# Did I miss something. (sorta-kinda-not really math related) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 28, 2009, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544 "2009-07-28T13:05:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2009, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/21 "2009-07-29T15:15:21Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > I have studied math, stat, econ, chem, phys, bio, art, etc. in the US. No one added an S to any of these. What is “art” short for there? I don’t think there’s any alternative for “chem” or “bio”, because “chemistry” and “biology” are singular in form. I’d hesitate to say “phys”, because it could be short for “physics” or “physiology” – and, in any case, it already has an “s” at the end. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2009, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/22 "2009-07-29T15:29:04Z")
I think this Math vs Maths question needs to be discussed by the President and Prime Minister’s. (Prime Mininisters’?) Then after politeness subsided, eye rolling, yeah-sure’s and whatever’s start, followed quickly by Yo Mama and See You Next Tuesday’s. Nuggies, Indian Burns and wet willies are fast and furious before the Nuclear Holocaust starts. All because of an ‘s’. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/23 "2009-07-30T04:58:10Z")
I’ve always said “math” but bow many maths are there? Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Calculus, Statistics…plus any subdivisions like Differential Calculus and Integral Calculus. ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/24 "2009-07-30T05:39:55Z")
> [@Shirley\_Ujest](#): > > Did I miss something vital in my youth. Is\*\* Maths\*\*, which is so VERY wrong, actually the correct way to say you are studying this specific subject? It should be obvious by now, but just to make the point forcefully clear: “maths” is the correct term in Britain (and several other Commonwealth nations). “math” is the correct term in America. Just like “aluminium” vs. “aluminum” or any of the myriad other such things, many of which are rather more drastic. As is often the case, people speak differently in different places, and there isn’t really any use trying to demonstrate that one way is “more logical” than another. ---
**Author:** ![Idlewild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@Idlewild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idlewild)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/25 "2009-07-30T05:57:04Z")
> [@Indistinguishable](#): > > It should be obvious by now, but just to make the point forcefully clear: “maths” is the correct term in Britain (and several other Commonwealth nations). “math” is the correct term in America. Just like “aluminium” vs. “aluminum” or any of the myriad other such things, many of which are rather more drastic. As is often the case, people speak differently in different places, and there isn’t really any use trying to demonstrate that one way is “more logical” than another. Seriously. And as an Aussie living in the US it’s thoroughly irritating how many people feel the need to point and laugh every time I use a Commonwealth English term for something. Let’s see who’s laughing when a dingo eats _their_ baby. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/26 "2009-07-30T16:11:58Z")
Can we at least get the Brits to stop refering to all arithmetic problems as “sums” whether or not they involve addition? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/27 "2009-07-30T16:26:55Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Can we at least get the Brits to stop refering to all arithmetic problems as “sums” whether or not they involve addition? Since all the other arithmetical operations can be defined solely in terms of addition, what’s the problem? It’s no worse than Americans describing places as “bathrooms” or “restrooms” when you neither bathe nor rest in those places. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/28 "2009-07-30T21:24:47Z")
> [@NinjaChick](#): > > \*I _hate_ this. I hate this _so very much_. I cannot for the life of me justify it, but the British practice of treating collective nouns as plurals drives me absolutely insane. \ I am totally with you on that one. It makes me shudder and almost gag when I hear it. For the most part, I love Commonwealth English, and can even see the charm in “maths”. But for fuck’s sake, phrases like “My family are coming to visit” make me very stabby. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/29 "2009-07-30T21:55:35Z")
I’ve lived in the US quite a few years now and, like for some others here, “math” is one of those Americanisms that still grates on my ears. I realize that it’s completely normal and correct usage here, but it just sounds wrong to me. The other one is pronouncing “herb” without the “h” sound at the beginning. All the rest (aluminum instead of aluminium, DE-fense instead of de-FENSE, sports instead of sport, asshole instead of arsehole) i have adapted to fairly easily, but “math” and “erb” will always grate on me, i think. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/30 "2009-07-31T00:32:57Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > What is “art” short for there? Arts? ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/31 "2009-07-31T00:51:13Z")
