Trivia: Math or Maths?

StudyOriented

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Jan 4, 2014
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Hello,

First of all, sorry if my English is bad, that because i am not from an English-speaking country.
But, i think you could understand what i say, because mathematics is universal. :smile:
Hi, i am new here :)

Just wanna share and talk about it. :D (and practicing my English especially the Mathematics :p)
As i said above, "mathematics is universal", but is this true?

I mean the word "mathematics" not the mathematics.
What's the problem with that English word?

Is that plural or singular?
"Mathematics are" or "Mathematics is"?

Of course it is not FreeEngl!shhelp.com, but it is about mathematics itself!
Plural or singular, is a mathematical factor of a language.

Second, let me introduce myself,
I am StudyOriented, an 16 years old awful hyperactive study-oriented less creative ugly and beautiful girl from Indonesia (did you see that? ugly and beautiful, contradictive! :shock: ). Just call me Stud, its an ugly beautiful name isnt?

Well, in Indonesia we don't speak English, we spoke Mathematics as "Matematika" (pronounced like: Mathematica) as short we called it Mat, (pronounced like: Matt, with the a word spells like a from the word car)

Indonesian language is very easy, it does not have time tenses, and even does not require plural or singular noun to be worried about.
it does not have to worry to correct whether "there are 5 fish" or "there is 5 fishes" or "there are no fisheseses" at all.
Even it does not have to worry whether the fish is "he" or "she'.
Its all because "Fish"&"Fishes", "are"&"is", "he"&"she", "was"&"were", "can"&"could" (etc.) were converged into one word in Indonesian.

For many case it could be a quite advantage, though it could be a disadvantage too. (many disadvantage!!!)

(FYI: Indonesian fully itself is a relatively new language, widely spoken after 1928, as an official language for national purpose)

Third, As i am trying to be an appropriate English speaker, as well as in English Mathematics...

Now, lets back to the word "Mathematics"!

What is the right one?
Math or Maths? (of course Maths is the right one because Math is on left, hehe :p)

I googled it a little, and i found out that American English called it Math, British English called it Maths, period. Eh, i mean full stop.


So... Period and full stop, color and colour, (etc.) were also on the same case of American English and British English difference.

But for Mathematics, besides the origin or the place were its spoken, the singular and plural factor were on both American English and British English language structure.

Here are the Pros & Cons that i found on the net;


Math (mæθ: commonly spoken in North America, especially American English)

Pros to Math, Cons to Maths:

- Quicker spelling, expected faster for 2 miliseconds, eh i mean 2 inches, eh 2 timeinches (inches: non SI unit, still used in USA, but not for time dimension, sorry my bad) "Maths" is slower than "Math" meaning that "Math" is more effective.

- Energy saving, without an "s" to say it will saves energy :D

- The words "Mathematics is" is widely used, meaning that mathematics is singular and the shorthen "Math" resembles its singularity.

- Older History, "Math" first appeared in print quite a while ago, in 1847, although that "math" sported a period(or a full stop, or a dot) (the appearance: "It rained so that we had a math. lesson indoors.") and was thus clearly a simple informal abbreviation. “Maths” is a bit newer, first appearing in print in 1911.

- Avoid misconception, as most people agree with "Mathematics" is singular because the say the words "Mathematics is" so Mathematics is singular and erasing the "s" will avoid children or an non-English speaker like me to say "Mathematics is" without misconcept its as singular noun and shorten is as "Math is"


Maths (mæθs: commonly spoken outside North America, especially British English and British former colony, In short: Majority spoken it. The sun surely never sets on British empire, but for the British driving on left side of the road, the sun sets on the left side of the map too, i mean on driving on left minority doing it, except for planes oh yeah except for boats too, oh okay okay i talk too much, huh girls talk to much right?, geez, THAT NEVER TRUE! [contradictive as above Stud?!!:shock:])

Pros to Maths, Cons to Math:

