Innumeracy May Be a Worse Problem than Illiteracy, or even A-literacy

Order of function error: does not compute! *heh*

Ran into someone who thought πr² meant (πr)². No, it’s π(r²). (πr)² yields a SUBSTANTIALLY different number.

Example: where r = 2: (3.14159 x 2)² = 39.4783509124, whereas 3.14159 x 4 [that is, r²] = 12.56636. That area is less than ⅓ of the incorrect computation.

Correct math can help define and comprehend the material world. Innumerates are easy prey for professional liars (like, say, politicians and mass MEdia Hivemind Podpeople).

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