ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Arthur Benjamin - Mathemagician
Using daring displays of algorithmic trickery, lightning calculator and number wizard Arthur Benjamin mesmerizes audiences with mathematical mystery and beauty.

Why you should listen

Arthur Benjamin makes numbers dance. In his day job, he's a professor of math at Harvey Mudd College; in his other day job, he's a "Mathemagician," taking the stage in his tuxedo to perform high-speed mental calculations, memorizations and other astounding math stunts. It's part of his drive to teach math and mental agility in interesting ways, following in the footsteps of such heroes as Martin Gardner.

Benjamin is the co-author, with Michael Shermer, of Secrets of Mental Math (which shares his secrets for rapid mental calculation), as well as the co-author of the MAA award-winning Proofs That Really Count: The Art of Combinatorial Proof. For a glimpse of his broad approach to math, see the list of research talks on his website, which seesaws between high-level math (such as his "Vandermonde's Determinant and Fibonacci SAWs," presented at MIT in 2004) and engaging math talks for the rest of us ("An Amazing Mathematical Card Trick").

More profile about the speaker
Arthur Benjamin | Speaker | TED.com
TED2009

Arthur Benjamin: Teach statistics before calculus!

Formula Arthura Benjamina za promjenu matematičkog obrazovnog programa

Filmed:
2,625,810 views

Neko uvijek pita nastavnika matematike, "Hoću li koristiti matematičku analizu u svakodnevnom životu?". I za većinu nas, kaže Arthur Benjamin, odgovor je ne. On nudi dobar prijedlog kako izučavanje matematike učiniti relevantnim u digitalnom dobu.
- Mathemagician
Using daring displays of algorithmic trickery, lightning calculator and number wizard Arthur Benjamin mesmerizes audiences with mathematical mystery and beauty. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
Now, if PresidentPredsjednik ObamaObama
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Ako bi me predsjednik Obama
00:15
invitedpozvani me to be the nextsledeći CzarCar of MathematicsMatematika,
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pozvao da budem slijedeći 'šef' za matematiku,
00:19
then I would have a suggestionprijedlog for him
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dao bih mu prijedlog
00:22
that I think would vastlyogromno improvepoboljšati
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za koji smatram da bi značajno poboljšao
00:24
the mathematicsmatematika educationobrazovanje in this countryzemlju.
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matematičko obrazovanje u ovoj državi.
00:27
And it would be easylako to implementimplementirati
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Prijedlog koji je jednostavno provesti
00:29
and inexpensivejeftino.
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a i jeftin je.
00:31
The mathematicsmatematika curriculumkurikulum that we have
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Nastavni program iz matematike koji mi imamo
00:33
is basedbazirana on a foundationfondacija of arithmeticaritmetika and algebraalgebra.
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zasnovan je na aritmetici i algebri.
00:37
And everything we learnuči after that
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I sve što učimo nakon toga
00:39
is buildingzgrade up towardsprema one subjectpredmet.
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je razvijanje ka jednoj oblasti matematike.
00:42
And at topvrh of that pyramidpiramida, it's calculuskamenac.
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I to je, na vrhu piramide, diferencijalno računanje.
00:46
And I'm here to say
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I ja sada ovdje želim da kažem
00:48
that I think that that is the wrongpogrešno summitsamit of the pyramidpiramida ...
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kako je to pogrešan vrh piramide ...
00:52
that the correcttačno summitsamit -- that all of our studentsstudenti,
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i da je ispravan vrh, ono što bi svaki student,
00:54
everysvaki highvisoka schoolškola graduatediplomirati should know --
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svaki srednjoškolac trebao da zna,
00:56
should be statisticsstatistike:
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trebala biti statistika:
00:59
probabilityverovatnoća and statisticsstatistike.
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vjerovatnoća i statistika.
01:01
(ApplausePljesak)
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(Aplauz)
01:03
I mean, don't get me wrongpogrešno. CalculusKamenac is an importantbitan subjectpredmet.
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Nemojte me pogrešno shvatiti. Matematička analiza je važna oblast.
01:07
It's one of the great productsproizvodi of the humančovjek mindum.
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To je veliko dostignuće ljudskog uma.
01:09
The lawszakoni of naturepriroda are writtennapisano in the languagejezik of calculuskamenac.
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Prirodni zakoni se izražavaju pomoću matematičke analize.
01:13
And everysvaki studentstudent who studiesstudije mathmatematika, sciencenauka, engineeringinženjering, economicsekonomija,
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I svaki student koji izučava matematiku, prirodne nauke, inženjerstvo, ekonomiju,
01:17
they should definitelyDefinitivno learnuči calculuskamenac
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definitivno treba učiti matematičku analizu
01:19
by the endkraj of theirnjihova freshmanbrucoš yeargodina of collegekoledž.
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do kraja prve godine fakulteta.
01:21
But I'm here to say, as a professorprofesor of mathematicsmatematika,
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Ali, kao profesor matematike Vam želim reći
01:24
that very fewnekoliko people actuallyzapravo use calculuskamenac
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da samo nekolicina zaista koristi matematičku analizu
