There are two types of people in the world, 'maths people' and those who quickly avert their eyes when numbers are merely mentioned in conversation. Many people who don’t see themselves as a maths person have lost trust in their own thinking even with the most simple numbers. But this hasn’t always been the case, in fact we all could have been maths people – but our tricky relationship with maths was formed all the way back at school. So why do so many people have such a strong dislike of maths? And more than that – what can be done to stop this aversion where it starts – in the classroom? 

Whether we like maths or not, we’re stuck with it, whether it be identifying the fastest route on a road trip, calculating the cheapest deal at the supermarket or predicting the odds of winning. So why not get comfortable with numbers and use maths to our advantage?

In 10 minutes, or roughly the amount of time it takes to multiply 3,467 and 8,467 in your head, mathematician Laura Tuohilampi will flip the script on our collective fear of maths. 

For more information, visit unsw.to/LauraTuohilampi.

There are two types of people in the world, 'maths people' and those who quickly avert their eyes when numbers are merely mentioned in conversation. Many people who don’t see themselves as a maths person have lost trust in their own thinking even with the most simple numbers. But this hasn’t always been the case, in fact we all could have been maths people – but our tricky relationship with maths was formed all the way back at school. So why do so many people have such a strong dislike of maths? And more than that – what can be done to stop this aversion where it starts – in the classroom? 
Whether we like maths or not, we’re stuck with it, whether it be identifying the fastest route on a road trip, calculating the cheapest deal at the supermarket or predicting the odds of winning. So why not get comfortable with numbers and use maths to our advantage?
In 10 minutes, or roughly the amount of time it takes to multiply 3,467 and 8,467 in your head, mathematician Laura Tuohilampi will flip the script on our collective fear of maths. 
For more information, visit <a href="unsw.to/LauraTuohilampi">unsw.to/LauraTuohilampi</a>.<a href="unsw.to/MadelineGleeson"></a>

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Ideas is a thought-provoking program of events and digital content from the globe's leading thinkers, authors and artists.

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Ideas is a thought-provoking program of events and digital content from the globe's leading thinkers, authors and artists.

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Idea…

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