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Ian's firm is working out
THERE are two puzzles that have occupied mathematicians for hundreds of years.
One is 260 years-old Goldbach's Conjecture, with a prize of a million dollars
if it's solved. The other, probably much older, is "How do you get children
interested in maths while keeping abreast of a curriculum which changes all the
time?" Solve that, and the prize could be much higher. And one Bolton
businessman and mathematican looks like he's well on the way.
Ian Fisher started 10ticks.co.uk, under the trading name of Fisher Educational,
two years ago from home with his wife Lynne, after spending 15 years as a maths
teacher in the Midlands and Bolton.
"Every year, thousands of pounds were spent on textbooks that were constantly
being updated or changed. It was such a waste of resources."
When Ian, 41, left teaching, it was with the intention of writing better maths
worksheets, but a publishing deal for the sheets fell through when publisher
Pearson, through its Dorling Kindersley imprint ceased trading. As a logician,
Ian rethought his business model, and did not take long to figure out that a
paperless solution could revolutionise the way learning was presented. Ian
wrote the worksheets, published and sold them on the internet to schools, and
two years later his moved has been vindicated.
With profit margin of 60 per cent of turnover and over half a million
school-age users in schools nationwide, Ian, now based in the Bolton Enterprise
Centre, also won the "e-business of the year" award at this year's prestigious
North Manchester Business Awards. The nature of 10ticks is such that the
ever-changing nature of the maths curriculum holds no fears. "The fact that the
worksheets are available via the website is the main selling point," said Ian.
"We write an online help feature for every single worksheet. Every child can
build up an ability profile, with diagnostic areas showing where more work is
needed. None of this is possible with a paper textbook."
Neither are games, but a big part of 10ticks success has been the ongoing
design of online mathematical games to encourage children to engage with
mathematics. Developing puzzles and arithmetical quizzes using basic formats
such as Pac-Man style arcade graphics and 'magic eye' puzzles, 10ticks is in
danger of actually turning maths into a popular subject. Ian is adamant that it
is the online element that is the key to his success.
"What began as a cheaper marketing method has taken over, with the medium
suggesting ways of improving and staying ahead, and curriculum changes can be
embraced. We can repack and rewrite to order in a fraction of the time it would
take to produce a textbook. All our admin is done in the first hour of a
working day. The rest is free to develop the business."
And development, business and personal, is a key philosophy for Ian. He
recently presented nearly 40 Bolton junior schools with free seven-a-side
football kits, reminding pupils in the town that physical, as well as metal
exercise is important to develop brainpower.
The company also recruits computer and design students on year-long placements
to work on programmes. "It means that ideas are always fresh and the students
can take away a substantial piece of experience for their portfolio."
So now he's done the difficult bit, what about Goldbach? "Ah, that's number
theory. Outside my field, I'm afraid" Goldbach's Conjecture was originally
written in a letter from Prussian mathematician Christian Goldbach to Swiss
mathematician Leonhard Euler on June 7, 1742. It stated that "every even number
greater than 2 is the sum of two primes." Euler replied that it was probably
true, but how could a formula be devised that would prove it? A prize of $1m
was offered in 2000 to anyone who could solve the conundrum, but the prize
remains unclaimed. It is the oldest unsolved problem in mathematics.
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