Hot X

by Mckellar, Danica

• ISBN13: 9780452297197
• ISBN10: 0452297192
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-06-28
• Publisher: Plume

Summary

Danica McKellar's New York Timesbestseller tackles the most feared of all math classes: Algebra! Algebra: The word alone has been known to strike fear in the hearts of even the best students, but help is here! With her two earlier books, actress and math genius Danica McKellar shattered the "math nerd" stereotype and empowered girls to conquer middle-school math and pre- algebra. Sizzling with McKellar's trademark sass and style, Hot X: Algebra Exposednow shows them how to master algebra topics like square roots, polynomials, quadratic equations, word problems, and more. In addition to fun extras like personality quizzes, reader polls, and boy-crazy confessionals, Hot Xincludes "time-saving tips and tricks "sample problems with detailed solutions "relatable real-world examples Parents and daughters alike will cheer McKellar as they watch their test scores rise!

Author Biography

Danica McKellar is the bestselling author of Math Doesn't Suck, Kiss My Math, and, most recently, Girls Get Curves. Best known for her roles on The Wonder Years and The West Wing, Danica is also an internationally recognized mathematician and advocate for math education. A summa cum laude graduate of UCLA with a degree in Mathematics, she has been honored in Britain’s esteemed Journal of Physics and The New York Times for her work in mathematics, most notably for her role as co-author of a groundbreaking mathematical physics theorem, which bears her name (The Chayes-McKellar-Winn Theorem.) Her passion for promoting girls’ math education began in 2000, when she was invited to speak before Congress on the importance of women in math and science. Since then, Danica has made it a priority to find time in her busy acting schedule to promote math education, often appearing around the country as a speaker at national mathematics conferences.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vi
HotàX	p. xi
Faqs: How to Use This Book	p. xiii
Meet the Variables
Alge-blah Up Close and Personal with Algebra	p. 1
Happy Birthday to Me GCFs and LCMs with Variables	p. 15
Listen to Your Gut Factoring with Variables	p. 30
Confessional: Are You Boy Crazy? On the Cover	p. 39
Meow Mix Rational Expressions: Fractions with Variables in Them	p. 42
Eating Pizza in the Dark Adding and Subtracting Fractions with Variables	p. 57
Quiz: Are You Bold or Shy? On the Cover	p. 72
solving for X
Your Holiday Shopping List Strategies for Solving for X	p. 76
How Picky Are You? Solving Equations with Absolute Value	p. 91
Control Freaks, Unite! Solving Inequalities with Absolute Value	p. 99
Mood Zapper: Take Control of your Feelings!	p. 113
Functions, Graphing, And Systems of Equations
Can You Keep a Secret? Functions and Relations	p. 116
They're Going Steady Equations of Lines, and Graphing Lines and Linear Inequalities	p. 130
Mystery Woman Writing Equations for Lines, Including Parallel/ Perpendicular Lines	p. 147
Little Miss People Pleaser Solving and Graphing Systems of Linear Equations	p. 164
Confessional: Dumbing Ourselves Downùthe Sequel!	p. 182
Word Problems
The Guy of Your Dreams Motion Problems: Using r.t = d	p. 184
Dip in the Pool, Anyone? Rate of Work Problems	p. 198
Savvy Business Chick Word Problems: Percents and Simple Interest	p. 208
The Perfect Party Snack Word Problems Involving Mixtures	p. 224
Exponents And Square Roots
Ms. Exponent Gets Her Whip The Product, Power, and Quotient Rules for Exponents	p. 239
Keep Your Day Job Negative (and Zero) Exponents	p. 257
The Benefits of a Diary Intro to Square Roots and Radical Expressions	p. 273
Confessional: How Can I Focus and Avoid Distractions?	p. 291
Polynomials
Chocolates for Breakfast Intro to Polynomials and Adding/Subtracting Them	p. 294
A Day at the Hair Salon Multiplying Polynomials and the FOIL, Method	p. 309
The Jewelry Dilemma Factoring Trinomials with Reverse FOIL and Grouping	p. 323
Boyfriend or "Special" Friend Factoring Special Polynomials	p. 343
QuiZ: Are You a Perfectionist?
Quadratic Equations
Puppies, Please? Solving Quadratic Equations by Factoring	p. 353
The Lemonade Stand Solving Quadratic Equations by Completing the Square	p. 369
What You Can Learn at the Mall Using the Quadratic Formula	p. 385
A Final Word	p. 397
Appendix	p. 398
Answer Key	p. 402
Index	p. 413
About the Author	p. 418
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