Phrases 7 | - Freelance Writer
May 01, 2017 | #1
Math plays a major role in many processes, ranging from engineering and computer software to art and cooking. This review and discussion will focus on the more creative, and less complex, applications of math, revealing the role and importance of math in cooking. Through a review of cooking techniques, requirements, and potential applications, this discussion will show how multiple mathematical tools and processes play a role in this everyday process important to human life. While math is a major part of many fields and processes important to everyday life, its role in cooking shows how even simpler ancient processes have been greatly benefited the increasingly sophisticated potential of the field of mathematics.
Cerbasi described the potential for math in cooking, with especial reference to children, as the basic math required for cooking can be used as a great teaching tool. Meanwhile, the math involved in cooking can potentially be as complex as the math often taught at the high school level, as altering batch sizes or elements of the recipe can require the cook to multiply fractions or percentages. It may be possible that more complex math, such as algebra or calculus, may apply to cooking on the instructional level, but these advanced math forms generally do not apply to everyday cooking; however, these math forms do have a significant role in many of the processes and reactions that take place within the cooked items, such as expansion, changes in density, chemical reactions, the role of temperature, burning and boiling, and more.
Examining the simplest elements of math, as mentioned, cooking first requires knowledge of basic addition and fractions. For example, making a single batch of cookies may require one to use two thirds of a teaspoon of baking soda, a cup or so of flour, milliliters of water, and other ingredients. At this basic level, cooking can be used to teach children quantity retrieval, basic measuring, addition, elapsed time, temperature degrees, or even estimation. Multiplying a recipe naturally demands multiplication, while this can apply to either whole numbers or fractions, thereby possibly requiring knowledge of fraction multiplication rules.
Charlesworth and Lind also elaborated on the role of math in cooking, further suggesting its application as a teaching tool for children. According to these authors, "cooking activities are a rich source of mathematics experiences. Following a recipe provides a sequencing activity. Each ingredient must be measured exactly using a standard measuring tool. The correct number of cups, tablespoons, eggs, and so on must be counted out. Baked foods must be cooked at the correct temperature for the prescribed amount of time...When the food is ready to eat, it must be divided into equal portions so that each person gets a fair share" (Charlesworth and Lind 301). The temperature on the oven or fridge (in the case of chilled food creation such as jello) can be used to teach about the processes of energy exchange across degrees, and planning involved in cooking can also be used to demonstrate basic mathematical operations; for example, when cooking a large meal with multiple items, the known amount of guests are used in division while the cook and assistants gather enough ingredients to create enough items for the individuals. While Cerbasi asserts that one can "turn your little chefs into mathematicians" using her advice for demonstrating mathematics, she further recommends "younger chefs can go in the pantry or the cabinet and get a specified number of items. Don't trust her with the eggs? She can count the plates and set the table so you can enjoy your homemade treat together. Make sure when she brings the items to you, you count them together... Reading a recipe and measuring ingredients is the simplest way to expose your children to fractions... You've used some milk, but how much? You used most of the eggs, but how many are left? Have your chef estimate the amount of ingredients left over...Once the timer gets going, you can ask your chef how much time has passed since your snack went into the oven" (para. 4-7).
Examining the more complex applications of math in processes relevant to cooking, the applications of algebra and calculus can be explained. As mentioned, processes relevant to cooking including thermal expansion, chemical reactions, saturation, and more have all been modeled through mathematics, while mathematics can even be used in the creation of a new recipe. For example, if a chef desires to add water completely saturated with salt, but with no excess salt remaining, he can use the known saturation and solubility values for salt and water. With this, he can apply known math-based chemical formulas and values to discover the exact value of salt that will dissolve in a certain unit of water. As with the basic elements of cooking, this value can be multiplied as needed. Meanwhile, if a chef desires a cookie or bread to expand to a certain volume (for the purpose of fitting into a certain type of packaging, or to fill a certain pan while cooking), the values for yeast dissolved into the solution can be considered in terms of its known expansiveness, and then applied to the area of the pan or packaging. This may also involve the use of algebra, as equations could be created using known values of ingredient and pan volume in the cooking process, and solved to deduce the volume of dough or a specific ingredient needed. Thermal expansion may also be considered in terms of raw materials as well, as precise values for room temperature may affect the product, due to the measurable expansion of pans across a change in heat. Different metals have different expansion rates proportional to temperature increase, and in the event a chef needs to know this (in an attempt to create a specific shape of product perhaps), the calculus and formulas used to model thermal expansion relationships are beneficial. Multiple variable calculus may even be useful to cooking on an industrial scale, as professional cooks attempt to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of ingredients purchasing, equipment size and placement, cooking times, and packaging or delivery.
Conclusion
As stated, while math is a major part of many fields and processes important to everyday life, its role in cooking shows how even simpler ancient processes have been greatly benefited the increasingly sophisticated potential of the field of mathematics. Clearly, from the simplest cooking of eggs to the industrial manufacture of multiple items, the importance of basic to complex mathematics must be recognized for success. Examining the simplest elements of math, as mentioned, cooking first requires knowledge of basic addition and fractions. More complex math such as algebra or calculus generally do not apply to cooking at the instructional level, but do have a significant role in many of the processes and reactions that take place within the cooked items. Thus, math is important in expansion, changes in density, chemical reactions, the role of temperature, burning and boiling, timing, delivery, and a range of other cooking-related planning or processing functions. Through this review and discussion, it is evident that math plays a major role in even one of the simpler and physical processes in modern life, implying the importance in other more scientifically-intensive processes is much greater still.
