPhone here…
What’s your party trick?
Become a mathlete, impress nobody
I don’t want to pretend to be all that interested in maths. I’m not. But I am interested in party tricks. Especially party tricks that make me look smart.
Here’s Wired’s collection of mathematics hacks to impress your friends (except the friends of yours who have maths degrees who don’t like jokes about e^x. That’s you Benny. Dan has a maths degree and he liked my jokes…
“To multiply, say, 11 x 32, add the digits of 32 (3 + 2 = 5) and insert the sum between them: 352. Numbers with two-digit sums use a slight variation: For 11 x 84 (8 + 4 = 12), add the 1 from 12 to the 8 and leave the 2 in the middle: 924. “