It was largely surds but I've just spent half an hour or so going over and over them and they've starting sticking-indices are b***** awkward too!! (or perhaps I am....)

Simplifying? Rationalizing the denominator?

Give me examples and I'll give you some hints.

It was largely surds but I've just spent half an hour or so going over and over them and they've starting sticking-indices are b***** awkward too!! (or perhaps I am....)

Fallen out with 2 out of 3 children today- still time to go to get the full set! Husband is away...... and I have a v early start tomorrow. Feeling very unappreciated by them- but have to say child no. 1 is being lovely as it was her I fell out with this morning........and she's now feeling guilty!

Express 3/4x3(to the power of three) in the form axb (to the power of b), where a and b are rational constants.

So you mean the fraction (3/4), all cubed?

Rational constants are merely whole numbers or fractions, in which case you wouldn't have to change a thing in this example.

No, sorry, 3 divided by 4x to the power of 3, just realised that wasn't terribly clear!

Using the symbol ^ to represent 'to the power of':

That would be (3^3)/(4^3) multiplied by (1/x)^3

(3^3)/(4^3) = 27/64 and since (1/x) = x^(-1), the (1/x)^3 = x^(-3)

so your final answer would be: 27/64 x^(-3)

The fraction 27/64 is rational, and so is the (-3)

I understand thank you!!

That's quite alright. Don't think that you're alone either in finding the initial jump from GCSE to GCE a tough one at times. Quite a few questions came my way during Private Study this week, from Y12 and Y13 alike!

I don't care much for Statistics, haven't done Decision Maths and can get by with Mechanics, but Pure Maths is fine - C1,2,3,4, FP1,2,3 - so ask away if you get stuck. The only limitation will be finding a way around notation on this forum!

One friend dying with cancer, and another ill with it again.
Life stinks.

One friend dying with cancer, and another ill with it again.
Life stinks.

One friend dying with cancer, and another ill with it again.
Life stinks.

One friend dying with cancer, and another ill with it again.
Life stinks.

I start teaching on Monday. I (like every other member of staff) have a timetable with no rooms on it and have been told to consider it provisional until I have been given rooms.

The students were supposed to enrol today but the trams were on strike making the university virtually inaccessible. The students were supposed to fill in a paper form which will then be typed into the computer system and the students can then log in and print out an individual timetable. The timetable will only be available to download when their form has been put into the system and the administrative staff don't work on Friday afternoons (and we are talking about around 800 students). We have been told that those students who enrolled on Thursday should have their timetables by midday on Monday at the latest (what about morning classes? And what about those who didn't enrol today because they couldn't get to the university?)

Students have to download documents from the website but the documents are listed under the teacher's name and they aren't told the teacher's name before the first class to stop them swapping classes when they see who they've got so they can't download anything before the first lesson and we have no photocopy budget.

I decided I would do something on powerpoint instead of using a paper document and tried to book a video-projector but you can only do that if you say which room you'll be in ...

One friend dying with cancer, and another ill with it again.
Life stinks.

My uncle was recently diagnosed too... turning out to be a $hite year...

Thanks decision maths seems pretty useless to be honest-it's effectively doing something that can be done by common sense in the seemingly most complicated manner possible!! Ah well, it must be done, and thanks again

Maybe a loose pipe somewhere (like behind the cooker?)

The truth is that life is a gift, not a right, and we should make the most of every day, as it could be our last.

Hugs from me too

Ohhh dear. I am considering doing Maths and Further Maths for AS level next year, but if it's this hard...

Its a while ago now (late 90's) but daughter did Maths, Further Maths, Physics, Music and Gen Paper, but enjoyed the maths most. She did get a 1st in Maths at Uni and an MSc in statistics.

Sorry to hear that Soph 15.

Two friends have cancer, only in their 40's. LIfe stinks sometimes.

My Dad's Uncle is still poorly in hospital, and he has dementia, so visiting him and he doesn't know who you are isn't the nicest... he remembered my name tonight, but he kept asking who my sister was. Then he wasn't too well while we were there.

My Grandad is really poorly at the moment, and i really wouldn't be surprised if he gets taken to hospital soon too :-(

Sorry to hear this, Soph

It's not looking good at all for my Dad's Uncle... his family who havent seen him for years were informed today, and we're allowed to visit whenever we like

My Grandad was taken in this morning too

So, so sorry to hear this, Soph I'll be thinking of you and praying for your uncle and grandad

Thinking of all who are going through a rough patch at the moment. xx

The criticism keeps saying that I'll never, ever be able to understand the literature, because I'm western, and therefore I am the oppressor and not the oppressed

Was this criticism aimed at previous generations that would have formed the audience when they were published? Does the ability to be objective count for nothing? I'm confused..

In short, yes, I should be able to understand it if I try really, really hard. I'm just being sulky about it, because it seems like it will be really difficult. Plus, I'm apparently, quite far behind in my knowledge of politics/historical events etc which shaped the cultures of the countries in which the texts were written... Which will make it all the more difficult to catch up.

(By the way, while you're here, I don't suppose you could tell me the difference between syncretism and hybridity? I looked them up, and I think I get what syncretism is - the sources I looked at just said it was a sort of fusion of cultures which occurs after somewhere has been colonised. I looked up hybridity, though, and got very confused. The only meaning I could get from the definition implied that hybridity is the same as syncretism, which I'm sure isn't right, is it?)

*sigh*

Really struggling to find motivation for going back to Uni tomorrow. Another year of being messed about by my department, enduring lectures which I could deliver better myself, and having my marks dragged down by fellow team members in group work projects.

Starting to think 5 years is a bit too long to spend doing one degree - you end up very disillused with the whole process. I just want to go out and do my job now.

I would have to dig out my notes to be of any use on the difference between the two (as this was one of the things I decided I wasn't really interested in pursuing). As you have probably gathered, different theorists define them slightly differently. Bhabha has written quite a lot on hybridity (but he is not the most "readable" of theorists). The other book I quite liked when I first started was "The Empire Writes Back", which I am sure is also on you reading list.

Spare a thought for me tomorrow. Last week was our first week of term. I was supposed to have 5 hours on Monday but arrived to find there were no rooms and so couldn't teach. I went back in for 4 hours on Tuesday but only taught 2 and all classes were cancelled until the end of the week so they could sort rooms out. Tomorrow I am again supposed to have 5 hours but only have a room for one of them... At the end of the month my class that was supposed to be from 2.30 to 4.30 has been moved to 8.30 (because there were no classrooms) which means getting up at 5.00 am and there may well be other changes yet to come

Ok, thanks for all your help! I'll get reading your recommendation tomorrow.

I hope everything is less nightmare-ish than you expect tomorrow.