Re: “Checking our math” (Oct. 19, Opinion):
Math is a software. For instance, it’s the foundation for understanding the flip of a screw, the pressure and angle demanded to hammer a nail, the measurement required to assemble a 737 MAX so the door doesn’t open at 30,000 toes.
If we take the handy route of trusting our electrical screwdrivers and saws to drive (and strip) screws, to measure solely roughly the lower of a board or steel sheet with out intuitive understanding of arithmetic, algebra, geometry and calculus, our Craftsman home will fall prey to the winds of the subsequent atmospheric river — or we shall be sucked out the ill-measured 737 door panel into the skinny air and lengthy fall of ignorance and misplaced confidence.
Be taught and use the mathematics earlier than you place your belief within the Machine Intelligence. Perceive the underlying mechanics of the spreadsheet to calculate your future earlier than you settle for the underside line to pay your taxes, to manage your spending and to construct the financial parachute designed to decrease you gently into an unpredictable final result on this on line casino of huge enterprise.
The digital mud bowl is just not so distant.
Peter Messinger, Snohomish
