Whats it like to be straying from word puzzles into math?
First of all, I love almost any kind of puzzle. My sense is that most crossword people are not interested in Sudoku or KenKen, and vice versa. I’m in the minority that is crazy about all three varieties. I think KenKen is bringing in a whole new solver. What do you think about Mr. Miyamoto’s teaching philosophy, the notion that puzzles can improve people’s overall thinking skills? Solving puzzles makes you a better person. You learn flexibility of thinking, and you learn to think practically. I think Mr. Miyamoto has a point: often in math class, you’re taught formulas and maybe you don’t fully understand the formulas, you’re just going through the paces, these artificial things you’ve learned. But when you finish a puzzle, you really have a complete understanding of what you did. You understand the mathematics better, and you feel prouder of yourself for having figured it out from start to finish. It’s funny you say that because I was just reading a KenKen review that described the ga
