Many gifted students such as myself accredit Gottfried Leibniz to be the precursor of their impending demise. Mr. Leibniz is the curator of Calculus, the idol of integrals, the devil of derivatives. Calculus is the study of change, and since it’s inception in the 17th century, it has changed the world. I also believe it to be the keystone to changing our future. Studies and general common sense show that our world is quickly deteriorating, and although judgements vary, it is no secret we will soon be evicted from Earth. Our future relies in physics, as it is our only foundation for understanding the world outside our world, and Calculus is our foundation for understanding our sole gateway. Physics would be just a game if it weren’t for Calculus, and we need the higher level of physics to comprehend what is outside our atmosphere and galaxy. Once the day approaches where humanity’s existence is futile and we are being shipped off to our new home in some foreign galaxy, Calculus will be our intellectual voucher to save humanity and all of it’s progression since our conception. Yes, I like all, have suffered through its limits and fundamental theorems, but I, unlike all, see the value in the deed. People love to hate it, but what I’ve learned while racing at the highest level, is that you need to embrace the struggle, and use that struggle to achieve something greater than yourself. I’ve lost entire days of my life studying for seemingly pointless tests, struggling to grasp optimization. You need to learn to embrace that pain though, to grovel in happiness, because despite what some desire, my generation will be running the world shortly. I stand firmly behind Leibniz, in the face of formidable adversaries claiming the impracticality of Calculus. Some argue it’s too elite of a class to maintain in today’s classroom, but I would counter that I should be granted the opportunity to truly push myself, and further test my mental limits if I so choose to. Granted, Calculus is a challenge, but if mankind never embraced challenges, we would be stuck rubbing sticks together to make fire and praying to our frozen deities.
To the average student today, it is impractical, I will admit it. A historian, a factory worker, a journalist don’t necessarily need Calculus to thrive in their respective fields, but a balanced scholar is a proper scholar. If a stool were to rest all of it’s bearing on one leg, it would simply crumble under the pressure, and if a student were to concentrate all of their efforts into a field such as Psychology, they would be unable to compute or communicate their findings. Yes it can be dreadful at times, but when it’s all said and done, the ends justify the means. I will conclude that if Calculus is removed from our kids today, you are then removing the possibility of a future for the average student, but most importantly, a future for humanity.