| Who did you vote for? |
| Bush |
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54% |
[ 6 ] |
| Kerry |
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45% |
[ 5 ] |
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| Total Votes : 11 |
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mithrilmailler
 [ Ancient Forge ]
Joined: February 06, 2004
Posts: 1703
Submissions: 28
Location: beach park, il
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| Posted on Tue Nov 09, 2004 7:00 pm |
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but the thing is if he is given the correct equation, he would get the correct answer. he's only doing what he can with the info that is given.
Arthur: Let's go somewhere.
Trillian: Where'd you have in mind?
Ford: I know this great restaurant at the end of the universe
-The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy |
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Joined: March 3, 2002
Posts: 4372
Submissions: 79
Location: tres piedras, new mexico
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| Posted on Tue Nov 09, 2004 7:14 pm |
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what is weird is discussing the order of operations in a thread about weirdness. go geekpower! 
PSA: remember to stretch.
3.o is fixing everything. |
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CyberKender
 [ Grand Master Speaker ]
Joined: April 20, 2004
Posts: 936
Submissions: 30
Location: See Heisenberg\'s Uncertianty Principle
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| Posted on Wed Nov 10, 2004 12:36 am |
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| HerrBGone wrote: | | Actually, it does make sense to get twenty, but twelve is the correct "by the rules" answer. Everyone I've mentioned this problem to has answered twenty, but the mathematician I heard ranting about it on the radio (NPR) insisted otherwise and the rules back him up. |
Not according to how I was taught math. Unless the parenthesies are in place, the correct answer is 20, because the rule of thumb I was taught is that mutiplication and division are computed before addition and subtraction, unless specified by parentheses. With that rule in effect, 20 is the correct answer.
| HerrBGone wrote: | BTW: Fish? You've lost me with that one...  |
It's a way of pointing out how screwed English is. If you pronounce "gh" as in "cough", "o" as in "women", and "ti" as in "nation," does, phoenetically, spell 'fish.'
CyberKender Esquire
RenMerc and Rogue Journeyman Bodice-ripper
Punslinger-at-Large Fnord! The Brass Kender
Brute Squad, Stealth Division
Apparently Appointed Mayor of There
Enough to make a grown man cry. |
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Joined: February 29, 2004
Posts: 1898
Submissions: 8
Location: Behind Enemy Lines in Marxistchussetts
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| Posted on Wed Nov 10, 2004 1:05 am |
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| CyberKender wrote: | | <snip> because the rule of thumb I was taught is that multiplication and division are computed before addition and subtraction, unless specified by parentheses. With that rule in effect, 20 is the correct answer. |
Yes, but... Doing the multiplication first gives you (as shown with the implied parenthesis in place):
2 + (2 x 5) = 2 + (10) = 12
Right rule, but you were headed for the other answer.
| CyberKender wrote: | | <snip> It's a way of pointing out how screwed English is. If you pronounce "gh" as in "cough", "o" as in "women", and "ti" as in "nation," does, phoenetically, spell 'fish.' |
Oh, my! So it does... Ain't English just so much fun?
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Tesserex
 [ Ancient Forge ]
Joined: November 20, 2003
Posts: 2561
Submissions: 77
Location: Northbrook, IL
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| Posted on Wed Nov 10, 2004 5:36 am |
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To fix the math order of ops problem, just use RPN (reverse polish notation) which was invented in the 50s for computers.
For a quick lesson on it if you've never heard.. you put operators after the operands instead of between them. Therefore our problem:
2 + 2 * 5
becomes
2 2 5 * +
Looks weird, right? You need to use and enter key to tell the calculator that you're entering a number. It goes on a stack. Then whe n you press an operator, it is applied to the top 2 numbers on the stack. So, when you type the above problem into an RPN calculator, the * multiplies the 2 and 5 for 10, then puts the 10 on the stack. Then the + adds the remaining two numbers, the 10 and the 2 for 12.
If you want parentheses:
(2 + 2) * 5
There's two ways to do this.
2 2 + 5 * or 5 2 2 + *
Quick math lesson to show you how the PEMDAS is pointless. |
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Joined: February 29, 2004
Posts: 1898
Submissions: 8
Location: Behind Enemy Lines in Marxistchussetts
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| Posted on Wed Nov 10, 2004 2:21 pm || Last edited by HerrBGone on Mon Dec 01, 2008 6:10 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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I have a couple of HPs that use RPN. I hate them.  My new HP 30s doesn't. However, it does use the rules (all of them) so if you type in "2 + 2 * 5 =" you get 12. That is unless you type in "2 + 2 =" then "* 5 =" in which case you get 20.
