Subject: Math? "Bad"?
Author:
Posted on: 2015-03-18 02:11:00 UTC
Then I must redirect you to this rant of mine and the responses to it (particularly Fractal Dawn's, who is much more eloquent than me when it comes to explaining how math touches everything).
I believe this is what I supposed to be doing now that I have decided to join up with this message board. So I suppose this is the long and short of it.
I suppose it is best to start at the beginning. The year was, on second thought that is completely irrelevant. I have a semi-active semi-abandoned account over at the Pit, which after seeing half the things I have seen, is more than a fitting title. I also had a much older, which has sense mercifully been abandoned, account. I rather hope it remains buried. It was not a good representation of my skills. Then again it is about a decade old...
Moving right along. I am currently a full time student, finally nearing the end, and a part time writer. Part time might be a bit generous, now that I mention it. I am not certain that two chapters per six months is part time. Graduate School has this amazing ability to cause time to just vanish, possibly into the same place that those socks always end up.
Probably worth mentioning that I am male somewhere between the ages of 1 and Gandalf. Turning now to answer non-existent questions. Questions that may or may not be asked.
1. I have indeed read both the Constitution and Original Series, as well as spending several hours doing a wiki run through the wiki site.
2. What are my fandoms? Well I suppose that depends on one's definition of fandom and belonging. If the question is to which ones I write for, including the dark days, would be: Code Lyoko, Inheritance Cycle (mercifully that story was unpublished and lost), Star Wars, and Harry Potter. Though one of those may have been an ungodly crossover between Star Wars, Star Trek, and Code Lyoko.
If the question is more about what kind of fandoms I know about or consider myself a part of then it includes: Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, the Inheritance Cycle, Code Lyoko, Doctor Who, Pokemon, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Ace Combat, Bleach, Full Metal Alchemist, Hellsing, and really anything else I find moderately enjoyable and spend a few hours on the wiki.
3. I found the PPC by doing a Wiki Run on TVTropes, I do not remember how, but eventually I got to their page on My Immortal. Then I wound up on the PPC's page. I do not remember all the connections.
4. As far as PPC spin-offs and agents are concerned, I'll be honest, I have only thus far gotten through the Original Series. So I have nothing to really judge as favorites at this point.
5. Wait there is this thing called fun? I must find it, Law School and fun do not really go together. That being said, I play video games. I occasionally read not law books, really I do. I am not even convincing myself at this point. I do actually read, just in limited periods of time. I also randomly research laws for fun...That sound particularly sad when I say it now. So let me change that I research random things. That does not sound all that much better. I research Fighter Jets and Super Cars. There much better, and much less pathetic.
So I think that is really all there is to that. That's me in a nutshell, if an adult male could actually fit in a nutshell.
In case you haven't noticed, I'm always late. Have some Skittles and a frog. Be careful of warts.
Toads do. But Frogs, they can make a high quality meal. And there I go again with the food thing. I have no idea where that's coming from.
That explains a lot.
A lot of weird habits form in the PPC. You get used to it.
Actually, you don't, you just find a place in the system.
Anyway, hope you settle in quickly!
I think I am beginning to more or less fit right in.
You'll be writing missions in no time (unlike me XD)! :D
We will see. Maybe after I have gotten a bit more exposure in the community, but not exposing myself. As is a)probably illegal in all 50 states and b)horrifying. People would probably run about screaming "Hairless King Kong!"
See? Perfect PPC humor. You're going to settle right in.
Perfect Humor? Where is the fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling! Forty years of darkness! Earthquakes, volcanoes, the dead rising from their graves! Human Sacrifice! And Dogs and Cats living together in harmony! It must be the Apocalypse. The End of Days! Call the Ghostbusters, FBI, X-COM, SHIELD, Batman and anyone else you can think of! Quick before it is too late.
Right...Perhaps a bit of an overreaction. My humor has been called many things, none of them very good.
