Learning to use an abacus qualifies as a Big Pointless Goal, something that Gloria Liu describes in her recent article in the Atlantic as “an aspiration that lacks grand purpose, yet requires ...

The abacus has been around since antiquity, and takes similar forms over the hundreds of cultures that have embraced it. It may be one of the first devices to be considered as having a “user interface ...

I recently read, with great interest, several articles on “Common Core” math. Another attempt to try and improve math skills in a country that does so poorly compared to other countries in the world.

Many teachers still rely on this centuries-old calculating device to provide a hands-on approach to math. For this series, we've been thinking a lot about some of the iconic objects that some of us ...

Vinaya Kulkarni said she believes she has the program that will help grade-school age children gain confidence and competence in arithmetic. Kulkarni is the founder and head teacher of Abacus West, ...

No calculators allowed here — students who receive vision services from the Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired took part in Iowa's first Abacus Bee on Saturday. The Abacus ...

The time has long since passed for the federal government to report how taxpayers’ money is spent as quickly as it actually spends it. On his first full day in office, President Obama promised to ...

In my ongoing quest to master new skills and stay current with technology, I’ve taken up a new hobby — learning to use an abacus. OK, it’s not what you’d call cutting edge. According to Wikipedia, the ...

For this series, we've been thinking a lot about some of the iconic objects that some of us remember using — if only for a short period of time — in our early schooling. Slide rules, the recorder, ...