[Blindtlk] abacus?

[Steve Jacobson]

Jim,

I learned the abacus many years ago and still have one around somewhere.  I personally think it can be useful as a sort of scratch pad, but don't see any point in using 
it for computational purposes given the common access to calculators now.  Having said that, I know that some teachers feel very strongly that it is useful.  While I don't 
follow their reasoning, I am open to the idea that it may be useful in specific educational settings as I am not an expert there..  Having said that

On Fri, 15 Dec 2006 13:18:39 -0800, Jim Portillo wrote:

>Hi there,
> 
>I'm wondering if anyone remembers that thing called the abacus.  Does anyone still use it or see the value in learning to use it?
>A couple of people have recently asked me what I knew about it or if I knew how to use it.  I told them I used to know some basics, but that was as a kid, and I 
fought using it!
>Just wondering what others thought/think about it and if anyone still uses it.
>Jim
>