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comment by b_b
b_b  ·  4046 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: The Smarter You Are, The Stupider You Are

It's not a gauge; it's about mental acuity. I don't give tests. Calculations just come up in the course of the work that need to be performed, concentrations of chemicals, mixing solutions correctly, etc.





mknod  ·  4045 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Ah I see I misunderstood your post then on my first look. I can certainly see how one's ability to do mental arithmetic would help them with issues of stoichiometry.

A "big picture" person who has practiced their math will mentally "see" ratios in their head while someone who'd rely on a calculator might just see "Oh I need to find the numbers to plugin". So if I were the second type of student, I would do more practice with basic arithmetic.