Math, on the other hand, generates responses like: "I hate math! I've never been good at math: I just don't have the math gene," etc. People who are otherwise intelligent, well-educated and proud, readily admit to this real or imagined shortcoming the way that one admits to a physical deformity: it's there. I don't like it, but there's not much I can do about it.

The reasons for this wholesale denial are complex, but one part of it stems from a rather simple reason: people have not accepted math as an integral part of their everyday lives. They have not realized that, in a society whose technology increasingly relies on math fluency, math inadequacy interferes with economic well being, success and quality of life.

In her recent book, Math: Facing an American Phobia, educator Marilyn Burns makes several arguments to demonstrate how pervasive this math-phobia is. She also gives examples to show how important math is in everyday life. One of her most eloquent examples has to do with the holiday of Thanksgiving. Here are excerpts from that chapter.

"There are a number of math problems associated with Thanksgiving planning:

1. What time should I get up to start preparing dinner?
2. What size turkey should I buy?
3. How many people are coming to dinner, for sure?
4. How many more are coming, possibly?
5. How much stuffing should we fix? Rolls? Potatoes?
6. How long will it take to make stuffing? To stuff it?
7. How long will it take to cook it?

"You attack the calculations. With turkey arithmetic, the numbers can be messy. Remember the weight of the turkey, 16 pounds, 10 ounces. There's a partial pound involved. And are you going to cook it for 15 or 20 minutes a pound, or split the difference?

"And there's that all-important final decision, one that relies on the best of human judgment as well as your calculations: what time should you start preparing the turkey (so that all separate items are done at approximately the same time, and that time coincides with people's arrival time)?

"Now aren't you sorry that this problem wasn't in the math books you had as children, as one of the many word problems you had to solve? It would have gotten us involved. Helped us to build our sense of responsibility about Thanksgiving. Given us much needed practice in a real and useful context.

"Maybe you should bring up the turkey problem one evening before Thanksgiving. Have a dry run. Get everyone in your family thinking about it. It's an excellent way to make math a real part of your family life.

The Thanksgiving problem is a once-a-year occurrence. But there are lots of other arithmetic problems we face daily. Here's a sample list:

• Balancing the checkbook
• Shopping for groceries
• Tipping in restaurants
• Doing home woodworking projects
• Deciding how much paint or wallpaper to buy
• Keeping score when playing games
• Measuring fertilizer for the lawn
• Figuring out what time to leave for the movies
• Cooking
• Calculating gas mileage
• Figuring discounted amounts when shopping
• Figuring out how much carpet is needed for a room
• Budgeting household expenses
• Making change
• Dividing a check at a restaurant"