While the world is anxiously waiting what “Christmas (or Cliff-mas!) gift” North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has reserved for President Trump, with the two rogue leaders now having revived their name-calling game, and as the world witnesses the impeachment trial of the Liar-in-Chief, how can math educators nevertheless use the caustic and divisive political climate in the US to spice their enrichment or recreational math lessons? How can they generate some mathematical positives from the many political and moral negatives?
A few Christmases ago, I wrote Christmaths: A Creative Problem Solving Math Book, which looks at some parallels between the king of public holidays and the queen of sciences. And now thanks to Donald Trump, his narcissistic, racist, and supremacist behaviors and tweets continue to provide thousands of math teachers worldwide fertile fodder to link math to politics.
The Mathematics of Trump
For many of us living outside the US, who are agnostic about the political views of both Democrat and Republican politicians, it’s hard not to poke fun at American [Trump?] politics.
Below are a sample of published entries, which irreverently looks at some parallelisms between Trump and Math.
Meet the Pinocchio-in-Chief
From Trumpworthy Math, I went on to define two units for measuring falsehood: tru and Pinocchio.
Pinocchio
A unit for measuring how far or how much a politician, dictator, or businessperson is lying to an oft-gullible public—named after a marionette with a long nose, the picture of a dishonest person.
Trump’s denial of having sex with an adult entertainer, while his wife was still pregnant, is at least six Pinocchios.
by MathPlus October 31, 2018
Lies, White Lies, and Statistics
True or False
(a) Politifact: “76 percent of Trump’s statements were false or mostly false.”
(b) Politico: “Trump told a lie every three minutes and fifteen seconds.”
What is a Trump Number?
Below is one of the two published definitions of a “Trump Number,” which had evaded me for some time, because I just couldn’t nail down a description, without too much falsehood or exaggeration.
Based on your knowledge or readings about Donald Trump, how would you define a “Trump Number”?
The “C” Word Among Atheists and Islamists
Two Christmases ago, when President Trump boasted how he restored the spirit of Christmas among those who worship the King of kings, I coined War on Christmas.
War on Christmas
When conservatives and President Trump have had enough of the political correctness by Democrats that people should say “Happy Holidays” and not “Merry Christmas.”
President Trump is hell-bent on winning the war on Christmas, who bragged that under him Americans can now freely and proudly say “Merry Christmas”—they shouldn’t be hijacked by atheists and Islamists in sharing Christmas greetings to others.
by MathPlus December 25, 2017
And last Christmas, I christened the following:
Trumpmas
The name Donald Trump would have Christened Christmas if he could have his way—after all, every day, the media unfailingly have something un-Christian to write about him, since he miraculously became the US President.
Those working under him long for the day when Trumpmas would turn into Christmas—probably they’ve to wait until they resign or get fired by the president.
by MathPlus December 23, 2018
The Existence or Nonexistence of Santa Claus
Following the Christmas phone call between the US President and a lucky child last year, I coined the following:
And that presidential “child-unfriendly” phone call prompted me to pose the following Christmaths question:
Santa’s Proof
Santa Claus (🎅): “Children don’t exist.”
Prove or disprove whether Father Santa is correct or not.
Wrapping a Christmas Present à la Trump 🌲🎉🎊🎄
On November 13, 2017, I tweeted the following:
“Nothing” for Christmas
The Gift of Nothing: When you go shopping and could find nothing to buy as a gift for your best friend or loved ones, why not give them the gift of nothing, because nothing is not for sale? Put nothing in a big box and give it to them. #nothing #zero #gift
Last Christmas Eve, I coined Trumpgifting:
Immoral Math: Quid-Pro-Quo Math, Barr Math, and Mueller Math
With some exaggeration and irreverence, it’s not too difficult to coin some mathematical words or phrases based on how President Trump and his oft-ethically challenged administration misrule the country.
Green Math: Trump’s Climate Hoax
With Donald Trump dumping the Paris Agreement for his personal political agenda, math and science teachers could play their part in educating students about the long-term consequences of the president’s selfish unscientific decision.
Fake Father Christmas
On April 13, 2019, I tweeted the following:
Fake Christmas: What are the odds that President Trump’s hypothesis that global climate change is a hoax could speed up the first Christmas summer in the US or EU? Or when fake Xmas trees permeate the homes? #Christmas #Christmaths #weather #climate #Singapore #math #humor 🌲🔢
The Sharpie Pen and Christmas Cards 🎅 🎄 ✉️
Guesstimate how many Christmas cards (and their envelopes) you can use with a Sharpie pen.
Estimate how long a line you can draw with a Sharpie pen.
If each person sent an average of 30 Christmas cards, how long would the Sharpie pen last them? Three years?
Trump’s Greetings Cards
Last December, to resurrect the lost art of sending Christmas or greetings cards, I coined the following slogan:
Make America Greet Again
Bringing back printed greeting cards as in the good old days before the advent of e-cards —when sending personalized cards meant so much to both senders and receivers.
This festive season, Trump supporters want their president to pass an executive order to ban those working in the US government to send e-cards, as this virtual way of greetings is “robotic” and “dehumanizing”—they want to make America greet again.
by MathPlus December 02, 2018
Guesstimate how many millions of greetings cards would be sent every year in the United States if President Trump were to pass his executive order on banning Christmas e-cards.
BC & AD: Restoring Year Zero
Discuss the social, economic, and political implications if the world were to switch to a “Trumpian calendar.”
Pi Exposition
One way for math educators to poke fun at the disturbingly obscene number of ethically challenged senators in exposing their moral hypocrisy to condone or defend the wrongs of a morally bankrupt president is through the irrational and transcendental number pi.
Or, even evangelical Trump supporters voters who refused to acknowledge or right his moral and political wrongs shouldn’t be let off the hook for condoning or exonerating the sins of a “statistical president.”
Prove that the biblical value of pi, as mentioned in 1 Kings 7:23 and 2 Chronicles 4:2, is 3.
The Aftermath of Christmas
Estimate how many people each year suffer food poisoning after eating Christmas leftovers. About half a million?
Roughly how many unhappy people return their unwanted Christmas presents on Boxing Day (and come home with discounted items)?
A Christmas Gift for Trump
Let me end with two Trump-friendly entries I submitted two months ago:
Blessed Christmas (and Merry Christmaths)!
Bibliography & References
‘Dotage of a dotard’: North Korea renews attack on Donald Trump https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-50682235
North Korean missile and Kim Jong-un’s ‘Christmas gift’ decision https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-50654146
Trump to boy: Do you believe in Santa? http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-46678124
Donald Trump has now said more than 10,000 untrue things https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/29/politics/donald-trump-lies-washington-post/index.html
Pullen, M. (2013). The completely useless guide to Christmas. London: John Blake Publishing Ltd.
Yan, K. C. (2016). Christmaths. Singapore: MathPlus Publishing.
© Yan Kow Cheong, December 7, 2019.
