This applies to all mathematics so it may be slightly off-topic here (and, for other reasons as well). In short I've developed a method for getting the correct answer for any mathematical problem or equation. Being lousy at math, I had to come up with something simple. I call it the x-factor.
The x-factor (denoted by the lower case letter, f but you have to envision it tilted 45 degrees to the left and the cross bar exagerated to form a variation on the letter, x). I don't understand why the ANSI character set doesn't include this.
The x-factor is simply a numeric value that, when inserted into a mathematical problem, will make a stated answer the correct one. In the problem:
2+(x-factor)=5
it's easy to see that the value of the x-factor is, 3. But, what if the problem posed is the number of electrons in a charged capacitor? You could make measurements with test equipment and then estimate the number...or, you could use the x-factor:
3 + (x-factor) = 2.6424 X 10 to the 9th power
Even as the capacitor size and voltage changes, the answer remains correct.
I got the idea from the preachers who regularly invoke the God-Factor. When things just don't make any sense (babies suffering and dying, the tsunami in Asia, sinners living healthy, long lives while believers suffer illness and pain, etc.), the preacher simply invokes the God-Factor. He just uses different names (usually God's will or God's plan).
I was amazed to discover that math teachers (even the religious ones, who readily accept the God-Factor) have absolutely no tolerance for the x-factor!
We might use the x-factor as a way to determine how long this post will remain before it's deleted. The one thing we'll know for sure is that it will be the right answer (to the nanosecond)....
The x-factor (denoted by the lower case letter, f but you have to envision it tilted 45 degrees to the left and the cross bar exagerated to form a variation on the letter, x). I don't understand why the ANSI character set doesn't include this.
The x-factor is simply a numeric value that, when inserted into a mathematical problem, will make a stated answer the correct one. In the problem:
2+(x-factor)=5
it's easy to see that the value of the x-factor is, 3. But, what if the problem posed is the number of electrons in a charged capacitor? You could make measurements with test equipment and then estimate the number...or, you could use the x-factor:
3 + (x-factor) = 2.6424 X 10 to the 9th power
Even as the capacitor size and voltage changes, the answer remains correct.
I got the idea from the preachers who regularly invoke the God-Factor. When things just don't make any sense (babies suffering and dying, the tsunami in Asia, sinners living healthy, long lives while believers suffer illness and pain, etc.), the preacher simply invokes the God-Factor. He just uses different names (usually God's will or God's plan).
I was amazed to discover that math teachers (even the religious ones, who readily accept the God-Factor) have absolutely no tolerance for the x-factor!
We might use the x-factor as a way to determine how long this post will remain before it's deleted. The one thing we'll know for sure is that it will be the right answer (to the nanosecond)....
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