Shh. That word's not allowed in the PPC. ;D
All these humor comments might force me to bring out my Meta-Parody-Humor-Thing Story. And nobody will be looking good after that. It was an unmitigated disaster. Then again it was supposed to be just that. I may have written that particular story just to troll that workshop I was in at the time. It worked if that actually was my goal. I do not think it was at the time, but now I realize it worked really well at trolling everyone. Even myself. Can one actually do that? Troll themselves?
Sorry I came a little late. Real life, you know how it is.
A Dragon Age fan? Nice. Sadly, I've only played Origins as far as the games, but I've read up on the lore, and do I love this world. It's definitely up there in my favorite fantasy worlds. (Under The Elder Scrolls universe, though.) One of these days I'll pick up Inquisition, when it's on a Steam sale or something.
I assume you've played Origins as well. So, I have to know, who was your Warden? Mine was a lawful good Dwarf Noble warrior.
Anyway, a gift. Since you are in law school (I'm getting a copyright law vibe off of you, though I don't know why) I will give you some Virtual Coffee. I don't know if it will help you any, but it does help me stay awake through those long nights studying.
Though I do like IP, particularly Patents. I have specialized a bit more in Business Transactions. And I am in Law School. I know all about Real Life getting in the way.
As far as my Warden I played him/her in every way possible though my most common ones were Neutral Good Dwarf Noble Warrior, Lawful Good Human Noble, and True Neutral Dalish Warrior.
In DA2, which I actually liked, I was almost always Sarcastic Mage Hawke. I have not played DAI yet. Eventually I will.
I will also take the coffee.
Is it too late for me to offer one of my own shed feathers? If it is, here you go anyway!
And nice to see another grad student around here! If you need any academic advising help at any time, just let me know :)
So the feather would be made of silver right? Might make a good quill. If only I had an inkwell, and ink now that I mention it.
I included this in my main deck just because of the name. It's not a half-bad card, either.
Well I personally prefer using this:
Then again that is not actually in my physical collection though it is in one of my digital ones.
From my physical Collection I prefer this one:
Though mine is better since it is a special misprint that has no name. It took me years to finally find out what it was. Then again I never really looked all that hard, but still.
True, not a half-bad card. I am personally more partial to:
Though I admit, it takes a bit more to come into use.
This is one of the staples of my deck, and really my only White heavy-hitter. Most of my damagers are Red dragons.
It is actually this one
That was actually one of the first cards I got. I have two main decks I use. One is a White Angel for the most part, the other is Black/Red Vampire Deck. This is the highlight of that deck:
Add this one in, and it just gets fun:
I like birds. They look so edible. Now why I have decided to portray myself as someone who likes to eat strange things like flying cats and assorted birds is beyond me.
Though I do like some birds. Like Duck. Very tasty. Then again come to think of it I have kind of eaten some strange things, such as alpaca and alligator.
As for my fandom, I am now into Parasyte, Phineas and Ferb, Terminator, History Channel's Vikings, and Tolkienverse.
Have some virtual murtabak jawa. It's rich in calories, hope you haven't dine yet.
Not a bad mix at all. And thanks for the gift. But what is with everyone and gifting consumables. That must be where my strange food thing is coming from. Does that make it...circular? Bad vicious circle.
Have a box of Schrodinger's Cookies! May or may not contain chocolate until you eat them.
Ace Combat, huh? Sergio Turbo's written a mission in that, have you read it?
So I read the mission you recommended, and it was worth the read. I am still wondering why anyone would think to cross over Ace Combat with Harry Potter in the first place I would normally say at least the picked AC5, but seeing one of my all time favorite games like that...It was worth reading the mission. I appreciate the mention.
And I have not read that mission, I will though, I imagine it would be entertaining.
The "Schrödinger's" part in "Schrödinger's Cookies" refers to the chocolate chips in them, if I recall correctly; therefore, they both contain and do not contain chocolate chips until you eat them, which causes the wave function to collapse one way or the other. The cookies themselves exist anyway.
