Re: Suggesting a Poll

On Feb 16, 10:16 am, "victor_meldrew_...@xxxxxxxxxxx"
<victor_meldrew_...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On 16 Feb, 14:02, "Tim BandTech.com" <tttppp...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:



I elect Vector Mildew for Willfully Ignorant.

Is there such a word as "willfully"? Anyway I counter-suggest
Tim Goldenballs as Wilfully Ignorant, citing my recent
long correpondence with him where he repeatedly failed to
avail himself of the opportunity to learn some elementary
algebra.

Let's try and get to the meat of the matter here so that you may take
your willfully selected place of ignorance along with many others:
http://groups.google.com/group/sci.math/browse_frm/thread/e601dbff280e20ca?q=#c63e55ac3d42eae1

Here is an excerpt that yields the crux:

Again also now from the philosophical stage could you address what you
would tell a ten year old who asks of a third sign?
As I see it there may be many options and I leave you free to code
your own.
I merely present these as reasonable predictions of your own response:

1. No, Johnny, there are only two signs.

2. Well, Johnny, there can be three but first you'll have to get
through group theory.

3. Why, yes, Johnny.
So glad you brought it up.
Yes, you can have three signs and it is what advanced
mathematicians of old called the complex numbers.
These days we just call them polysign and teach you the two-signed
version until grade five, of old called the 'real' numbers.
They did not discover spacetime as emergent until someone like you
Johnny asked that very question.
If you'd like to skip to grade five then you may leave this math
class on occassion and listen in there.

These I see as valid options which you might consider. Certainly we
could call this an open book quiz, so if you want to check your notes
that is fine by me.
Next though from the philisophical point of view we may even
instantiate quite a number of these children in the past and into the
present who have asked this very question. So you see what may start
out as a prank can become quite a serious issue can't it? Have these
children been lied to by mathematicians of your ilk?

- Tim

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