01:28
in a conscioussvesna, meaningfulsmisleno way, in theirnjihova day-to-dayDan za danom livesživi.
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svjesno, na smislen način, u svakodnevnom životu.
01:31
On the other handruka,
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S druge strane,
01:33
statisticsstatistike -- that's a subjectpredmet that you could,
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statistika je oblast koju bi mogli
01:36
and should, use on dailydnevno basisosnova. Right?
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i trebali koristiti svakodnevno, zar ne?
01:39
It's riskrizik. It's rewardnagrada. It's randomnessslučajnost.
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Statistika je procjena rizika, mogućnost dobitka, bavi se slučajnostima.
01:42
It's understandingrazumevanje datapodaci.
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Ona je razumjevanje podataka.
01:44
I think if our studentsstudenti, if our highvisoka schoolškola studentsstudenti --
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Smatram, ako bi naši studenti, ako bi naši srednjoškolci
01:46
if all of the AmericanAmerički citizensgrađani --
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ako bi svi Amerikanci
01:48
knewznao je about probabilityverovatnoća and statisticsstatistike,
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razumjeli vjerovatnoću i statistiku,
01:51
we wouldn'tne bi be in the economicekonomski messnered that we're in todaydanas. (LaughterSmijeh) (ApplausePljesak)
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mi ne bi bili u ekonomskoj zbrci u kojoj smo danas.
01:54
Not only -- thank you -- not only that ...
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Ne samo ... hvala ... ne samo to ...
01:57
but if it's taughtpredavao properlyispravno, it can be a lot of funzabava.
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ako bi se učila pravilno, moze biti jako zabavna.
02:00
I mean, probabilityverovatnoća and statisticsstatistike,
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Mislim, vjerovatnoća i statistika
02:02
it's the mathematicsmatematika of gamesigre and gamblingkockanje.
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su matematika igre i kockanja.
02:06
It's analyzinganalizirajući trendstrendovi. It's predictingpredviđajući the futurebudućnost.
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To je analiza trendova. Predviđanje budućnosti.
02:10
Look, the worldsvet has changedpromijenjeno
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Vidite, svijet se promjenio
02:12
from analoganalogni to digitaldigitalni.
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od analognog ka digitalnom.
02:15
And it's time for our mathematicsmatematika curriculumkurikulum to changepromjena
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I sada je vrijeme da se i naš program izučavanja matematike promjeni
02:18
from analoganalogni to digitaldigitalni,
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od analognog ka digitalnom.
02:20
from the more classicalklasične, continuouskontinuirano mathematicsmatematika,
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Iz klasične, kontinuirane matematike,
02:24
to the more modernmoderno, discretediskretan mathematicsmatematika --
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ka modernoj, diskretnoj matematici.
02:27
the mathematicsmatematika of uncertaintyneizvesnost,
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Matematici neodređenosti,
02:29
of randomnessslučajnost, of datapodaci --
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slučajnosti, podataka
02:31
that beingbiće probabilityverovatnoća and statisticsstatistike.
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a to su vjerovatnoća i statistika.
02:34
In summarysažetak, insteadumjesto toga of our studentsstudenti
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Kao zaključak, umjesto da naši studenti
02:36
learningučenje about the techniquestehnike of calculuskamenac,
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izučavaju metode matematičke analize,
02:39
I think it would be fardaleko more significantznačajno
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smatram da bi bilo mnogo važnije
02:42
if all of them knewznao je what two standardstandard deviationsodstupanja
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ako bi svi oni znali sta znači odstupanje od dvije standardne devijacije
02:45
from the mean meansznači. And I mean it.
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od srednje vrijednosti. I ja stojim iz ovoga.
02:48
Thank you very much.
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Hvala puno.
02:50
(ApplausePljesak)
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(Aplauz)
Translated by Enis Hrnjic
Reviewed by Vedran Dizdarevic

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Arthur Benjamin - Mathemagician
Using daring displays of algorithmic trickery, lightning calculator and number wizard Arthur Benjamin mesmerizes audiences with mathematical mystery and beauty.

Why you should listen

Arthur Benjamin makes numbers dance. In his day job, he's a professor of math at Harvey Mudd College; in his other day job, he's a "Mathemagician," taking the stage in his tuxedo to perform high-speed mental calculations, memorizations and other astounding math stunts. It's part of his drive to teach math and mental agility in interesting ways, following in the footsteps of such heroes as Martin Gardner.

Benjamin is the co-author, with Michael Shermer, of Secrets of Mental Math (which shares his secrets for rapid mental calculation), as well as the co-author of the MAA award-winning Proofs That Really Count: The Art of Combinatorial Proof. For a glimpse of his broad approach to math, see the list of research talks on his website, which seesaws between high-level math (such as his "Vandermonde's Determinant and Fibonacci SAWs," presented at MIT in 2004) and engaging math talks for the rest of us ("An Amazing Mathematical Card Trick").

More profile about the speaker
Arthur Benjamin | Speaker | TED.com