References
Cerbasi, Jennifer. "There's Math Cooking in the Kitchen." Fox News.
Charlesworth, Rosalind and Karen Lind. Math and Science for Young Children. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
Jackman, Hilda. Early Education Curriculum: A Child's Connection to the World. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
Math in Cooking
Cerbasi described the potential for math in cooking, with especial reference to children, as the basic math required for cooking can be used as a great teaching tool. Meanwhile, the math involved in cooking can potentially be as complex as the math often taught at the high school level, as altering batch sizes or elements of the recipe can require the cook to multiply fractions or percentages. It may be possible that more complex math, such as algebra or calculus, may apply to cooking on the instructional level, but these advanced math forms generally do not apply to everyday cooking; however, these math forms do have a significant role in many of the processes and reactions that take place within the cooked items, such as expansion, changes in density, chemical reactions, the role of temperature, burning and boiling, and more.Examining the simplest elements of math, as mentioned, cooking first requires knowledge of basic addition and fractions. For example, making a single batch of cookies may require one to use two thirds of a teaspoon of baking soda, a cup or so of flour, milliliters of water, and other ingredients. At this basic level, cooking can be used to teach children quantity retrieval, basic measuring, addition, elapsed time, temperature degrees, or even estimation. Multiplying a recipe naturally demands multiplication, while this can apply to either whole numbers or fractions, thereby possibly requiring knowledge of fraction multiplication rules.
Charlesworth and Lind also elaborated on the role of math in cooking, further suggesting its application as a teaching tool for children. According to these authors, "cooking activities are a rich source of mathematics experiences. Following a recipe provides a sequencing activity. Each ingredient must be measured exactly using a standard measuring tool. The correct number of cups, tablespoons, eggs, and so on must be counted out. Baked foods must be cooked at the correct temperature for the prescribed amount of time...When the food is ready to eat, it must be divided into equal portions so that each person gets a fair share" (Charlesworth and Lind 301). The temperature on the oven or fridge (in the case of chilled food creation such as jello) can be used to teach about the processes of energy exchange across degrees, and planning involved in cooking can also be used to demonstrate basic mathematical operations; for example, when cooking a large meal with multiple items, the known amount of guests are used in division while the cook and assistants gather enough ingredients to create enough items for the individuals. While Cerbasi asserts that one can "turn your little chefs into mathematicians" using her advice for demonstrating mathematics, she further recommends "younger chefs can go in the pantry or the cabinet and get a specified number of items. Don't trust her with the eggs? She can count the plates and set the table so you can enjoy your homemade treat together. Make sure when she brings the items to you, you count them together... Reading a recipe and measuring ingredients is the simplest way to expose your children to fractions... You've used some milk, but how much? You used most of the eggs, but how many are left? Have your chef estimate the amount of ingredients left over...Once the timer gets going, you can ask your chef how much time has passed since your snack went into the oven" (para. 4-7).
Examining the more complex applications of math in processes relevant to cooking, the applications of algebra and calculus can be explained. As mentioned, processes relevant to cooking including thermal expansion, chemical reactions, saturation, and more have all been modeled through mathematics, while mathematics can even be used in the creation of a new recipe. For example, if a chef desires to add water completely saturated with salt, but with no excess salt remaining, he can use the known saturation and solubility values for salt and water. With this, he can apply known math-based chemical formulas and values to discover the exact value of salt that will dissolve in a certain unit of water. As with the basic elements of cooking, this value can be multiplied as needed. Meanwhile, if a chef desires a cookie or bread to expand to a certain volume (for the purpose of fitting into a certain type of packaging, or to fill a certain pan while cooking), the values for yeast dissolved into the solution can be considered in terms of its known expansiveness, and then applied to the area of the pan or packaging. This may also involve the use of algebra, as equations could be created using known values of ingredient and pan volume in the cooking process, and solved to deduce the volume of dough or a specific ingredient needed. Thermal expansion may also be considered in terms of raw materials as well, as precise values for room temperature may affect the product, due to the measurable expansion of pans across a change in heat. Different metals have different expansion rates proportional to temperature increase, and in the event a chef needs to know this (in an attempt to create a specific shape of product perhaps), the calculus and formulas used to model thermal expansion relationships are beneficial. Multiple variable calculus may even be useful to cooking on an industrial scale, as professional cooks attempt to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of ingredients purchasing, equipment size and placement, cooking times, and packaging or delivery.
Conclusion
As stated, while math is a major part of many fields and processes important to everyday life, its role in cooking shows how even simpler ancient processes have been greatly benefited the increasingly sophisticated potential of the field of mathematics. Clearly, from the simplest cooking of eggs to the industrial manufacture of multiple items, the importance of basic to complex mathematics must be recognized for success. Examining the simplest elements of math, as mentioned, cooking first requires knowledge of basic addition and fractions. More complex math such as algebra or calculus generally do not apply to cooking at the instructional level, but do have a significant role in many of the processes and reactions that take place within the cooked items. Thus, math is important in expansion, changes in density, chemical reactions, the role of temperature, burning and boiling, timing, delivery, and a range of other cooking-related planning or processing functions. Through this review and discussion, it is evident that math plays a major role in even one of the simpler and physical processes in modern life, implying the importance in other more scientifically-intensive processes is much greater still.
References
Cerbasi, Jennifer. "There's Math Cooking in the Kitchen." Fox News.
Charlesworth, Rosalind and Karen Lind. Math and Science for Young Children. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
Jackman, Hilda. Early Education Curriculum: A Child's Connection to the World. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.