...the entire reason that a wave function collapses is because that our methods of observation influence the system to the point where we force it into a desired state. In the Schrödinger's cat experiment, it's more like opening the box with a chainsaw. You brute-force the system into two possible states: upon sawing the box open you see either a live (and traumatized) cat or a very, very dead cat.
Furthermore, this interpretation of quantum theory gives rise to a bunch of crackpot theories with "reality is real only when you see it" as a central tenet which suggests that your mind somehow creates and influences a reality which in turn suggests that humans are so special that they make reality happen by their mere presence, which is utter nonsense (and rather Suvian in principle).
Well it depends on which theory of Quantum Mechanics one subscribes to. As I understand it Schrödinger's Cat was designed to show the absurdities of the Copenhagen Interpretation. Or in other words, something simultaneously exists in two contradictory states until observed.
But the Copenhagen Theory is not the only interpretation. You have the Many Worlds Approach. The observer is basically split into two separate realities running parallel with each other. One where the cat is alive, the other where the cat is dead.
There is also the Relational Interpretation, which I am not going to even try to explain, because even the Quantum Mechanics for Dummies Page on it makes no sense to me.
Then there is the Objective Collapse Theory, which basically says once a certain threshold is met, the superpositions, i.e., living and dead cat, collapse only into one. That single state is what would be observed when the box is open.
Also if it is not clear, I am not a Quantum Mechanics Theorist and I may be misunderstanding it or outright making things up. I really do not know. But then again, maybe I actually do know Quantum Mechanics and am therefore I am in a state where I simultaneously know and do not know Quantum Mechanics.
Wait. Did I just turn myself into Schrödinger's Cat? I think whatever point I was trying to make is now likely invalid.
...I have to admit that the Copenhagen interpretation is probably my favourite explanation of quantum effects-- even if it does have the (as you mentioned) absurd implication of the superposition of states. Consider the Stern-Gerlach experiment and how the act of observing (or not observing) the system affects the final output. MIT has a very good lecture on the subject here. Grab some popcorn; it's 40 minutes long and the prof goes through the derivations necessary to explain electron spin.
The RQM interpretation seems to be based on the special relativity notion that observers in different inertial frames measure different things for a same system. RQM doesn't concern itself with how the system is to the various observers. Instead, its focus is on how the system appears to each observer. As we say in French-- le diable est dans les détails.
Also: welcome to the Board, dude. Enjoy your stay.
Though in all honesty I probably will not. A forty minute lecture on Quantum Mechanics is not high on my list of things to do.
Also I have to say I am surprised/not surprised that in less than 24 hours I have manged to get into a discussion on Quantum Mechanics with a physicist. Those kinds of things tend to happen to me more often than I would care to admit.
Speaking of university stuff, I believe you mentioned grad school in your first post. What are you studying at the moment? pleasesaysomethingSTEMrelated
Law. So almost as far from STEM as one can get.
Final question: how "pure" are you?
Don't even get me started on people who do "artsy" degrees.
Source: XKCD #435
You see, I am working towards getting a piece of paper that officially states that I can talk to people! That's useful, right?
...Right?
Something media-related, obviously, but what? For a pure science it's pretty easy-- research, academia, or private sector work-- but what do comms majors do?
Most use it to get into either news or film making. However, you can use it for HR, motivational speaking, teaching, politics, exc. Basically, if it requires a lot of talking, interpersonal or public, communications helps. However, you may be thinking, "Wait a minute... Most of those require other degrees!"
That's the rub. Comm is not something you want by itself. As I said, it's a piece of paper that says, "I can talk to people!" That's near useless. If you want to be a tour guide or something, perhaps, but short of that, not much. However, if you have another piece of paper for another skill, you can say, "I can effectively communicate, help others effectively communicate, as well as X. I can help to minimize conflict in the workplace, and if you need somebody to talk to groups large or small, I'm your man. Also, I'm skilled in X. Please hire me!"
