I'm not from the US so I don't really know what level grade 12 actually is but assuming you don't need a graphing calculator I would absolutely recommend this
For a scientific calculator this will do everything you need it to and more and has taken me all the way through to the final year of my degree with no issues.
Casio FX-991EX Engineering/Scientific Calculator, Black (European Version) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00ZZ93346/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_8PFJBRQTW4KAMV3PFESC
The 991ex is the minimum you need. The GCSE scientific calculators are no good for the A level as they do not have all the stats functions required.
The cg50 is nice, but expensive. If you're doing FM, some schools will loan one but it's not common. 991ex will do everything you need.
Ah, that's pretty much the same then, we were just told to buy a scientific calculator. If anything influences what brand people get, it's probably what others already have, or what they've seen their older siblings use. I know one guy bought this one after he saw me use mine to automatically solve an equation, that was about the most complex we were allowed to have
Lab coats are provided by the department in 99% of cases in my experience. I wouldn't even be allowed to bring my own one. Safety glasses is not something biologists use the vast majority of times. Really most of the things biologists use on a daily basis are either too expensive or impractical to give as a gift to be honest. I personally love to have a proper calculator in all my labcoats (3x, this one) because there's nothing more annoying than these one-line calculators lying around everywhere. Maybe a nice new briefcase/bag with a good calculator? Hard to get more biology-themed and be useful at the same time I think.
I've got a HP-35s and the Casio FX-991EX amazon
I bought the Casio as I couldn't take a programmable calculator into exams, and the 991EX is probably the best scientific calculator around right now. It's a newer model than the ES with a better display and a couple of extra features such as spreadsheets. The only negative I have to say about it is you only get 5 columns in the spreadsheet. That's 5 more than most calculators and I've used it successfully for stability calculations in naval architecture exams.
If you can get something programmable but don't need graphs, get a HP 35 and learn RPL and stack memory; I can punch numbers out in half the time on that than i can on the casio.
I haven't had to use the quadratic formula since purchasing the new Casio ClassWiz FX-991EX^TM
Get yours today by following this link.
Get yourself a decent calculator for maths. I recommend the Casio FX-991EX which is currently £25 on Amazon.
I like the classwiz one because the constants are easier to find. It’s also $20 on amazon right now.
I'm 42 and can relate to a lot of what you're saying. I'd like to share with you a bit of my background and give you some general advice from my experience that might help put things in perspective.
Unfortunately in grade school I came close to failing math once, and that put me in the remedial level. Once I was there, I kind of felt stuck because jumping back into the regular level was too big of a gap, and nobody seemed interested to help me close that gap. The education system likes to sort people early and are all too happy to keep them wherever they are.
I never had higher than grade 11 remedial math. Despite that, I went to university and excelled at subjects that required abstract thinking, such as philosophy and logic. But still, didn't improve my math abilities.
After university I wasn't sure what to do and, like you, started a business and that kept me occupied for a while.
Eventually, when I was about 34, I decided to teach myself programming. Mostly from just a few courses on the internet. It was difficult, of course, but within a couple of years I was doing really well with it.
I was developing websites, managing frontend and backend, writing books, making games and creating teaching series, and even made a projectile physics engine. I did all of that with my remedial grade 11 math skills (actually, much worse, as not touching much math in all those years really eroded any concepts beyond basic arithmetic and intuition).
How was I able to do all of that with "basic" math skills? Well, it's actually quite easy in almost all programming tasks. Often, people have already written libraries that handle specific calculations (physics, common algorithms, etc) and it usually was just a matter of knowing how to write the correct search terms in google to find them and implement them in my code.
So, I could do just about anything I wanted in the programming domain even with my so-so math skills.
Ironically, during the pandemic I realized I had gotten bored with programming to some extent. I kind of got to the point where I wasn't finding as much challenge in it. So, wanting a new challenge, what did I turn my attention to? That's right. Math.
It still bugged me after all these years that I got tossed in the "dummy" bin that I clearly didn't deserve to be in. But like you I think I didn't do much about it because of the daily requirement of taking care of business and feeding family and so on. But with the pandemic, I guess I got emboldened to dive into math. I'm going pretty slow still, but that doesn't matter too much to me because I know that the killer isn't time, but losing interest. As long as I'm interested, I know I'll get there.
I've got my own learning path that covers the topics I see as most interesting/beneficial. In the following order (and in math, order is super important because you build concepts slowly, and if you miss something it just looks like gibberish):
Algebra 1
Algebra 2
Trigonometry
Precalculus (this can sometimes just be Algebra 2 + Trig)
Linear Algebra
Calculus
Somewhere in all of that I'm also dabbling with Geometry and (least of all) a bit of Probability/Statistics (which is suck at, but I realize I would like a bit better understanding of).
By far the most interesting to me is Algebra. I honestly don't even play video games as much as solve algebraic problems in the evening. Sometimes it's frustrating, but if I stare at it every day a bit, eventually it all sticks, even when it seemed hopeless just a couple days before that.
I am not yet at Calculus. I'm dabbling and "peaking ahead" just a bit (but not too much to turn myself off!) and I expect I'll get there by next year or so. I'm basically looking at it like I'm going to school again, except it's just me in the class and I'm the teacher and there are no deadlines.
