{"id":176675,"date":"2014-12-17T05:01:52","date_gmt":"2014-12-17T05:01:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2014\/12\/17\/i-figure-growing-up-watching-red-dwarf-with\/"},"modified":"2014-12-17T05:01:52","modified_gmt":"2014-12-17T05:01:52","slug":"i-figure-growing-up-watching-red-dwarf-with","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2014\/12\/17\/i-figure-growing-up-watching-red-dwarf-with\/","title":{"rendered":"i figure growing up watching Red dwarf… with also a healthy does of classic doctor who and Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy explains a LOT about my personality and sense of humor."},"content":{"rendered":"

phipiohsum475<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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See, my parents and my exposure was so normal as a child\/adolescent. (Well, I saw a ton of cartoons as a teenager, and I\u2019ve loved certain animation ever since) But that aside, my true geek side has really evolved with my husband. I had the inherent math geekiness (I frequently spout off on how cool Euclid\u2019s fifth postulate is, and if you\u2019d like to know, just ask *wink wink*), and the sci-fi\/british humor came later.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I figure I can point to that fact that my mom pinned celery to my shirt and knitted the Tom Baker scarf and dragged me and my brother (and dad went more willingly) to a Doctor Who convention when I was seven is the reason for everything. lol. That was like, 1986. I keep hoping my Dad has photos somewhere. All I really remember of the convention was seeing some of the doctors from a distance (mom and dad didn\u2019t want to wait in a long autograph line with small kids), and a mockup of the Tardis controls and a very very convincing K9 running around.<\/p>\n

Course now my Mom says I like Doctor Who more then her, lol.<\/p>\n

I got her into Sherlock though, I think that\u2019s a fair trade.<\/p>\n

\"image\"<\/p>\n

So what\u2019s this about Euclid?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Ooo! Euclid! I\u2019m so glad you asked!<\/p>\n

So, Euclid developed these guidelines and definitions for geometry, the first five of which read:<\/p>\n

1. A straight line segment can be drawn joining any two points.<\/p>\n

2. Any straight line segment can be extended indefinitely in a straight line.<\/p>\n

3. Given any straight line segment, a circle can be drawn having the segment as radius and one endpoint as center.<\/p>\n

4. All Right Angles are congruent.<\/p>\n

5. If two lines are drawn which intersect a third in such a way that the sum of the inner angles on one side is less than two Right Angles, then the two lines inevitably must intersect each other on that side if extended far enough.<\/p>\n

So you might be able to see that the first 4 are super simple. Almost obviously so (and if you\u2019re not sure why, I can reword it to make it more clear). But that last one is quite complex.<\/p>\n

So mathematicians for centuries<\/strong> <\/em>tried to prove the 5th by using the first 4. What ended up happening was that they discovered that after 28 theorems (or proofs, like showing you can construct an equilateral triangle using a straight line by using a compass [a device for making circles, not the directional tool]), you either have to use the 5th guideline, or you don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

If you use the 5th guideline, then you continue into Euclidean geometry, which is what many of us learn in high school. But, if you don\u2019t<\/strong>, one of two things can happen.<\/p>\n

To understand why, know that that complicated 5th guideline is also equivalent to the parallel postulate, which says \u201cGiven a line and a point, there is one and only one line through the point that is parallel to the line.\u201d\"image\"<\/p>\n

So if this isn\u2019t true, then either there are:<\/p>\n

NO lines through the point parallel to the original line, or<\/p>\n

INFINITELY MANY lines through the point parallel to the original line.<\/p>\n

The first, (no lines parallel), leads to spherical geometry, which can be thought of as the geometry of the Earth. Think about the lines of longitude on a sphere, those are lines on a sphere (lines of latitude are NOT geometric lines). If you pick a point, say the North Pole, then every line of longitude runs through that point, thus none are parallel):<\/p>\n

\"image\"<\/p>\n

The second, (infinitely many), leads to a special type of geometry that is speculated by some to be the geometry of the universe, called hyperbolic geometry. An example of this is called a Poincare sphere, which is a fascinating construct in which parallel lines look like:<\/p>\n

\"image\"<\/p>\n

And each geometry is completely valid and comes with its own entire rulebook.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s amazing. <\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s one of my favorite things of all time.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Wow<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yeah, shellshocked is normally the expression I get in real life, too.<\/p>\n

I could talk about math for *hours*, it\u2019s one of my all time favorite topics!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I\u2019m shit at math. But I find it kinda fascinating. Like there\u2019s just something satisfying about getting to the right answer and how it can explain things.<\/p>\n

I just don\u2019t have the brain for it I guess.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I am fairly hard wired for it, that\u2019s for sure. I always hated English classes, because you can give the same paper to four different professors and get four different grades. And I say this as someone who writes fics in her spare time.<\/p>\n