It's a field of study that I'm not sure what I'm going to do with as of yet. I am leaning towards education at the moment, but that's mostly because I'm surrounded by academia. Perhaps Journalism, but I doubt it. I am not the best with deadlines, nor the fastest writer. Journalism wants the article or story out thirty minutes before it happens. That is not likely for me. My dream job would be voice acting, but that's unlikely.
The future is now and we need engineers in everything. Name pretty much any aspect of modern life and there's probably an engineer behind it.
Jooooooin uuuuuussssss...
It even touches the law...
Joooiiiiinnnn uuuusssss...
We have cookies... and π.
Pull is strong...Must continue resistance...Evil Math...
*Pulls out the MLA Handbook* The power of words compel thee! Away foul Math! Away!
Though it is too late for me. Seeing as I plan on going back at some point and taking more STEM courses in the future.
Then I must redirect you to this rant of mine and the responses to it (particularly Fractal Dawn's, who is much more eloquent than me when it comes to explaining how math touches everything).
I know Math touches everything, except when the laws of the universe apparently break like the microwave engine NASA was testing. I was actually in Engineering for a while. Then I changed and I regret that decision.
So this electromag thing supposedly violates the law of conservation of momentum, eh? Major red flag. This really, really shouldn't happen-- yeah, the team found a new force of micro-Newtons in a vacuum but I'm willing to bet dollars to doughnuts that someone isn't doing his error propagation properly. This could be simple noise they're hearing.
Excuse me while I go on a Wiki binge...
But it did apparently violate what we know about physics. Apparently the Chinese did something similar. Though there are questions about scale.
Think about it: this entire engine works on the principle that something inside the system pushes on the outer thingy and creates a net force on said outer thingy. It shouldn't work: it doesn't work! An object simply can't exert a net force on himself: otherwise we'd be able to grab our chairs and hoist ourselves into the air!
I know it should not work, but that's just the thing. It did work: NASA's Impossible Engine
We are doing it people. We are now breaking Physics. One of the most basic of laws, too. One that everybody knows. If this works as advertised... I can't imagine.
People love to cling onto these exceptional stories with big titles such as "we're breaking physics!" or "we have to rethink everything!"
Truth is that the standard model has never been disproven once so far. Not. Even. Once. Isn't it terribly convenient to throw out the tried-and-true model once something slightly strange is observed? We need to perform more rigorous tests on this and not give in to hype. Remember when CERN thought it had found particles moving faster than light with a certainty of five or six sigma? It was due to a calibration error-- and so is this thing.
NASA is not the only one that has tested it. China has as well though their numbers are, frankly absurd. The Chinese test apparently produced comparable movement to standard engines. Those numbers just do not add up, and considering everything else those numbers are incorrect, but that does not necessarily mean this was only a calibration error. Is that possible sure. I will not jump on the we have discovered Warp Engines any times soon.
Who knows what may happen. Perhaps...Maximum Warp! Engage!
I found the abstract to their research.
They built two test target things: one that was designed according to the theory and another one designed so that is shouldn't move when irradiated with the radio waves.
Both moved.
They're just measuring noise, I tell you. And what the heck is this "quantum virtual plasma" they're referring to?! The more I read about this the more it sounds like the hollow hype surrounding the Alcubierre Drive-- the poster child of warp drive technology that people cling on to without understanding the full implications of the theory behind it-- negative mass, for one.
The fact remains NASA still approved further study on it. It still moved though. That is the key. What will happen on some of the other tests? I do not know. I agree it should not work, but there may at least be something to it.
Law School.
I suppose it is more useful than a piece of paper that says you can write poetry fantasy screenplays with some substantial degree of skill.
Though I also will have a piece of paper that will officially state that I can yell really loudly argue Objection! You Can't Handle the Truth! that while your point is perfectly valid, mine is better correct supported with better evidence.
First Law just winds up out somewhere off the Z-Plane I think. As for fields, well if you mean degree, I think I will keep that one secreted away for the time being. But I spend a substantial amount of time in Computer Science. And then something changed. I think I will keep the rest of that vague.
