Definitions by MathPlus
I Safe! You Safe! We Safe!
A half-broken English slogan used by construction companies in Singapore to remind their workers to be accident-conscious—zero success is the goal to preventing any casualties, accidents, or deaths.
If a grammatically incorrect slogan can get people to stop and comment, its impact in conveying the intended message is likely to be greater—I Safe! You Safe! We Safe! looks like a potential winner.
I Safe! You Safe! We Safe! by MathPlus June 8, 2017
Mathematical Virgin
One who has never experienced the joy (or pain) of rigorous proofs in high-school Euclidean geometry or college calculus.
Angel couldn't understand why mathematicians make such a big fuss about rigorously proving mathematical results that are intuitively obvious to her—one should forgive her for her immaturity as she's still a mathematical virgin.
Mathematical Virgin by MathPlus April 20, 2017
Drill-and-Kill Math
A teaching format that effectively prepares students to the test: worked examples followed by lots of practice on similar questions—algorithmic mastery over conceptual fluency.
Average teachers just love drill-and-kill math, because it gives oft-low self-esteem kids the illusion that they've mastered the concepts—teachers are happy, students gain self-confidence, and parents are pleased with the decent grades.
Drill-and-Kill Math by MathPlus April 18, 2017
Singapore
A free-market economy that is unspokenly flushed with cash from tax fugitives, making revenue earned from tourism and exported goods and services pale in comparison.
Among the unofficially reported tax fugitives who became Singapore citizens are Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, Chinese movie stars Jet Li and Gong Li, investment guru Jim Rogers, not to say, the thousands of millionaires from Indonesia, India, Malaysia, and India.
Gay Moment in Mathematics
When a math educator is thrilled to discover that some his fellow mathematical brethren are also gay—what a relief for him to stop feeling like an odd in a sea of evens.
Since Dave experienced his gay moment in mathematics last summer, he's been invited by his fellow mathematicians to speak at their clandestinely held "Gay Topology" conference.
Gay Moment in Mathematics by MathPlus March 28, 2017
Singapore Math®
A trademarked term that may be likened to the mathematical equivalent of illegally parking in a disabled parking space.
Math educators remarked that trademarking "Singapore Math" is a form of "mathematical hijacking"—what else can we expect after Singapore Math®? Singapore Math 2.0™?
Singapore Math® by MathPlus March 27, 2017
Singapore
A highly stressful place where local students are more afraid of failing their math exam than of their parents dying—one in three said that life isn't worth living.
Dubbed an "authoritarian democracy" by critics, Singapore is "a first world oasis in a third world region"—where political dissidents would better apply for asylum in the US or the West to avoid being fined, jailed, or made bankrupt.