Should schools in America be forced to teach children Arabic numerals?
41-45, M
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Jackaloftheazuresand · 26-30, M
this was already done but it signifies nothing, knowing them as Arabic numerals is not common knowledge because people just know numbers as numbers since the Roman version is only used in specific cases and not in things like mathematics. You're essentially asking people if something they don't know should be taught and, while they shouldn't be commenting on things they don't know, it misleads with a "foreign" term they do know so they use context and that's why they reply.
CountScrofula · 41-45, M
@Jackaloftheazuresand Well yes. My purpose here is to point out that something is not inherently scary or unwanted because its Arabic.
Jackaloftheazuresand · 26-30, M
@CountScrofula they would act the same if you said some other word that was not American, because it's alien to them. It's not the Arabic that puts most of them off. And yes I know because I've seen a few that do freak out "Oh the muzzies are coming for our numbers" but the majority aren't giving any such indication.