Math! Some people dread it; others love it. You might be somewhere between dreading and loving, possibly in a grey area that indifferently acknowledges its usefulness. And then there are those parts of math that befuddle the middle schooler: Functions. So, good teachers give analogs. They say something the students might understand. “Functions are like vending machines: Put a certain amount of money in; the machine kicks out a certain product (candy, carbonated drink, pack of gum). It’s an unfailing and predictable process. If the machine lists the price of a candy bar at $1.00, then an inserted dollar releases the bar. Next person, same choice, same process, same result, and so on. Dollar = candy bar.”
Are you such a function? Given a repeated stimulus, do you respond in the exact way like the vending machine’s response to the “input” of a dollar? Take an emotion such as anger. Does your machine spit it out under predictable inputs? Do others know the “price” to insert to get such a product? Are you that simple to operate?
Vending machines are relatively reliable. That’s why their suppliers can leave them unattended. They know that they consistently function. But on occasion, an item gets stuck or the mechanism fails to do what it is "supposed" to do. Then what?
Does a non-functioning vending machine turn the buyer into a function? Say you go to the vending machine in search of a candy bar, put in the specified amount, and expect the predictable result. Upon not getting the product you sought from the machine, do you become angry? Do you hit or kick the machine? “I put my quarters in, but nothing came out. Darn (the epithet is your choice) machine!” Strange! A nonfunctioning function turns you into a function.
Are you an emotional vending machine? People put their “coins” into you and expect you to respond. When you are the function, you allow the input to control your output. As in math, you become “single valued.” Given a certain stimulus, you will inevitably give the corresponding emotional response. You respond as the people providing the stimuli expect you to respond. If they want to see you angry, they already know the “coinage” to insert.
Do you expect others to be emotional vending machines? Do you think they are “single valued”? You provide the input and expect a predictable result. When you don’t get it, you kick the machine or express your anger verbally. (You’ve seen this acted out many times on TV or in person)
Of course, vending machines usually offer more than one product, each with its own cost. But they are finite. They have limited numbers of items. And in some vending machines only a single product is available. Are you an emotional vending machine? What products do you hold, and how much is each? Are you a perfect function, or do others perceive you as such?
Are you such a function? Given a repeated stimulus, do you respond in the exact way like the vending machine’s response to the “input” of a dollar? Take an emotion such as anger. Does your machine spit it out under predictable inputs? Do others know the “price” to insert to get such a product? Are you that simple to operate?
Vending machines are relatively reliable. That’s why their suppliers can leave them unattended. They know that they consistently function. But on occasion, an item gets stuck or the mechanism fails to do what it is "supposed" to do. Then what?
Does a non-functioning vending machine turn the buyer into a function? Say you go to the vending machine in search of a candy bar, put in the specified amount, and expect the predictable result. Upon not getting the product you sought from the machine, do you become angry? Do you hit or kick the machine? “I put my quarters in, but nothing came out. Darn (the epithet is your choice) machine!” Strange! A nonfunctioning function turns you into a function.
Are you an emotional vending machine? People put their “coins” into you and expect you to respond. When you are the function, you allow the input to control your output. As in math, you become “single valued.” Given a certain stimulus, you will inevitably give the corresponding emotional response. You respond as the people providing the stimuli expect you to respond. If they want to see you angry, they already know the “coinage” to insert.
Do you expect others to be emotional vending machines? Do you think they are “single valued”? You provide the input and expect a predictable result. When you don’t get it, you kick the machine or express your anger verbally. (You’ve seen this acted out many times on TV or in person)
Of course, vending machines usually offer more than one product, each with its own cost. But they are finite. They have limited numbers of items. And in some vending machines only a single product is available. Are you an emotional vending machine? What products do you hold, and how much is each? Are you a perfect function, or do others perceive you as such?
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