Incidentally, part of what made me choose these subjects is because I could see myself wanting to get into Machine Learning or AI. I have all of the programming skills I need, but I know it would be unrealistic without at least having a grasp of Linear Algebra and Calculus.
In terms of education material. I mean, the internet is just never-ending with tutorials and courses and everything! It's insane. If I had this when I was a kid, I probably wouldn't have been stuck in those remedial math classes. But here's the resources I look to time and again:
College Course Books: (I just go to thrift stores, look around, and pick up books really cheap!)
Specific Topic Videos:
Cool math stuff that inspires me but is sometimes over my head:
Mathologer: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1_uAIS3r8Vu6JjXWvastJg
Math Sorcerer: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr7lmzIk63PZnBw3bezl-Mg
Numberphile: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoxcjq-8xIDTYp3uz647V5A
Tools (great for looking up solutions, and even seeing the steps):
Wolfram Alpha (iOS/Android app is better, cheap and has solution steps without needing subscription): https://www.wolframalpha.com/
GeoGebra: https://www.geogebra.org/calculator
Classwiz Calculator: https://www.amazon.com/Casio-FX-991EX-Engineering-Scientific-Calculator/dp/B00ZZ93346/ref=sr\_1\_1?dchild=1&keywords=classwiz&qid=1625542473&sr=8-1
Hope that helps. Just remember, I'm 42 and I don't feel like any of this is too late for me. Just remember to go slow and keep your motivation by looking at whatever inspires you if only just a bit every day. And also remember there will be periods where your brain feels absolutely cooked and nothing makes sense any more. That means you need a sort break. When you come back, somehow that goop in your head was busy sorting stuff and it'll make more sense, somehow. Just remember to come back after those breaks.
Good luck!
Most of my professors so far only allow Calculators that are allowed on the FE. as /u/DrJamaican mentioned, get a good calculator that is allowed on the FE and learn how to use that as you would breathe. I usually recommend the Casio FX991EX, it does spreadsheets and 4X4 matrices and the display and overall functionality is amazing compared to it's only real competitor the TI-36x Pro. The only thing the TI does better is keep memory of operations between power cycles. If you are gonna graph any for a class it is gonna be using MATlab or some other software package. So save yourself the money on a graphing calc and buy two great scientific calculators (always need a backup).
The Casio FX-991EX is the best scientific calculator you can buy. It's also about $20.
Used this in college and while taking and passing the FE: Casio FX-991EX
Used this in highschool through freshman year of college: Casio FX-991ES PLUS
I used this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZZ93346/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
But if you have higher maths to do as well you might want to consider one of the nice TIs.
It seems that your comment contains 1 or more links that are hard to tap for mobile users. I will extend those so they're easier for our sausage fingers to click!
Here is link number 1 - Previous text "now"
^Please ^PM ^\/u\/eganwall ^with ^issues ^or ^feedback! ^| ^Code ^| ^Delete
No. Not a bad calc, but not as good. Get a Casio FX-991EX. $17.65 with free shipping on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZZ93346/
Don't get either one of those. Get a fx-991EX instead. You won't be sorry.
$17.27 on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZZ93346/
Speaking for myself, I'd go for something like the $12 (on Amazon) Casio FX-991EX, which better in almost every way compared to the $70 (on eBay) TI84, with extra functions like solving equations, vector addition, unit conversions and a far better screen, but TI has a lock on the educational market, and you'd have to teach yourself how to use the Casio. If you just want to follow what everyone else is doing, which is easier and requires less thought, then ask around. If you don't care about the cost, a $150 ($80 on eBay) TI-nspire CAS is cool, but because you can't use it on the SAT, you'll probably want another calculator anyway.
Recommendations for TI's and such are coming from guys who have those calculators, but they went to school a decade or more ago and haven't looked at anything since.
Your phone can do everything and more but you won't be allowed to use it on an exam.
Get the CASIO CLASSWIZ fx-991EX
Earlier models cost about the same, have fewer features, and are harder to use.
$17.54 USD on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZZ93346/
32 Cool Features of Casio fx-991EX Classwiz Scientific Calculator
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohzPj_CRW-M
Getting Started with Casio Classwiz FX-991EX
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YvEu87AJYc
Casio FX-991 EX Classwiz Calculator Tutorial
A Casio FX-991EX is perfect for what you describe. $15 on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZZ93346/
(Make sure it is a Casio calculator. There are fakes like the "Citizen FX-991EX")
Next, print out a copy of Learning mathematics with ClassWiz By B. Kissane
https://info.casio.co.uk/hubfs/fx-991EX%20Learning%20Mathematics%20with%20ClassWiz.pdf
You can either go through all of Kissane if you really want to learn a lot, or you can just refer to whatever section covers whatever calculation you are trying to do.
Yup. It's an extremely powerful calculator that very few people know about because everyone would just go buy TI stuff. Honestly felt like cheating sometimes when I took exams with it.
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It looks like the FX-991EX ClassWiz is the newer model though.
https://www.amazon.com/Casio-FX-991EX-Engineering-Scientific-Calculator/dp/B00ZZ93346