This edition of snippets focuses on mental math.

• According to a study published last year, 1 in 4 adults have difficulty with mental math. That's more than 50%! (Yes, I'm joking.) With such skills needed, as the study claims, up to 14 times a day, this is a serious problem.

• Let's say you have trouble with math, and you decide to tackle the problem and learn more about the math you need everyday, including the use of mental math. Part of the problem is that you'll run into people who will deride you for just learning “shortcuts” or “tricks”. In some cases, this may even be someone to whom you're turning to help with math! This is hardly a unique situation, yet there is value in mental math. Read through The Value of Quick Addition Skills, and you'll get a better idea of just how valuable mental math can be. The rest of their speed and mental math category has not only techniques to help you get going, but also posts about the value of those techniques.

• Speaking of mental math techniques, where can you learn more? You're welcome to start right here on Grey Matters in the Mental Gym, with lessons in things like extracting third, fifth and square roots, working out exponential expressions, and you can find even more in the math category. There are many more sites, ranging from a few samples on Dr. Numsen's site, to full free archives, like the one at BEATCALC.

• Of course, you also need a place to practice your skills. The Mental Gym offers this. Momonix's Arithmetic Problems page offers a fun tester, includes lessons on all the problems with which it challenges you, and is even optimized for the iPhone. If you like learning mental math skills on the iPhone, but can't always count on an internet connection, don't forget the Mathemagics native app (iTunes link) I recently mentioned in my iPhone and iPod Amazement post. Just like Momonix, it teaches and tests you all in one place.