[Eddie Izzard](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IzDbNFDdP4&feature=PlayList&p=92F663F664D75A44&index=0&playnext=1) speaks. (some language.) ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/32 "2009-07-31T01:00:25Z")
> [@NinjaChick](#): > > \*I _hate_ this. I hate this _so very much_. I cannot for the life of me justify it, but the British practice of treating collective nouns as plurals drives me absolutely insane. I know it happens sometimes in American English, I know it’s completely illogical to let a tiny little grammatical quick inspire rage, but I completely and totally _despise_ this construction. If you were to ask me, “limited to the realm of English grammar what is the worst thing in the universe, ever,” I would without a doubt say, “why, it’s the intolerable practice of regularly treating collective nouns as plurals. Why must the English do such awful things to their own language?” Seriously, it’s _awful_ and to American ears it’s the worst sound in the universe, and we have more guns and a greater inclination to use them than you British and Australians and New Zealanders and whoever else does it, so you better stop that right now. Oh, but it’s even worse than that, Ninjachick. Many members of the American Media have adopted this wayward form of expression. I was in a rage when someone on the local radio station kept saying things like “Radiohead are playing in Boston this weekend.” The fuck Radiohead is. It’s a band! It’s a singular noun! Don’t make me drive to Worchester and bitch slap you into speaking like a proper American. Rather than stab her, I stopped listening to radio stations with DJs. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/33 "2009-07-31T01:31:14Z")
I had an Australian girlfriend and she heard on the radio that the governor was in a shagging contest. She said “What did they say he did?” That was when I learned the other meaning of shagging, here it is just dancing. This was in the mid 80s, I think most Americans didn’t know the British meaning of shagging back then. ---
**Author:** ![StaudtCJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@StaudtCJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StaudtCJ)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/34 "2009-07-31T02:19:46Z")
Perhaps it refers to the different maths? For example: geometry, algebra, trigonometry, calculus, and statistics are all supposedly different maths, and if you are studying more than one of them, then you are studying maths, and not math? Similar to studying the arts, not art, since “the arts” includes dance, music, painting, sculpture, photography, etc., not just paintings? From this perspective, the people in the United States have it wrong. \*I am from the U.S., and have always rationalized it this way. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/35 "2009-07-31T02:36:00Z")
> [@Indistinguishable](#): > > As is often the case, people speak differently in different places, and there isn’t really any use trying to demonstrate that one way is “more logical” than another. Wow. Thanks for clearing that up! ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/36 "2009-07-31T12:27:02Z")
Google Ads: Math Help. Note: singular. Suck it, UKer’s!!1111!!!1 ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/37 "2009-07-31T13:44:21Z")
Huh. On a recent assignment, my MST209 tutor corrected “data is” to “data are”. I thought “Those are news to me!”. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/38 "2009-07-31T13:48:27Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > Huh. On a recent assignment, my MST209 tutor corrected “data is” to “data are”. I thought “Those are news to me!”. In Latin, “data” is the plural of “datum”; and in English many people try to follow that rule, and think you are ignorant if you don’t follow it. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/39 "2009-07-31T14:25:38Z")
These are the same people that go on holliday and attend university. Whatta ya gonna do? ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544/40 "2009-07-31T22:24:44Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > DE-fense instead of de-FENSE … will always grate on me, i think. I’ve lived all my life in the USA, and I use both pronunciations: “DE-fense” is what you yell when you want your football or basketball team to stop the opponent from scoring. “De-FENSE” is what the armed forces are tasked with providing to the nation. Also, the USA has a Department of Defense, not Department of Defence. Similarly, the UK has a Ministry of Defence, not a Ministry of Defense. No need to change the proper spelling in either case, regardless of the nationality of your intended readership. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-something-sorta-kinda-not-really-math-related/504544.md?page=3)