I Love Numbers

Authors

Bruce Fox, Northern Arizona University

Date of this Version

Spring 2007

Document Type

Article

Comments

Published in Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council 8:1, Spring/Summer 2007. Copyright © 2007 by the National Collegiate Honors Council.

Abstract

I love numbers. Five and two thirds: the number of years it took for me to finish my bachelor of science degree. 05/05: my wedding anniversary. 15826: the address of the house where I grew up (well, perhaps “got older”— many folks believe that I have never grown up). Twenty-nine and 1290: the minimum ACT and SAT scores, respectively, needed for admittance to an honors program. Forty-two: for you Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy fans, the “…Ultimate Answer to the Great Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything.” As a forester, I work with numbers on a regular and continuing basis: board feet, acres, growth rates. Numbers provide me with a way of measuring things—the size of a tract of land, the grade of a woods road, how many trees to plant. Numbers are very cool and very comforting. Numbers often bring with them a sense of knowing and a sense of security.