How to Use Pre-Calculus in Everyday Life

••• Chainarong Prasertthai/iStock/GettyImages

Pre-calculus is a foundational course in mathematics that encompasses both advanced algebra and basic trigonometry. Topics covered in pre-calculus include trigonometric functions, logarithms, exponents, matrices and sequences. These fundamental skills are broadly applicable to a number of real-life scenarios and can help students understand the relevance and value of the content they are learning. Here are some examples.

    Visit an electronics website, and find the price of your favorite video game console. Use rational functions to determine the percentage that the the console would need to be "on sale" for you to be able to buy it for $100.

    Television sizes are typically measured from diagonal corners of the screen. Imagine that you own a television cabinet which is 3 feet wide by 3 feet tall. If you purchase a "42-inch" television that stands 24 inches tall, use trigonometry to determine if it will fit in your existing television cabinet.

    Count the number of pants and shirts you own. Use Pascal's triangle and the binomial theorem to determine how many days you can go without wearing the same outfit twice. If you take into account the number of pairs of shoes you own, how is your outfit count affected?

Related Articles

How to Calculate 30 KW to Amps
How to Determine Square Feet Area
How to Solve a Hexagon
How do I Calculate 0.1%?
How to Calculate the Arc Length, Central Angle, and...
How to Calculate Millivolts to Amps
How to Find the Height of a Rectangular Pyramid
How to Convert Radian to Minutes
How to Make a Simple Theodolite
How to Find the Area of Squares
College Algebra Course Description
How to Find a Z Score
How to Divide Rational Numbers
How to Convert RPM to MPH With a Calculator
How Are Radical Expressions & Rational Exponents Used...
How to Do Fractions on a TI-30X IIS
How to Add Percentage to a Price
How to Calculate the Diameter of a Circle From a Linear...
How to Calculate Arctan

Dont Go!

We Have More Great Sciencing Articles!