Real Life Uses for Mathematics and Puzzles

Mathematics underpins every area of human life. From the simplest counting procedures to advanced physics, mathematics becomes the means by which people understand, communicate with, and interact with the world. As Kramer (2015) puts it, "math can be found everywhere," (p. 1). Mathematics puzzles are learning exercises that help people prepare their cognitive abilities for solving real-life mathematics issues. Puzzles can be fun and enjoyable means by which to understand mathematical theorems in ways that reveal real-world applications. There are also many different types of mathematics puzzles, including those that are strictly numerical in nature, those that are logical in nature, and those that involve calculus or the use of formulas. Mathematics puzzles can prepare a person to think creatively and critically about any number of fields, such as architecture and music.

One real world application of mathematics puzzles is in the field of games and gaming. Both traditional board and strategy games and digital video games rely on an understanding of mathematics. In fact, many games directly involve mathematics puzzles as fun problems for players to solve. Learning can be fun, which is why mathematics puzzles are part of game play. However, video game designers also need to know math for their programming. Computer programing is a mathematics-dependent field in general. Advanced programming, such as that which involves artificial intelligence, relies on complex problems that can only be solved via the use of complex mathematics principles and theories such as Fermat's theorem or Diophantine analysis (Gardner, n.d.). Everything from the Rubik's Cube to Sudoku and even Chess and some card cames are types of mathematical puzzles, in real-life format. In fact, mathematics puzzles perpetuate themselves in the art and leisure activity of gaming.

Mathematics puzzles have their most profound real-life applications in the fields of science including but not limited to physics. Some fields of science are every bit as abstract as mathematics, requiring the ability to think abstractly as well as critically, creatively, and logically. Mathematics puzzles are the essence of problem solving in these complex fields. Many mathematics puzzles involve postulating or creating proofs for hypotheses, just as in science. Mathematics puzzles help scientists come up with viable answers to their questions, or help them to theorize about possible realities.

In the social sciences, mathematics puzzles may not seem as obviously pertinent as they are in the physical sciences. However, all the social sciences require a firm foundation in statistics. All social science experiments are mathematical in nature, except those that are qualitative analyses. All quantitative experiments must be rendered using mathematics -- often simple numerical formulas involving statistical significance and standard deviations -- in order to be taken seriously by academia and the scientific community of peers. Whether psychology or sociology, criminology or economics, all the social sciences rely on mathematics. Therefore, mathematics puzzles directly relate to the social sciences. The puzzles that students learn involving a number of people or any other story scenario are often framed in terms of how to distribute resources -- classic economics.