Tag Archives: math in the comics

Math in the Comics: The Series

Posted on 2010/04/06 by Bert Speelpenning

In this series, I have collected comic strips that reveal, whether intentionally or unintentionally, something interesting about how our culture views mathematics and mathematics learning. Here are the entries thus far: 1 – a Foxtrot comic on solving equations.  For … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Math in the Comics – part 10

Posted on 2009/04/26 by Bert Speelpenning

From last week’s Foxtrot comic, another take at the cultural background conversation of math. Who is bad at math? At one level, a puzzle.  The top part, the part that starts with “16-11-13-5” is not a subtraction problem.  It is … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Math in the Comics – part 9

Posted on 2009/03/07 by Bert Speelpenning

In today’s Dilbert comic, another opportunity to highlight something about how math is held in society. Dilbert, rather desperately, is trying to convince his audience of something.  And, somehow, he does!  He invokes the Authority of Mathematical Gobbledygook, represented in … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Math in the Comics – part 8

Posted on 2009/03/05 by Bert Speelpenning

Today’s Rose is Rose comic strip reveals something that’s in the cultural background about math homework: Can you name the background assumptions this comic strip makes, things that do not need to be stated explicitly for a wide audience to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Math in the Comics – part 7

Posted on 2009/03/03 by Bert Speelpenning

Today’s comic strip features Venn diagrams: Ruthie wants to know who this Venn person is, and whether she can get money for a invention called “the ruthie diagram” which uses squares instead of circles. Lots of interesting stuff  here that … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Math in the Comics – part 6

Posted on 2009/02/24 by Bert Speelpenning

Today, there is a follow-up on yesterday’s Non Sequitur comic – in which Danae’s new math system is revealed: henceforth, she will start with the answer and work back to get an equation that fits the problem.  This way, she … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Math in the Comics – part 5

Posted on 2009/02/23 by Bert Speelpenning

In today’s comics, there is this Non Sequitur one: Comics, to me, are interesting regardless of whether a particular one is funny, since they reveal a lot about the community and the society in which they appear.  Usually, comics make … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Math in the Comics – part 4

Posted on 2009/02/12 by Bert Speelpenning

Another comic with a math angle, from yesterday: Though there is no mention of any mathematical operation, no equations, no multiplication, no variables, no diagrams – there is some math going on in the unsaid, whether counting or estimating, resulting … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Math in the Comics – part 3

Posted on 2009/02/12 by Bert Speelpenning

An interesting comic with math content today: Some math questions don’t have math answers.  In math, as in language, you do lots of stuff merely because if you didn’t, you’d be considered a rube, or worse yet, you’d be misunderstood … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Math in the Comics – part 2

Posted on 2009/02/08 by Bert Speelpenning

Today, Bill Amend has another comic strip with math in it: It plays on the Fibonacci series, which these two geeks obviously know well.  The starting numbers of the Fibonacci series are 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, … and … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments