http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1022757_cool_cash_card_confusion


title shouldn't read Americans ...its the British this time I just assumed it was the US


[Edited on November 7, 2007 at 4:13 PM. Reason : a]

11/7/2007 4:11:50 PM

the "co.uk" didn't give it away at all

11/7/2007 4:14:35 PM

honestly

im not really surprised at this

11/7/2007 4:14:36 PM

this thread should be named "THREAD PULLED BECAUSE AMERICAN IS TOO STUPID"

Quote :

"A LOTTERY scratchcard has been withdrawn from sale by Camelot - because players couldn't understand it. The Cool Cash game - launched on Monday - was taken out of shops yesterday after some players failed to grasp whether or not they had won. To qualify for a prize, users had to scratch away a window to reveal a temperature lower than the figure displayed on each card. As the game had a winter theme, the temperature was usually below freezing. But the concept of comparing negative numbers proved too difficult for some Camelot received dozens of complaints on the first day from players who could not understand how, for example, -5 is higher than -6. Tina Farrell, from Levenshulme, called Camelot after failing to win with several cards. The 23-year-old, who said she had left school without a maths GCSE, said: "On one of my cards it said I had to find temperatures lower than -8. The numbers I uncovered were -6 and -7 so I thought I had won, and so did the woman in the shop. But when she scanned the card the machine said I hadn't. "I phoned Camelot and they fobbed me off with some story that -6 is higher - not lower - than -8 but I'm not having it. "I think Camelot are giving people the wrong impression - the card doesn't say to look for a colder or warmer temperature, it says to look for a higher or lower number. Six is a lower number than 8. Imagine how many people have been misled." A Camelot spokeswoman said the game was withdrawn after reports that some players had not understood the concept. She said: "The instructions for playing the Cool Cash scratchcard are clear - and are printed on each individual card and in the game procedures available at each retailer. However, because of the potential for player confusion we have decided to withdraw the game." More than 15m adults in Britain have poor numeracy - the equivalent of a G or below at GCSE maths Almost three times as many UK adults (15.1m) have poor numeracy - the equivalent of a G or below at GCSE maths - than with poor literacy skills, according to the government's Skills for Life survey. Peter Hall, of the Association of Teachers of Mathematics, said: "The concept of minus numbers is something we would cover with 11 or 12 year olds, and we would expect them to have come across it before. "The concept of smaller numbers is something that some people do seem to struggle with. Seven is clearly smaller than eight, so they focus on that and don't really see the minus sign. There is also a subtle difference in language between smaller - or lower - and colder. The number zero feels lower. "There have always been some people who find numbers and basic mathematics difficult. Maybe in the past it was less noticeable because people could find jobs they could excel in without having qualifications in maths.""

reading comp ftw

11/7/2007 4:15:20 PM

Quote :

""I think Camelot are giving people the wrong impression - the card doesn't say to look for a colder or warmer temperature, it says to look for a higher or lower number. Six is a lower number than 8. Imagine how many people have been misled.""

ahahahahaa

11/7/2007 4:33:53 PM

Quote :

"Imagine how many people have been misled"

ahahahaha! I didn't know negative numbers were such a complicated subject.

11/7/2007 4:52:57 PM

I feel sad

11/7/2007 4:57:01 PM

5e^(j*pi) < 5 ...dur

11/7/2007 4:58:31 PM

OK, this HAS to be from The Onion. Right?

I mean, right?

11/7/2007 4:58:49 PM

i remember a kid in school who had this same problem when they tried to teach it to us and never quite caught on

11/7/2007 4:59:30 PM

Quote :

"I phoned Camelot and they fobbed me off with some story that -6 is higher - not lower - than -8 but I'm not having it."

yeah man. negative numbers. RUBBISH I TELL YOU!

11/7/2007 5:01:03 PM

Quote :

""The concept of smaller numbers is something that some people do seem to struggle with. Seven is clearly smaller than eight, so they focus on that and don't really see the minus sign. There is also a subtle difference in language between smaller - or lower - and colder. The number zero feels lower."

Okay, even though zero FEELS lower, IT DEFINITELY ISN'T. People are just stupid.

[in before the "women can't do math" assholes]

11/7/2007 5:02:01 PM

everybody knows women can't do math

[Edited on November 7, 2007 at 5:06 PM. Reason : ]

11/7/2007 5:03:08 PM

^^omg

i bet you are one of those men basher type women

11/7/2007 5:03:20 PM

women are only good for making sandwiches

11/7/2007 5:04:38 PM

SAT word o/t/d: misandrist

11/7/2007 5:04:58 PM

i bet shes for equality in that bad way

11/7/2007 5:06:25 PM

misandry and misogyny are words everyone should know

11/7/2007 5:06:25 PM

If the number on your ticket is lower than this then you are the winnAr!

11/7/2007 5:09:45 PM

anthropology terminology is irrelevant to this topic

11/7/2007 5:10:44 PM

well, the person in the article was a woman.

Quote :

"i bet shes for equality in that bad way"

women have equality already.

[Edited on November 7, 2007 at 5:11 PM. Reason : ]

11/7/2007 5:10:47 PM

not in pe

[Edited on November 7, 2007 at 5:12 PM. Reason : yet they never seem to complain about that]

11/7/2007 5:12:32 PM

Quote :

"women have equality already"

hahahaha, bullshit

11/7/2007 5:19:11 PM

women in america got it made for reals

11/7/2007 5:20:32 PM

The best time for you to hold your tongue is the time you feel you must say something or bust.

11/7/2007 5:25:40 PM

People here are no different. God forbid you try to explain a refund to a customer who doesn't understand negative numbers. It's a painful experience. Nobody wants to hear, "you're just going to have to trust me on this one."

11/7/2007 5:52:19 PM

"...you't don't understand the difference between .002 DOLLARS and .002 CENTS?!"

11/7/2007 6:13:27 PM

Quote :

"women in america got it made for reals"

good, you understand my point. I didn't mean to reply to that bs because we all know that when the subjects turns to female equality, somebody argues and makes it all off-topic.

^what company was that? I forget.

11/7/2007 7:00:04 PM

^verizon, right?

11/7/2007 7:06:04 PM

yeah

11/7/2007 8:18:58 PM

I've found that the simplest way to explain the concept of negative numbers is with a number line/continuum. If they don't get it after that then you just throw your hands up and move on.

11/7/2007 8:20:47 PM

AMERICANS CANT EVEN READ A GODDAMN ARTICLE THEYRE SO STUPID

11/7/2007 8:27:22 PM

Quote :

"women in america got it made for reals"

Compared with lots of places, sure. That doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement.

11/7/2007 8:28:45 PM

i feel there is room for improvement on both sides

11/7/2007 8:33:41 PM