Earlier this semester, I enrolled in Music 070 in an effort to con my way out of Penn’s quantitative data requirement. It’s one of the few eligible classes not in the math department, so I figured I’d breeze through the course and maybe pick up some beat-boxing skills on the way.
But alas, my plan failed miserably — I should’ve known I was doomed when I listed “Alicia Keys” as my all-time favorite composer. While everyone else in the class seemed to pick up complex rhythms and time signatures with ease, I was left giggling whenever someone said pianist. So I dropped the course and that was that.
This is not to say, however, that I hate Penn for making me suffer through an inevitable semester of math. I’m slowly starting to realize how important math is to every situation; I can’t even pay my tuition bill without adding together some huge numbers.
But more importantly, this nation has somewhat of a math crisis on its hands. We’ve already covered how Americans can’t spell; turns out they’re not so hot at basic math either. This report, for example, says that 50% of college students fail algebra — that’s, like, one third of us.
So instead of loathing Penn’s math requirement or trying to scam a way out of it, let’s embrace the chance to get better at one of life’s most tedious skills. And as for my own attempt to mix math and music, I’ll just say this: I should have known better.
Tags: Alicia Keys, math, music
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