Why Asian Kids are Good at Math

by Joey deVilla on November 17, 2006

It could be that their textbooks are more motivating:


Photo courtesy of Miss Fipi Lele and hardhat.

I recognize the trig and geometry bits, but if any of you out there can translate the Korean, could be you please enlighten us in the comments? I’m burning with mathematical curiosity.

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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Anonymous November 17, 2006 at 3:19 pm

Top Part:

Let’s assume that from the top part of the skirt to where the thighs meet is veritically 4cm. Also assume that from the end of the skirt to the point we are interested in viewing is horizontally 12cm. Looking from the side, the point of interest and the edge of the skirt form a triangle ABC.

Bottom part:

Extending BC we reach our ideal observation point E where we our point of interest comes into view. blah blah explanation of where ABCDE is we come to the conclusion that DE must be 53.3cm in order to achieve the optimum viewing angle. Assuming an average height of 170cm and seating height of 70cm the observer must bluntly lean over and reduce his viewing height by 17cm to see the inside of her thighs. I don’t think she would mind so much. Go for it.

2 Anonymous November 18, 2006 at 8:14 am

Thanks for the translation!

3 Anonymous November 21, 2006 at 3:05 pm

Holy crap!

What the hell is going on in the Korean education system? There’s no way this shit would fly in China.

4 Korean speaker December 15, 2008 at 4:30 pm

Thanks anonymous for the last two bits of nugget. It’s actually translated as follows: “A typical sitting height of a 170cm-tall person [ed: a purported average height of Koreans] is about 70cm. He cannot see inside the skirt without lowering his sight by 17cm, and this would require his hip to be awkwardly advanced by 45 cm.”

This is also not from a textbook as some may think, and from the top left corner I think it’s from a local sci-fi magazine not really intended by kids.

5 James December 15, 2008 at 8:12 pm

I’m not sure why Asian “kids” would find this motivating. Asian boys, maybe.

6 Steven Choi December 16, 2008 at 4:11 am

I am from Seoul, what is the fuss about? Why do you find it interesting, just elementary school geometry.

7 Jennifer Park December 16, 2008 at 4:21 am

This is a translation of a Japanese fiction book. Any Korean speaker should be able to recognize that it is Korean text translated from Japanese.

8 Anonymous December 16, 2008 at 4:51 am

If I’m correct, that page is actually from a comic book, not a school textbook.
You can check it out here :
_http://blog.naver.com/kytx?Redirect=Log&logNo=150003510779

9 holyshit December 16, 2008 at 4:51 am

well, i’m korean.
and that’s NOT a textbook. that’s only a book of HUMOR.
korean education system is extremely conservative, and all korean agree with it.

10 holyshit December 16, 2008 at 5:33 am

hm

11 Terry May 18, 2009 at 10:39 pm

I know this becasue i am korean but they are super smart becasue all they do is study study study
It is like shitt

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