- Majority doing it, except for driving on left :( (Well I am left handed, and driving on left is easier for left-handers, and in my country we drive left, though i never drive any car yet, cause im still 16, and inside this brackets doesnt make any sense with the pros)

- The "s" word making it rich of knowledge because it looks plural, but still everyone believe its singular (evidence: "Mathematics is")

- Mathematics can be divided into Geometry, Algebra, Calculus, Logic etc. its a collection of several topics, by the means of it quantity Mathematics is plural as a word, But the words "Mathematics is" widely spoken because it means Mathematics as one for so long, so "Maths" defines that Mathematics florish with divisions just the same as Panem with their 13 districts (I like Hunger Games! :D)

- Newer History, some says newer means better, "Math" appeared in 1847. “Maths” is a bit newer, first appearing in print in 1911.

- There is an "s" in the full word!, yeah there is.


Fourth, well, the problem in singular and plural can be variative.
Like the problem in halves, if it is ambiguistic just assume it is a collective singular, you can use both each are and is. Maybe Mathematics does.

Well, believe it, Mathematics is on our everyday lives, even when we informally speak.
So this is important even for just a very little important.

I choose Mat for short. because it makes me different, hehehe. :D
Though i prefer the longer "Mathematics" than the short one.

But, between Math and Maths, i prefer Math, because it is shorter.


The Last, in my opinion, the general purpose of a language is to communicate, as long as it is understandable, it's fine, and you need to pay for the fine.

So, what is your opinion about Math or Maths?
Let's discuss!!! :eek:

Hey, Last question, which one is the right word? Aluminum. Aluminium. Natrium. Sodium. Kalium. Potassium. Dumbledore. Door. Book. Door. Book. Same "oo" different spelling? How do you spell "Einstein"? Okay stop, Period. Full stop. Dot!.

I'm Stud, and Thank You :)
 
Last edited:
What's the problem with that English word?
Is that plural or singular?
"Mathematics are" or "Mathematics is"?
British English: "Maths, the study of mathematics, is one of your classes this semester."
American English: "Math, the study of mathematics, is one of your classes this semester."

Period and full stop, color and colour, (etc.) were also on the same case of American English and British English difference.
Yes; British and American English have some slight differences in spelling and terminology. In general, however, they are mutually understandable.

So, what is your opinion about Math or Maths?
What is there to "discuss"? Yes, two different "dialects" use slightly different terminology. There is nothing "right" or "wrong" about this; it's merely different.

Last question, which one is the right word? Aluminum. Aluminium.
The "correct" answer will vary with the dialect being used.

Natrium. Sodium. Kalium. Potassium.
Sorry; I don't understand this bit.

Dumbledore.
This is a made-up word.

Door. Book. Door. Book. Same "oo" different spelling?
Yes; English is a bit of a disaster of a language, and English-speakers are eye-poppingly lazy and hazy with our vowels. This is largely ("entirely"?) irrelevant to the maths involved.
 
Wow.

Math and maths are both informal abbreviations mostly used by students. "Maths" sounds a bit odd to US ears and presumably "math" sounds a bit odd to British ears. I think you just have to decide whether you want to sound American, British, or Australian and then learn that variant of English.

"Fish" is an unusual word with regard to its plural. Spelled as shown, it can be either singular or plural, but if the plural is intended, it means more than one fish of the same type. "Fishes" means more than one type.

You might want to look up the meaning of "stud" in a good dictionary. It's not necessarily a name that is flattering, particularly for a young woman.
 
Actually i felt guilty after post this thread.
Because after i looked again, i realize that i just post a thread the same style as i post my own blog.

Most of this thread out of topic.
And more personal styled.

Sorry for the inconvenient.
I hope in the future i can contribute better to this forum.

and BTW, i choose Stud just only for this username, for short, just like shorten the word mathematics.
Besides i still honor my parents for giving me a much better real name.

Sorry :(
 
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