Richmond Jaspher G.

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Mathematics Helps Organize Patterns and Regularities in the World

Modern mathematics is nearly characterized by the use of difficult proofs. This, practice,
the result of literally thousands of years of refinement, has brought to mathematics a clarity and
reliability unmatched by any other science. But it also makes mathematics slow and difficult; it is
arguably the most disciplined of human intellectual activities. Groups and individuals within the
mathematics community have from time to time tried being less compulsive about details of
arguments. Yet today in certain areas there is again a trend toward basing mathematics on intuitive
reasoning without proof. We all know mathematics have a vital role in humans and also in nature.
But how does mathematics helps organize patterns and regularities in the world?

In the animal world (humans including) symmetrical animals are regarded as the most
attractive by both sexes. Fibonacci numbers are found in almost any flowers. Sunflowers have the
seeds in perfect Fibonacci order. 1 seed then 2 seeds 3 seeds 6 seeds 12 seeds 24 seeds and so on
in the flowers. This arrangement ensures maximum sunlight to each little seed in the flower. If you
take the number of petals in a flower, they all follow a mathematical order. These are just some of
the things that nature and mathematics joined together to create a beautiful and wonderful world.

Mathematics is also found in signals. If you send a signal and get a return signal, you
measure the time from sending to receiving the signal again. Knowing the speed of light, you can
calculate the distance. The principal behind radar. The ears of an owl work like radar, their faces
and ears are slightly asymmetrical. It's an adoption to being able to locate the direction of the
sound. The tiny difference in time a sound hits the ears makes it possible to pinpoint the direction
and distance and predict the movement of the pray. An owl can hit very precisely in almost total
darkness having predicted the point of interception, that is why owl likes to live at night since they
have an advantage in the dark.

Mathematics helps us to organize regularities in the world, just like in our chosen course,
we need measurement to balance things. The buildings and architectures that are built by engineers
are with the help of mathematics. They are sometimes symmetrical and sometimes asymmetrical
depending on how they wanted it to be.

Insurance is ruled by math. you can predict accidents, breakdowns, health. Almost anything
can be calculated. They use it to offer you an insurance, you think is worth it, while they still make
money. Lottery is pure math, and some psychology. If you scratch the numbers and win exactly
what you just spent, most of us don't count our losses and think we're lucky getting a new lottery
ticket because it's free. The mind plays tricks on us. We like order and try to see a known patch.
Didn’t we realize how these gambling companies earn money if their prize is that high? Everyday
there are a lot of people that gambles and at the end of the day, in that large amount of people who
tries it, no one ever wins. That is how they earn money, but still people choose to spend a lot of
money and in return they will not earn a profit at all.
 Google is pure math. The search engine is based on an algorithm. That's why companies
buy data. They want to be even more precise in targeting you with adds. From your search patterns,
they can predict, what your income and interests are. Even down to your temper and personality.
It gives clues to the segment you belong to. In fact, you don't have to interrogate people to know
who they really are. you can just look at Facebook and Google, there's a good chance they know
you better than you do yourself. If you know what phone people use, what computer they use and
what search engine they use. you can begin to say something very specific about the persons you're
trying to figure out. In the end by math and cross references. If you use Bing and Safari as a
browser, your most likely not a frontrunner, but accepts the given choice. Just as an example. The
number of difficult words you type, says something about your education. you can probably predict
the nationality, even when everything is written in English. (Hellerup, 2018)

Maybe that's the fascinating thing about math. Many things in our universe is pretty
predictable, asking the right questions holds the answers. It's observing, determining what you see,
asking questions about it. Gaining knowledge by finding an explanation, testing if you're right or
wrong. Always being right is proof of not trying hard enough. How to do science, is a science in
its own right. At university you spend a good part of the first year learning how to learn, there's a
scientific approach/method in how to do science. You can't really understand science, if you don't
understand the basics. It can be very intersubjective, only recognized by your peers. If you can
explain a scientific problem to an eight-year-old, you probably understood it yourself. I know
there's a lot more to it, I'm barely scratching the surface. I'm the first to admit, I don't know it all.
That's the good thing about getting older. I just like to turn another stone to see what's hiding
underneath. You might just be so lucky to be proven wrong and learn from it.

Mathematics really helps organize patterns and also in the regularities in the world. It is
not only a headache for us as a common connotation to it, but it plays a vital role to our lives and
to all the things that surrounds us. We didn’t even realize that the things we do includes
mathematics.

References: (Helleru; 2018), www.quora.com, August 1, 2019

https://www.quora.com/How-does-mathematics-help-to-organize-pattern-and-regularities-in-the-
word