I am a statistician, but I try to keep up with mathematics through reading. Once of my most recent faves is \u2018The Simpsons and their Mathematical Secrets\u2019 which talks about all the hidden math jokes in The Simpsons and Futurama, since a good portion of their writing staff have advanced STEM degrees.<\/p>\n

Dimensionality is especially fascinating, and there is an old book that is both a criticism of Victorian England AND a exploration of the fourth dimension by envisioning the third dimension from a second dimensional being\u2019s viewpoint. It\u2019s called Flatland.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d recommend both, if you like the idea of math, but not the actual solving of equations and doing calculations.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I\u2019ve def heard of Flatland but I haven\u2019t read it. I took a women in technology course a couple years ago that was pretty interesting. All the ways girls are subtly (or not so subtly) discouraged from STEM. I\u2019m a girl who loves sci fi and thought about astronomy as a career, but always figured I wasn\u2019t the right kind of smart for it.<\/p>\n

Failed chemistry twice too.<\/p>\n

So yeah, I\u2019d rather write papers. Which is why I was a history major and switched to film and media. At this point though I just want to get out of customer service.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

What is unfortunate is how they teach math topics at school. If you make it far enough in high school math, most people will either favor algebra or geometry. The obnoxious thing is that they are both sides of the same coin, and anything you can do in algebra you can do in geometry.<\/p>\n

So if someone favors geometry, there is actually a way to teach algebra using geometric skills. I feel like a lot of people are being overlooked, or feel they \u2018aren\u2019t good at math\u2019 simply because of how it\u2019s taught.<\/p>\n

But yeah, customer service is awful. I worked at video rental store for a few years in college. People in general are awful. It\u2019s why I prefer numbers \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I like people well enough. But I\u2019ve been at my present job 2\u00a01\/2 years. I want to actually get paid to write. Or that\u2019s the dream anyway. I sometimes wonder if things would have been different if school had gone better for me. I was that classic \u201csmart but bored\u201d kid. Solid c\u2019s most of the way though, got kicked from honors English for having a C, yet almost had a perfect verbal SAT (720). Didn\u2019t go to college right after high school (military a couple years) and now I\u2019m that 35 year old stuck in a dead end job and going to school online.<\/p>\n

Parents used to yell at me about the grades since I was \u201csmarter then this.\u201d Since that always helps.<\/p>\n

Took me a long time to accept that I was smart anyway, after the bullying when I was young, if you want the sob story.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yeah, it can be hard to be smart and uninterested. I was in constant trouble, since I had a major attitude problem (why I DIDNT take AP English [hated the teacher] or joined the military, despite how badly my mother wanted me to – she thinks the navy is the best thing ever). I was constantly being told off by teachers, or mouthing off.<\/p>\n

I still have issues playing \u2018office politics\u2019. I was fortunate enough to have a lot of support to go to college right away (scholarships, and my parents had saved some), and even more fortunate to find a job using my degree within a year of graduation. It was hard, don\u2019t get me wrong, at one point I was living in a campground, but in this economy, I still consider myself fortunate. Over the last 5 years, I\u2019ve managed to create my own niche in my organization, and although it doesn\u2019t pay well (we still qualify for government assistance), I at least like what I do, and it\u2019s helping to further my career.<\/p>\n

I still need to go back for my masters; I\u2019m one of those people who believes that it is never too late to go back to school. Long term goal is to get my doctorate, just because I know I could, and I think I\u2019d regret not trying.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yeah and I\u2019m in school now (arizona state university online) and work full time and school full time is hard, but given how hard it is to find a job without \/some\/ kind of degree, I figure it\u2019ll be worth it.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Oooo. Full time work AND school? That\u2019s rough. I did that a semester in undergrad, and it sank me into a crazy deep depression. I\u2019ve since realized my own limitations. When I go to grad school, it\u2019ll have to be part time (especially since I have 3 kids).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

No kids helps me I\u2019m sure. My depression almost did me in last year, but I\u2019ve got a better handle on it this year (yay finally being on meds). I think it\u2019s great you\u2019ve got a job you enjoy and sounds like a pretty great family.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yeah, it\u2019s not too bad. I\u2019ve been having one of the worst falls in my life, but somehow, when you lump the positives together like that, it helps some. And my husband got a call for a job interview tomorrow, so that really improves the mood around the house. Perhaps there is hope for 2015\u2026<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Def hoping your 15 is better and good luck with the job hunt. I know that’s tough. To bring it back to fandom…I switched to film and media BECAUSE of the fandom. Because people seem to like my stories. And I like that we have this place and we can talk to one another and share.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: merindab: phipiohsum475: See, my parents and my exposure was so normal as a child\/adolescent. (Well, I saw a ton of cartoons as a teenager, and I\u2019ve loved certain animation ever since) But that aside, my true geek side has really evolved with … <\/p>\n

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