Some Settling May Occur During Handling

[liddle_oldman]

A story from the past - junior high, actually - that just floated to the surface.

Math class. The teacher explains about points, that they're infinitely small. She puts a jar on her desk

Comments

[glitterberrys]

...that's pretty hilarious. And totally something I would say to my father to watch him freak out (he's one of those geniuses who starts to twitch and flail and screech in the face of ridiculousness.)

In fact, I hope I get the opportunity someday.

[neko_loliighoul]

haha that reminds me of my dad...he used to steal my calculus homework when i was having trouble, and would either explain it to me and then set me extra problems to do so he could be sure i understood ( wtf, hes a mining engineer, not even a teacher) .or he'd get complately obsessed with trying to figure it out for the rest of the night...even if i tried to take it back so i could just do it, he wouldnt let me :/ wierdo.
he can also hand write perfectly in a morror image with his right hand , and he's normally left handed and is one of those people that write in capitals cos his writing is messy.

my dad would have freaked out at that too :P

[liddle_oldman]

Mirror writing!

I have no idea what it means, neurologically, but it's cool as snail sneakers!

[neko_loliighoul]

yeah, i have no idea either, but i think i recall reading somewhere leonardo da vinci could do it too?? or something very like it. i've always been able to read upside down very easily, since i learned how to read :P

[sorceror]

Heh. That actually could have been smart-assery - but then, I'm sure you knew that person better than I do.

[liddle_oldman]

From me it would have been smart-assey. From him, it was perfectly straight.

You know, he'll have bred by now...

[n5red]

Shades of Georg Cantor!

[liddle_oldman]

Hey -- that was the year we studied set theory, too! (In a sixth grade way). Apparently this guy had risen from his grave just to drive me mad.

In the middle of the Pointless Forest...

[danceswithcats1]

He's got a point, there.

Re: In the middle of the Pointless Forest...

[liddle_oldman]

But a very small one.

[redbird]

I suspect that the teacher would not have been delighted to get the correct answer to her second question, which is "No." Even when it's correct, people don't like yes or no as answers to things they've phrased as either/or questions. (Also, just asking "Now how many points are in the jar?" is more reasonable than phrasing it such that the students are going to be looking for reasons for there to be a different number--after all, the teacher, who presumably knows, has asked whether there are more or fewer. Not "more, fewer, or the same number?"

[liddle_oldman]

You make a good point, which proceeds from my imprecise story. She actually asked something like "Will there be the same number of pints, or do you think there'll be fewer or more?". It wasn't as polarized and exclusive as I related. That is, she asked it properly, I reported it improperly.

*is abashed*