Article

2006-11-30 -Short Attention Span Theater-

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Zoot 2006-11-30 11:54|| || Front Page|| [11135 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 And the next thing you know some state legislator will propose a law changing the ratio of a circle from 3.14159 to 3.0.

Posted by GK 2006-11-30 12:25|| 2006-11-30 12:25|| Front Page Top

#2 Well, what's wrong with that? I never could remember that silly number, anyway. Besides, it isn't 3.14159.

Posted by KBK 2006-11-30 13:15|| 2006-11-30 13:15|| Front Page Top

#3 pi = 3.14159265(...)

Posted by mojo">mojo 2006-11-30 13:26|| 2006-11-30 13:26|| Front Page Top

#4 Mmmm...pie.

Posted by Seafarious">Seafarious 2006-11-30 13:41|| 2006-11-30 13:41|| Front Page Top

#5 secure a mate

So, this doesn't concern me, even if I go one day to Kansas, traveling the world to heal the loneliness in my heart.

Posted by anonymous5089 2006-11-30 13:47|| 2006-11-30 13:47|| Front Page Top

#6 Since individuals do not "evolve", noone can violate this law....

Posted by Mark E. 2006-11-30 14:15|| 2006-11-30 14:15|| Front Page Top

#7 A little evolution wouldn't hurt the lowbrows in Kansas a bit.

Posted by bigjim-ky 2006-11-30 15:04|| 2006-11-30 15:04|| Front Page Top

#8 Mark E: actually individuals can evolve. It's the theory of "punctuated equilibrium". And I can give you an example:

A man is watching a sporting event on TV. Right when the critical game play is being held in the final seconds, his wife enters the room, bends over in her size 15 pink stretch pants and says,

"Honey, do these pants make my ass look big?"

He is now forced, by punctuated equilibrium, to either evolve or die. Most likely he will die.

Posted by Anonymoose 2006-11-30 15:11|| 2006-11-30 15:11|| Front Page Top

#9 π ≈ 3.14159265358979

Count the letters in each word:

How I need a drink, alcoholic of course, after the heavy lectures involving quantum mechanics.

Posted by Eric Jablow">Eric Jablow 2006-11-30 18:21|| 2006-11-30 18:21|| Front Page Top

#10 If you could get that circle spinning at about 30% of the speed of light, pi would be 3.0.

Posted by KBK 2006-11-30 20:12|| 2006-11-30 20:12|| Front Page Top

#11 How do you arrive at the value of pi ?
By measurement ? I don't sink so.

Posted by wxjames 2006-11-30 21:20|| 2006-11-30 21:20|| Front Page Top

#12 Right, pi has decoupled from Euclidian geometry and is now calculated from power series.

Historically, it was the ratio of the circumference to the diameter of a circle. If you make those measurements, calculate, and don't come up with pi, your circle is not living in a flat space; e.g. on the surface of the earth, the ratio depends on the diameter of the circle.

The spinning circle is an interesting thought experiment, known as Ehrenfest's paradox. The circumference is Lorentz contracted but the diameter is not. It troubled Einstein quite a bit and was likely one of the considerations that led him to the concept of warped spacetime in the presence of energy.

Posted by KBK 2006-11-30 23:32|| 2006-11-30 23:32|| Front Page Top

07:34 Besoeker
14:10 Zenster
23:58 JosephMendiola
23:49 BA
23:49 JosephMendiola
23:45 JosephMendiola
23:32 KBK
23:30 Jan
23:26 SteveS
23:23 Icerigger
23:21 trailing wife
23:21 FOTSGreg
23:19 Icerigger
23:18 Icerigger
23:14 Icerigger
23:10 Ptah
23:09 Icerigger
23:08 BA
23:06 Icerigger
22:59 USN,Ret
22:54 Captain America
22:52 .com
22:46 Elmert Crosh5077
22:40 Mick Dundee