How can I develop an absract mind?

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stuckonEarth
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30 Sep 2009, 10:39 pm

I have a visual mind, I suck at math but I want to go into a profession that requires my to have an abstract mind. How can I get better?



tlcoopi7
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01 Oct 2009, 4:02 am

Which profession do you want to go into? For me, to help with my analytical thinking, I watch crime drama shows.


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hippo
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01 Oct 2009, 8:19 am

Philosophy. If you don't know much about it, start with classical philosophy - Heraklitus, Pitagoras, Sokrates. The greatest exercise of abstract thinking is modern philosophy - Descartes, Immanuel Kant, Nicolai Hartmann, Hegel. But to understand it you should know earlier philosophy very well.

Cosmology. It's wonderful to read about time as the fourth axis. I recommend you an excelent book by Clifford A. Pickover, it's called "Time". It doesn't require advanced math, and it's fun. there are many books like that.

You write you suck about math. Believe me, you don't. There is no border you wouldn't cross. You can learn math, just don't be afraid of it. My teacher used to say: math is like learning to play an instrument - if you don't practise, you suck at it. Math is the key to abstract thinking. Practise and you won't regret.

Sorry for my English.



AnotherOne
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01 Oct 2009, 9:59 am

can you transcribe math to visual world?
i think it is a stretch, why don't you choose something else, more along your your strengths.
i mean if it is just some basic math (or advanced but limited set of operations), i am sure you can learn but if it requires constant upgrade of your math skills than it can be a straggle.



stuckonEarth
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01 Oct 2009, 4:10 pm

tlcoopi7 wrote:
Which profession do you want to go into?


I want to go into computer networking.



jamesongerbil
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01 Oct 2009, 9:30 pm

i loved calculus. that will make you more abstract as well as more rational. or it will drive you insane! just kidding. or, it will just really frustrate you. i concur, though, philosophy is a good route to go.



Orwell
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02 Oct 2009, 6:04 pm

stuckonEarth wrote:
I want to go into computer networking.

That doesn't seem like it would require such an abstract mind. Actually, I imagine it would play well into your visual nature. You will be required to take some math, but probably nothing too serious- I think at my university CS majors only need calculus, linear algebra, stats, and discrete math. None of that requires much abstract thought, and in fact calculus and linear algebra lend themselves very well to a visual approach.

To get better at math (at least the level of math you'll need for anything involving computers) there's not much substitute for repetitive drills. Get books on the subjects you need to brush up on (there are plenty of free ones online) and go through them, doing tons of exercises until you understand it all.


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