My story was actually about a cheap mathematician who was trying to use the rules, specifically order of operations, to confuse the part time clerk and cheat the store out of eight bucks. He probably had at least a minor in statistics... 
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CyberKender
[ Grand Master Speaker ]
Joined: April 20, 2004
Posts: 936
Submissions: 30
Location: See Heisenberg\'s Uncertianty Principle
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| Posted on Wed Nov 10, 2004 4:37 pm |
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| HerrBGone wrote: |
Right rule, but you were headed for the other answer. |
Er...Ooops?
This is why I have a degree in fine art and not in math. :>
CyberKender Esquire
RenMerc and Rogue Journeyman Bodice-ripper
Punslinger-at-Large Fnord! The Brass Kender
Brute Squad, Stealth Division
Apparently Appointed Mayor of There
Enough to make a grown man cry. |
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yoippari
 [ Voice ]
Joined: March 08, 2004
Posts: 82
Submissions: 3
Location: Salem, OR
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| Posted on Thu Nov 11, 2004 7:31 am |
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I would like to add on to the ghoti thing with:
How to correctly spell 'Potato'
If GH can stand for P as in Hiccough
If OUGH can stand for O as in Dough
If PHTH can stand for T as in Phthisis
If EIGH can stand for A as in Neighbor
If TTE can stand for T as in Gazette
If EAU can stand for O as in Plateau
Then the right way to spell POTATO should be:
"GHOUGHPHTHEIGHTTEEAU"
The above is not my doing so do not flame me.  |
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J2383
 [ Big Voice ]
Joined: May 29, 2004
Posts: 195
Submissions: 19
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| Posted on Thu Nov 11, 2004 12:59 pm |
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| yoippari wrote: | | The above is not my doing so do not flame me. |
Why would we flame you? |
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Joined: February 29, 2004
Posts: 1898
Submissions: 8
Location: Behind Enemy Lines in Marxistchussetts
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| Posted on Thu Nov 11, 2004 1:59 pm || Last edited by HerrBGone on Mon Dec 01, 2008 6:20 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Of course, if you wrap a "GHOUGHPHTHEIGHTTEEAU" in tin foil and place it next to some "GHOTI" on a grill over an open flame in fairly short order you'd have a nice meal. Naturally you'd wash it down with some dihydrogen monoxide... 
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Blakut
 [ Kibitzer ]
Joined: October 22, 2004
Posts: 24
Submissions: 0
Location: Bucharest, Romania
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| Posted on Thu Nov 11, 2004 2:31 pm |
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actually, this IS weird.
Coo |
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Joined: December 18, 2003
Posts: 240
Submissions: 0
Location: califonia
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| Posted on Thu Nov 11, 2004 4:51 pm |
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new math!
I failed the old one!
Is that why the space probes have beenmissing trajectory and skipping out into space |
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Joined: February 29, 2004
Posts: 1898
Submissions: 8
Location: Behind Enemy Lines in Marxistchussetts
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| Posted on Thu Nov 11, 2004 5:09 pm || Last edited by HerrBGone on Mon Dec 01, 2008 6:11 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Actually, they forgot to convert from English units to Metric. (Or was it the other way 'round?) So instead of the spacecraft landing at a nice gentle 30MPH (KPH?) it crashed into Mars at over 300(insert appropriate unit here)PH! Of course, if you've ever been water skiing you'll know that 'landing' at 30MPH is not soft even on water - though it is a great way to clear out your sinuses...
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yoippari
[ Voice ]
Joined: March 08, 2004
Posts: 82
Submissions: 3
Location: Salem, OR
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| Posted on Fri Nov 12, 2004 8:17 am |
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| The flames would be for taking a fairly simple word and screwing with it until it no longer makes any sense to any reasonable person. Well, I guess I wouldn't be flamed for that here, perhaps I will post something like this in a random political forum... Wait, reasonable... where do reasonable people hang out on the internet? |
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mithrilmailler
[ Ancient Forge ]
Joined: February 06, 2004
Posts: 1703
Submissions: 28
Location: beach park, il
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| Posted on Fri Nov 12, 2004 8:36 am |
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good question
i think reasonable people don't hang out on the web, but then again the web has a place for everyone.
Arthur: Let's go somewhere.
Trillian: Where'd you have in mind?
Ford: I know this great restaurant at the end of the universe
-The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy |
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