Have a banana milkshake, because why the heck not! (I know how you feel about school making time vanish, btw)
Milkshakes are good, as long as that song does not get stuck in my head...Blast it.
Ah, how I miss those halcyon days when school may have lasted from 8:00-3:00, but then would be finished, an hour or two later and you were done. None of this three hours of class that require seven of preparation.
And that had the unintended consequence of making me feel old.
You've answered all the question, so I'll just offer you this cup of high-quality green tea. No, the leaves won't eat you. What makes you think that?
Why would I think it would eat me? Because I have read the wiki, or at least parts of it. And Audrey II. As long as it does not start asking me to feed it, I think we will be fine.
Truth is, they won't try to eat you because they've been killed very thoroughly. What do I look like, a guy who'll give living Camelia Sinsesis Rapax leaves to newbies?
I have no idea what to expect. I prefer to be cautious. Like if someone were to give me a computer, so long as it did not start singing Daisy Bell, I would treat it with some skepticism. Now if it started singing Daisy Bell, well that's what magnets are for.
Ah, Wiki Walks... I think mine led me to "Brain Bleach", and then directly to the PPC. Or maybe I googled "Sporking" because I didn't notice the link, and got there from that. I don't really remember.
Anyway, have a Hammerspace Nutshell! You can fit pretty much anything in there... If you can get it to pass through the opening, of course. So, maybe not a live adult male human, but...
Your emphasis frightens me. Stay back, I have a State Alchemist's Watch and I know how to use it. To tell time. And as a last resort it is metal. Though that would possibly cause undue damage to it.
I do not really remember all the steps, all I know is at least at some point I found myself on the My Immortal tropes page and some time later I found myself at the PPC trope site. It looked like fun, I was also told there would be cake. But there is no cake. The cake is a lie.
Anyway, hello, and welcome aBoard! As a present, take this shrieking llama! If the urple bow around its neck becomes too much, feel free to remove it. :)
Always nice to meet another Potterhead and Whovian!
Actually does taste like chicken, well Alpaca does anways. Bow around its neck? Close enough to a bow tie. And bow ties are cool. I might keep it for myself.
And what is with people and poking?
Bow ties are very cool. Here, have one! l>•
Not really. And I'll take the bow tie.
'cause Iximaz didn't do it.
Fine, fine.
Newbie! *glomp* *poke*
Happy now, Des? :P
A flying tackle poke? I feel like someone is going to be hurting after that.
Have a +5 anarchic ghost touch shovel. It deals extra damage to lawful and noncanonical creatures, and can hurt incorporeal creatures!
I mean if you think of it, would that not automatically damage everyone here? Especially if they were an agent. Look at it this way, each cannon must strictly follow its own rules, the Laws of that Cannon. What the Agents do, from what I understand is comically restore the cannons by strictly adhering to the rules of that particular cannon. In other words they follow a code, like a lawful character. Now I expect most Agents are not exactly cannon in their particular divisions that they try to fix. So then it seems most Agents would be negatively affected by the shovel.
Now I would say that on the board that would not be a problem, but we do have the Constitution we need to follow. In other words in order to post one needs to at least be partially lawful anyways.
Or alternatively I could just smack myself in the face with the shovel for over thinking it.
Weapons like that affect Sues as though they had the least favorable alignment. A holy weapon would deal extra damage to a Sue as if she was evil, but an unholy weapon would do the same, as if she were good.
I see. I am still trying to figure out the, shall we say, bizarre physiology of the Sue.
Do you know the one called Skyrim?
Oh, I almost forgot your gift - Insanity Chocolate (or whatever sweet thing you prefer)! It not only tastes good, but it gives you what its title says. Trust me, you'll need to be crazy. It'll become a habit.
Skyrim is a good game, currently one of my favorites. Though I am more partial to Bioware RPG's. Even the mess that was DA2 and ME3. Yes I said it, I actually did not hate ME3's ending originally. That alone might already prove I am crazy. I also not only enjoyed DA2, but also liked parts of it more than Origins.
