Author Alex Bellos Does a Strange Bit of Multiplication

May 5, 2010 

Alex Bellos, author of Alex's Adventures in Numberland, demonstrates a strange way to multiply in a new video. 

Repetition of the tried-and-true algorithms may be the quickest way to learn multiplication, but it doesn’t necessarily increase comprehension when multiplying and dividing big numbers. In his video, Bellos demonstrates what he describes as "a visual illustration of cross-multiplication, also known as the Vedic maths sutra 'Vertically and Cross-wise'".

The video has been viewed over 10,000 times since its publication on April 29, 2010, and has generated a debate between viewers attracted to this new method and staunch advocates of teaching through repetition.

One commenter wrote, “It's an interesting demonstration of what the numbers represent, but doesn't strike me as being practical. You know what is practical? Drilling third - fifth graders for half an hour every day with flash cards. Giving them a hundred long division problems to do over Christmas vacation. Daily quizzing. Practice, practice, practice. It's boring, it's dull, it instills self-discipline, it works.”

Watch Bellos' video here.

Source: You Tube (April 29, 2010)