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Mathematical Nap

When the aftermath of overworking with too much x's and y's make someone zzz when they doze or nod off.
Prof. Ziz’s mild snore got some mean colleagues take a shot of him having a mathematical nap, which was suspected to be filled with ƶ, ƶ², …, √ƶ, ℤ.
by Numerati December 16, 2024
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Mathematical Slowies

Non-trick or non-tricky math questions that you can do at your snail’s pace without worry or fear of having to sit for any killer test or exam—they are recommended for self-confessed folks who pride themselves of being “hopeless at math,” or not being born with the “math gene.”
Mathematical slowies are the opposite of “mathematical quickies,” which are generally solved with some insight, and often accompanied by an occasional aha! reaction.
by Numerati January 19, 2025
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Mathematical Toughies

A term for brain-unfriendly or challenging math questions that generally evoke panic and fear, which may also be accompanied by recurring nightmares, among math-anxious or mathophobic students, parents, and teachers—the opposite of “mathematical slowies.”
For most educated folks, who lack the intelligence or training to solving math contests and olympiad questions, these mathematical toughies are off-putting or repugnant to them.
by Numerati January 24, 2025
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Mathematical Purrfection

When educators who are cat lovers love to pose creative math questions—and mathematical quickies or trickies—that center around their pets (or “masters of the house”), or are attracted by real-life word problems that embrace the feline family.
Two brain-unfriendly questions that exhibit mathematical purrfection are:

1. At a Cats’ Café, how many cute kittens are there if there are 9 more legs than tails?

2. Guesstimate the average cat bill at the veterinarian over her lifestyle.
by Numerati June 18, 2025
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Mathematical Do-ness

Forcing or motivating yourself to DO-ing some math to beat your daily laziness, especially if you are glued or addicted to your cell phone or digital device for an unhealthy number of hours every day.
Some mathematical do-ness activities that could help white-collar workers break away from their sedentary lifestyle are:

Walk exactly 6789 steps.

Create an origami geometric shape out of the newspaper.

Learn to do calculus—differentiate and integrate—with a soroban (Japanese abacus).

Count the number of ballpoint pens in your house.
by Numerati July 29, 2025
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Declarative Mathematics

Something Matthew Thomas made up to try to win an argument with his wife.

Not actually a real form of mathematics.
Infinity! The multiplication is implied because I used declarative mathematics.
by Shofarsong October 15, 2017
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Onto Mathematics

School of thought which addresses the "something-from-nothing" conundrum.

Based on the corollary of Tarskian area.

Ontological mathematics.
Onto mathematics explains that something appears from nothing because the area of same-discrete lines is two TIMES the area of the volume which encompasses them.

In other words: lines have area.
by zanderfin September 23, 2019
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