Most of the games I like are games that have platforms I do not own. Like a PC computer. : _; Mac is good for anything besides gaming.
I think you can actually create a Windows environment on a Mac for games. Or better yet ditch the Mac and get a real computer. Just kidding, not really trying to start the computer wars here.
I don't past videos online.
I always liked the Khajiit - their dialect is interesting. I once tried speaking their way, and my mom kept giving me weird looks, haha. It was fun nevertheless.
If you ever check out the Arrowsworn build, here's the challenge: you can't loot. *gasp!* I will look up the witchunter build.
Khajiit is good. I enjoy the unarmed bonus. Nord is probably my most common though.
I mean, using Magicka is cool, but when you have three types of stats to spread points on instead of just Health and Stamina for a non-magic user, it sounds like it would be a lot harder for me to manage.
My mages tend to be Spell Swords, that is a lot of damage and ability to soak damage. An Altmer's Magicka pool in heavy armor? That's a pretty strong character. Add that in either Werewolf or Vampire Lord? And that's something to just run away form quickly.
Welcome to the board and have a random talking cat with wings.
Who would come up with such a thing? What does it taste like? From this angle it almost looks like a chicken...
Hiro Mashima came up with that kind of cat, it tastes like cat, and I think I grabbed a defect. Accept my defect kitty.
I just might eat it though. Not really. Well maybe. I can generally be persuaded to try anything once, even a flying, talking, defective, cat.
Welcome to this place of insanity! Good to have another Potterhead and Whovian on here. What are your favorite characters?
I'm insane. That's all there is to know about me. :-P
Accept this squid as a welcome gift!
Insanity is such a relative term. Are we talking as compared to the Master, particularly Harold Saxon? Or are we taking compared to someone like Hermione? Quite a large difference between the two.
As to the question, excluding the Doctor, because lets face it that would be too easy, Wilfred, when he isn't the walking plot device, I am also quite partial to Rose Tyler and Gwen Cooper. And from Harry Potter I would say Sirius or Hermione, though in fanfiction land their characters get so messed up it is not even funny.
Squid? Hmm. What to do with this...I got it. Deep fry it and have lunch. Just not the suckers since they taste like rubber. Why I ever thought a deep fried ring would be an onion ring is beyond me.
Forgot two other aspects of fanon that I consider myself a part of Earth-616 and Earth-199999, i.e., Marvel's Main Continuity and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
As a welcome gift, here you can have this replica of the One Ring that allows you to teleport once a day!
(Disclaimer: Not resposible for any missing body parts, due to misuse of this article.)
I do not know if it is the craziest, you have not seen the insanity of Oilyur...you know I now realize I cannot recite the name of that realm while being in polite company. Thankfully that foul hack-job of a Meta-Parody-Thing, will never see the light of day. I mean the main character did kind of break out and kill the author while he was writing the story. That was a strange story that is best to remain buried.
Also thanks. A teleporting One Ring what could possibly go wrong?
Welcome, I hope your time here is splendid. as it is customary to give gifts to the shiny newbies, I gift you a State Alchemist's Watch!
(I'm a bit of a newbie myself, also from TV Tropes.)
The real question is it a regular State Alchemist's Watch or is it of the sealed variety? No matter, if it is sealed it will still make a nice paper weight. And if it is not sealed, I am of the opinion that a man can never have too many watches. Thank you kindly.
It is always good to be watchful.
If you crush hard enough.
But nevermind that.
Here have a lemon pie and some mixed nuts.
Mmm. Lemony. Wait that may have come out wrong. Right, scratch that. Lemon pie is good. Lemon pie is my friend. Wait this seems to be coming out wrong again. Thank you! There that is what I was going for.
And hopefully there are no walnuts in those mixed nuts. Because I am deathly allergic to something that does not include walnuts. I just do not much care for them.
