Editorial: Equation for success

Friday, Aug. 17, 2007 | 7:28 a.m.

D anica McKellar, probably known best for her role as Winnie Cooper in the 1990s television series "The Wonder Years," is making another name for herself these days: math whiz.

Taking a hiatus from acting, McKellar earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from UCLA and has written "Math Doesn't Suck," a math book for middle school girls.

Using such topics as makeup and shoe shopping to illustrate problems, McKellar's book unravels the intricacies of algebra, prime numbers and other mathematical mysteries. In making math accessible to girls, McKellar told the Associated Press this week , she hopes to show them that being "cute and dumb isn't as good as cute and smart."

With a long list of television, movie and stage credits under her belt, McKellar could have coasted along in the comfy confines of celebrity life. Instead, she chose to attend college to see what else she could add to her success. While studying at UCLA, McKellar co-authored research proving an original math theorem. She even has a section on her Web site where she answers math questions submitted by readers.

At 32, McKellar is a bit mature, by Hollywood standards, to qualify as a "starlet." But her efforts to help millions of young girls cultivate their brains, in addition to their beauty, certainly outshine the latest rehab-to-jail exploits of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.

And McKellar is plenty hard on those two.

"When girls see the antics of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan, they think that being fun and glamorous also means being dumb and irresponsible," McKellar told AP. "I want to show them that being smart is cool."

Cool as an A on a math test, which is a whole lot prettier than a rap sheet.