| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 450.1 | Oh, goodie, an easy one | CLT::YARBROUGH | | Mon Mar 10 1986 12:24 | 3 |
| Anything you choose. The statement "If false then A" is satisfied
by any statement A. Since 5/2=3 is false for any default notation,
A can be anything.
|
| 450.2 | an answer | AVANTI::OSMAN | Eric, Maynard Ma. USA, DTN 223-6664 | Mon Mar 10 1986 13:55 | 30 |
| Well, let's see.
5/2 = 3.
So,
5/3 = 2. (by some pattern I remember from grade VI !)
So,
4*5/3 = 4*2. (do same thing to both sides)
Hence,
20/3 = 8.
Is this what you're looking for ?
I'm not happy about it, though, by what Mr. Yarborough pointed out.
However, it sort of assumes "suppose 5/2 = 3 and the rest of the
universe is as we know it. What would 20/3 be ?" Such a qualification
might allow me to perform the steps I used, namely the grade VI
pattern and "multiplying both sides by the same thing", not to mention
the assumption that "*" produces the answers I gave.
But even that qualification doesn't get us out of trouble, since
if the rest of the universe is as we know it, we might as well just
skip all my steps and say 20/3 is what it always was.
/Eric
|
| 450.3 | Eric has the right idea. | KEEPER::KOSTAS | | Tue Mar 11 1986 00:57 | 21 |
| Eric is correct. The traditional answer is 8. You must make
proportional errors. Here is a real example: 1/2 of 5 Canadian
quards is 12 1/2 cups, which is very close to 3 of our quards.
If we introduce a factor m on the left hand side of the equation
and a factor n on the right side then we have:
(5/2)*m = 3*n
and seek for the proper number x,
(20/3)*m = x*n
and (20/3) / (5/2) = x/3
=> x = 8
Kostas G.
|
| 450.4 | Oh, my, I may have found a pigeon | METOO::YARBROUGH | | Tue Mar 11 1986 11:57 | 4 |
| Nonsense. If 5/2=3, then (5/2)*2=3*2=6, so 5=6, so 0=1, so 0=100.
I will therefore accept your answer as correct only if you will
give me $100 each time I offer you $0.00. That's fair, isn't it?
|
| 450.5 | The check is in the mail. | KEEPER::KOSTAS | | Wed Mar 12 1986 00:17 | 17 |
| More can be said upon this subject. It is one of the surprising
theorems, proved in the new symbolic logic, that from a false
assumption, any conclusion whatever, true or false, can be drawn
by legitimate reasoning.
The mathematician, Hardy, once made this statement at the Commons
Table at his university whereupon an incredulous Scotch Don cried
out:
"Nonsense! Four is six: prove I am the Pope."
Hardy then made the reply:
"Lets us see: 4 = 6, divide by 2, then 2 = 3, subtract 1
from each side, then 1 is 2. Now it is well known that you
and the Pope are 2, and therefore you and the Pope are One!"
|
| 450.6 | Seventeen | CLT::GILBERT | Juggler of Noterdom | Wed Mar 12 1986 03:00 | 4 |
| If 5/2 = 3, then 20/3 = 17. The simplest explanation of the premiss
is that '/' really denotes subtraction.
(BTW .5 is EXCELLENT! I'd never heard this before, and am still smiling)
|
| 450.7 | Seven! | EUCLID::MCKINLEY | | Wed Mar 12 1986 12:32 | 5 |
| Integer arithmetic!
5 / 2 = 2.5 = 3
20 / 3 = 6.7 = 7
:-)
|
| 450.8 | many answers possible | EAGLE1::BEST | R D Best, Systems architecture, I/O | Thu Apr 30 1987 18:34 | 11 |
| I got 8, but also wasn't happy. My problem is that given
5/2 = 3
I am immediately put on notice that one or more of the symbols 5, 2, /,
3 has some meaning other than the conventional. However, this doesn't
seem sufficient to tell me which symbols have a redefined meaning, so
I'm reduced to guessing. Without knowing the redefinition, I can't
unambiguously interpret '20' in the second part.
Interesting.
|