Thank you for making it this far. The mere mention of math can sometimes turn people away.
Yet math’s role in helping us understand the world is so critical. The astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson once said, “Math is the language of the universe.”
I was thinking about math in its simplest form while reading the paper this morning. As one might expect these days, there was no shortage of bad or frustrating news. Sprinkled in every few pages, was something positive. For some unknown reason, I began to see the articles as mathematical functions. Which news events were adding to the world, which subtracted from it, which divided us.
For example, an Op-Ed from four cabinet secretaries whose combined net worth is a half a billion dollars, advocated subtracting people from receiving Medicaid, federal housing assistance and nutrition programs.
A review of an exhibition of Amy Sherald’s artwork added an optimistic view of America.
Several articles spoke about division within government or between countries and institutions.
And then there was one article that conjured a feeling of multiplication. It was about the first custom gene-editing treatment that successfully healed a baby with a rare genetic disorder. The process is complex and amazing. The researchers emphasized the role government funding played in the development.
It brought to mind multiplication because it is the result of so many people over the course of decades working together to create something whose potential to save and improve lives is exponential. According to one researcher, “We all said to each other, ‘This is the most significant thing we have ever done.’” It filled me with hope and wonder.
The second half of deGrasse Tyson’s quote is less known. “Math is the language of the universe. So the more equations you know, the more you can converse with the cosmos.”
Math is a means for understanding – not just the cosmos but our role in it.
In the news, on the streets or in our lives, we are all part of so many invisible math equations – each a different way we connect with the world. Our actions reveal our contributions to them.
Check your own math. At some point, at the end of a day or week, do a little math in your head. Ask what you’ve added to the world today or what you’ve subtracted. Did you do anything that divides us? Were you part of something that multiplied something good?
Recommendation for the Week: Spend a little time on UpWorthy or Beautiful News Daily two sites where you’ll find plenty of addition.
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