# Calculator fun and games -- book recommendation?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [August 3, 2009, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108 "2009-08-03T00:53:53Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [August 3, 2009, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/1 "2009-08-03T00:53:53Z")
Are there any books suitable for a 10-year-old (my nephew) that have fun calculator ‘math games’ that might get him hooked?
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### Author:  [@Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Full_Metal_Lotus)
#### Post date: [August 3, 2009, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/2 "2009-08-03T02:50:52Z")
“The Great International Math On Keys Book” published by Texas Intruments in 1976 is exactly what you are looking for.
I checked and it is still wildly available on the interweb
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### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [August 3, 2009, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/3 "2009-08-03T02:58:25Z")
Heh. I had that book! (I probably still do.)
I don’t remember: Is it suitable for a 10-year-old?
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### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [August 8, 2009, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/4 "2009-08-08T16:59:10Z")
Rather than trying to find my original copy of _The Great International Math On Keys Book_, I just ordered another one. They’re practically giving them away!
It looks like a good book for someone who is just starting in algebra, or for someone has forgotten the algebra and trig they learned years ago. It seems a bit quaint, as it was written when personal calculators were still novel. The math hasn’t changed, of course; but the ‘OMG! Look what your calculator can do!’ style is outdated. Of course, your calculator can do that! We’re living in The Future! The authors also liked to show that the calculator can display eight digits, so their examples include solutions like ‘.08763269’. That’s fine, but for a youngster I think whole-number answers would be easier to grasp.
My nephew sees homework as a burden, and would rather play with his Lego toys. I gather from my sister and BIL that he’s not doing great in school. He’s a nice, likable kid, but doesn’t apply himself. (I blame lack of discipline at home.) I thought if he could have some fun with math, that he would be more interested in it. _The Great International Math On Keys Book_ doesn’t seem to fit the bill. There are a couple of math tricks, but the games chapter is lame. I don’t think this is the book to interest a 10-year-old who doesn’t, as yet, care much for the subject.
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### Author:  [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)
#### Post date: [August 8, 2009, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/5 "2009-08-08T18:07:20Z")
Tell him he’s going to go to 7734 if he doesn’t apply himself? 🙂
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### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [August 8, 2009, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/6 "2009-08-08T18:13:51Z")
That reminds me of an old '70s calculator joke. If Arabs fought [y] Israelis for [z] days, who would win? (I don’t remember the numbers, but I think they were all multiplied together.) The answer was 71077345.
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### Author:  [@AZCowboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AZCowboy)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2009, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/7 "2009-08-09T02:26:07Z")
142 Arabs, 154 Israelis, fighting over 69 oil wells, (times) over 5 days…
14215469 x 5 = 71077345
I’m embarrassed to admit that I remember that.
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### Author:  [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/8 "2009-08-09T02:28:07Z")
\*\*5318008
\*\*
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### Author:  [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/9 "2009-08-09T02:28:45Z")
> [@elmwood](#):
>
> \*\*5318008
> \*\*
Damn, I came in here to make the exact same post. You beat me to it by 1 minute.
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### Author:  [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2009, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/10 "2009-08-09T05:44:53Z")
> [@elmwood](#):
>
> \*\*5318008
> \*\*
**7734 40**
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### Author:  [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)
#### Post date: [August 9, 2009, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculator-fun-and-games-book-recommendation/505108/11 "2009-08-09T07:45:24Z")
> [@elmwood](#):
>
> \*\*5318008
> \*\*
You know what’s amazing? I had never run across that one before, even though I had run equations that led to 55378008 through my calculator umpteen times. I feel so silly having wasted all that time imagining Dolly Parton being subjected to various horrific operations.