Numbers With Personality

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It's interesting to think that Mayan head-glyphs may have held more information than simply being representations for a numerical system. I thought Major's theory about the names of numbers contributing to their individuality and reasons for why certain cultures assign significance to them was an interesting one; although I knew the word for four in Chinese languages sounded like their word for death, I hadn't really thought too much about what that did to the personification of the number. 

In terms of the quote, "each of the positive integers was one of his personal friends," this initially struck me as overwhelming. If numbers are personified in the way Major noticed of Mayan culture, then in a set as massive as "the positive integers," how could each be his personal friend? Then I thought, would he view digits 1-9 as unique friends (like the Mayans had head-glyphs for 1-20) and anything above as forms of these nine friends? Could different forms be considered different life stages of those friends' lives? Different moods? 

The personification of numbers seems to be a very open field that could be a very good way to connect students to math. I remember being in a French class that I didn't particularly like, but I made it my own by using the names of characters from whatever show I was obsessed with interested in at the time to make it more fun for myself. Similarly, a student who has had bad experiences with math or doesn't particularly resonate with the subject might connect with it better if they had this method of storytelling/personification introduced at some point in their math career. I think it might be useful to introduce them as a stand alone lesson, perhaps with an introduction to Mayan math first before branching into making connections with numbers like 13 in Western culture or 4 in certain Asian cultures. Alternatively, it could be a class-long endeavor at a lower grade level; that is, it could be introduced alongside integers as a fun fact, then referenced continuously throughout the course as a callback.

For me personally, I don't think of numbers as having personalities. I am drawn to certain numbers more than others; for example, I prefer even numbers and those divisible by 5. Four is my favourite number but that's because April is my birth month. My birthday, like other calendar dates, is only special to me because there is some sort of celebration with other people. However, I have never really thought of a number with fondness. For example, if a calculation results in the number 4, I would be unaffected. If I step away from numbers, I definitely have symbols that are dear to me as a friend might be, and considering numerals are representations of an amount, it's a similar idea. For example, the Om symbol reminds me of many different things and when I look at it, I feel calm and collected. If I personified that symbol, it would definitely be a wise, reassuring being that celebrates creativity, yet moves at a slow pace.