Cool math trick: Converting between miles and kilometers
Here's a very cool trick for using math to convert between miles and kilometers.
Photo: Try Stan/Flickr
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I met a woman at a bar last night and told her this cool trick. She asked my number and later that night called me her home. Her sister, who was also at home, learnt this cool trick. and got really really wet. Needless to say, we had a threesome. Thank you. Math is sexy!!
The seeming relationship is interesting, but not practical. Easier to take km, triple, double, and move the decimal point one space to the left. Alternatively, add 2/3 to the mileage.
easier to just know the conversion and divide.
The joys of pure mathematics. It only becomes interesting at points where it is ridiculously useless.
Did you know that the distance between the leaves of a plant follow the Fibonacci's scale?
There's an animated film (in color), probably made by Disney in the late 1930s, which illustrates the Fibonacci sequence in nature. It's well-nigh universally present in life, often in surprising ways. It shows up in classical painting and seems to account for no small part of the emotional impact on the viewer. Its use serves to draw the eye through the painting as the artist intends. The same attraction holds in judging physiognomy for mating selection and in the related human notion of.... More
You know how I convert? I look at the "km/h" scale on my speedometer. Whilst everyone else who is frantically trying to recall the memorized fibonacci sequence and break down non-fibonacci terms is running in to the cars in front of them.
Multiply by .62 and you're done - why make this a chore?!
If you run a 10k everyone knows that's 6.2 miles...
really its very cool
Easiest trick is remember 0.6
From miles to km, add 0.6 more. 50 -> 50 + 30 = 80
From km to miles, multiply by 0.6. 80 -> 80 x 0.6 = 48
Easy-peasy and you are within 3%
I don't understand it.
It is not that I don't understand what was written, it is just that I would only go through all that mental or even on paper or electronic go through all those steps to get where I want to be with the final answer.
The presentation was a nice exercise in mental exploration for the lesser math buffs such as myself and a conversation piece for so many others.
There were some other tricks that came out here on metrics in measurement as the discussion also included conversions " C - F".... More
so I'm at a local bar last night and get into a conversation with a pretty little woman. I tell her about this conversion trick and next thing I know she's like wow and can't believe how cool I am. Next thing she is asking me to her place where she has a hot latina roommate and she is telling her friend about my math trick. lets just say I left with a smile from ear to ear
or you can just use the iphone app
seriously?? how pointless and dumb. If you need a proxy in a pinch as the article suggests (note his messy calculations don't even come up with the right answer), just use 1.5 as your base.
This is badly written, badly explained, and rather useless. It presupposes that you either have the fibonacci sequence memorized, or that you spend time trying to count it up in your head to the values you need. Anyone who can do that can just multiply or divide by 1.6 instead and be done with it. It's only a cool math trick if it makes things EASIER. This does nothing of the sort.
Curious. Didn't find this badly written, explained or useless. While I may not readily know the Fibonacci sequence out to the realm of 4 digit numbers, this method seems perfectly viable and helpful as a mnemonic for distances below 100.
If you're enough of a geek to have the Fibonacci sequence memorized, you're enough of a geek to be able to manually multiply by 1.6.
SAE is the Society of Automotive Engineers. This is a large and important and politically powerful institution in America. If the SAE embraced the metric system then we would use the metric system. So far the reverse has been true.
Only because Detroit rather selfishly didn't want the one-time conversion expense.
America was ready to go metric in the 80s.
Metric is superior to English in every way.
UGH!!!
Another cool conversion math trick I discovered: to convert Celsius degrees to Farenheit, just multiply by two and add 30. You'll be within a couple of degrees at any temperature you're likely to experience. To go the other way (F to C), just subtract 30 and divide by two. WAY easier than multiplying by 9/5 (or is that 5/9? and adding/subtracting 32.
9C = 5F - 160
That doesn't really work. Sure you get close with 0 degrees C, but that is about it.
In fact, at one point, F and C are the same temperature. It is around -40 or something like that.
or you could just give up the ridiculous Imperial system and use metric! Like the rest of the world. I mean really... this whole debate is ... stupid.
i think the 'divide by 5, multiply by 8' trick is far easier than memorizing the fibonacci sequence, tho i suppose the above method is probably quicker for small enough numbers or for somebody who already has the sequence memorized
The relationship isn't exactly coincidental. 1 km = 0.625 miles. As the fibbonacci sequence gets further out, the ratio of two terms in a row is 0.618. That's why you'll get an approximate answer. That is, f(n) / f(n+1) = 0.618, where f(n) represents the nth fibbonacci number.
Another example of how math is just a made up science that conveniently works out.
mathematics is such a beautiful simple subject, but mathematicians make it so complex. It is no wonder they are confined to back rooms trying to crunch numbers for most of their working lives. Vailentz has pretty much got it right - 'convert kilometers to miles by multiplying by 6 and moving the decimal to the left one. To convert kilometers to miles you divide by 6 and move the decimal to the right one'. The decimal point is irrelevant if doing a quick kilometre/mph conversion - i.e. 80 kph x 6.... More
Real mathematicians don't crunch numbers. Really. If someone tells you they crunch numbers for a living they're most likely either a bad mathematician or an accountant.
I have my own little trick I've used. Take a number like 50. Take half of 50 and add it. 50+25=75. Knock a digit off the original number, 50 becomes 5. Add that, 75+5=80. 50 miles = 80kms.
70miles=70+35+7=112kms
That's just a 'tricky' way of multiplying by 1.6.
Add half is multiply by 1.5
That second step is adding 10% of the original number
Total result ... 1.6
Much easier to just remember 1.6
This makes so much more sense that the other big long explanation.
splendid understanding
Why doesn't America convert to the metric system?Great Britain did it after they joined the EU.
The UK may have officially adopted metric measurements, but there are several exceptions - speed limit signs are still in miles per hour, and draught beer is still sold in pints.
Can I have a half-liter of beer please?...It just doesn't feel right....
that's why you go ahead and order a whole liter of beer.
can i have a liter of beer please?
now that sounds just fine to me
We use pint in Canada. It's now used more of a term or slang for a glass of beer than an exact measurement.
Because they don't have any reason to.
When I got stationed in Germany they taught us to convert kilometers to miles by multiplying by 6 and moving the decimal to the left one. To convert kilometers to miles you divide by 6 and move the decimal to the right one. It's quick and easy.
So let me get this straight... to get an **approximate** conversion from miles to kilometers, all I need to do is mentally multiply by a value equal to (1 + SQRT(5))/2???? How convenient!!!!
Isn't it easier to just divide the miles by the sine of a 38.42 degree angle?
Well, I guess it **is** more accurate than multiplying by pi over 2...
The relationship between the golden ratio and the ratio between kilometers and miles is inexact and totally coincidental. There is.... More
I just push the button on my dash and the magic numbers change.
That's what I do whenever I drive to Canada. No mental math involved . . . just enjoy the great scenery along the way.
I just know that 100mph is 100mph and 45km is 45km. Why convert, learn both.
I just know that 100mph is 100mph and 45km is 45km. Why convert, learn both.
Just make sure you rent an amer. car, set your trip mileage to zero & when you arrive you will have the exact mileage. All you will have to do is enjopy your trip.
