Month: October 2016

Halloween in Palo Alto

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Halloween is coming soon! Palo Alto residents have long enjoyed this exciting, sweet treat-filled holiday; houses are decorated all around town, and there are events such as trick-or-treating and games at Stanford Shopping Center near downtown Palo Alto. While everyone in Palo Alto seems to enjoy Halloween, however, not as many people know about the history behind the holiday. Here are some fun facts on the origins and history of Halloween.

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1. The word “Halloween” is a shortening of “All Hallows’ Evening,” which was the original name of the holiday.

2. Halloween originated from an ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain, which celebrated the end of the harvest season.

3. Masks and costumes were originally worn in order to mimic or appease any evil spirits.

4. The earliest known reference to trick-or-treating in North America was in a 1911 Ontario newspaper. Apparently  before that, kids didn’t go around getting candy from neighbors!

We at the Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park hope you have a fun, safe Halloween this year. or more fun ways to learn math, visit The Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park.

 

Fall in Atherton

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Fall–or autumn, depending on what you want to call it–is here in Atherton! The leaves turning beautiful colors, slightly cooler weather, the start of the school year, Halloween, and Thanksgiving are just a few of the reasons that fall is beloved by many. Particularly in Atherton, where the weather gets especially mild and nice during this season, many people love to get out and do things during fall. Now that we are well into the season, here are some fun, educational facts about this period of the year!

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1. The term “fall” first came to be used in 16th century England due to the Middle English phrases “fall of the leaf” and “fall of the year.”

2. Instead of “autumn,” people in New England used to call this season “backend.”

3. In the Southern Hemisphere, Easter takes place during fall!

4. The beautiful aurora borealis, also known as the Northern Lights, tends to be visible during this time of year. This is because geomagnetic storms, which produce them, are about twice as likely to occur during the fall as a result of the colder weather.

5. The first day of autumn is the autumnal equinox. During this day, in Atherton and around the world, the number of hours of darkness exactly equals the number of hours of daylight.

We at Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park hope that you have a fun-filled fall! For more fun ways to learn math, visit The Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park.

 

Pearl Milk Tea in Palo Alto

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One popular drink in the Bay Area and particularly in Palo Alto is pearl milk tea, otherwise known as PMT, boba, or bubble tea. A sweet treat enjoyed by all ages, it is relatively inexpensive and comes in dozens of flavors.

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There are many beloved pearl milk tea places throughout and near Palo Alto to visit. These include Gong Cha, T4, Verde, and Teaspoon. A lot of students especially like to go to pearl milk tea cafes in Palo Alto to work on their schoolwork while they enjoy a refreshing drink. Here are some fun math problems that you can work on while you sip on your drink!

 

1. Cassie’s biology class is having a beginning-of-year party and wants to get pearl milk tea for beverages. There are , 25 students in her class, including Cassie. If each drink costs $4, how much will it cost for everyone–including the teacher–to get a drink?

2. There are 8 pearl milk tea places in Palo Alto. If 5 of them sold 100 drinks today and the rest sold 80 drinks today, how many drinks did the pearl milk tea places sell in total today?

3. Michael wants to drive to the nearest pearl milk tea cafe to grab a drink. It is 10 miles away. His car gets 30 miles per gallon, and a gallon of gas cost him $3. How much would he be spending on gas to drive there and back to get a drink?

Hope these pearl milk tea math problems were challenging but fun! For more fun ways to learn math, visit The Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park.

 

 

Soccer in Palo Alto

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Many children in Palo Alto enjoy playing soccer.  Soccer may seem like a purely physical sport, but there is also math.  Here are some soccer related math problems provided to you by the Mathnasium of Palo Alto / Menlo Park:

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  1. A soccer game is really long at 90 minutes! If Charlie’s game is a third of the way through the first half how much time is left in until half time?
  2. During one soccer game in Palo Alto, Stacy scored two goals in 24 minutes. If there is 36 minutes left in the game and she keeps scoring at this rate, how many more goals will she score in this game?
  3. If James burns 40 calories every five minutes of playing soccer and his coach keeps him playing for  60% of the game, how many calories does he burn during the game?
  4. Two Palo Alto soccer teams are playing against each other.  If Carol’s team scores once every 27 minutes and Holly’s team scores twice every 50 minutes which team will win?

Next time you play soccer in Palo Alto enjoy the game and think about all the math involved.  You will be amazed at how many things contain math in them!