How Do You Care for a Gifted Physicist?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the humorous and whimsical care of a "gifted physicist," presented as a playful concept rather than a serious inquiry. Participants share lighthearted suggestions on how to interact with and maintain this fictional pet, exploring various humorous attributes and behaviors associated with physicists.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant humorously expresses confusion about how to care for a physicist, asking about their dietary preferences and interaction styles.
  • Another participant jokingly compares their physicist to a malfunctioning toy, suggesting a lack of understanding of the concept.
  • Some participants propose that physicists enjoy being scratched in specific areas and can go without food if engaged with challenging problems.
  • There are playful suggestions about the dietary habits of physicists, including frozen broccoli and coffee as sustenance.
  • Several participants engage in banter about the differences between physicists, engineers, and economists, often using humor to highlight stereotypes.
  • Some participants share thoughts on naming the physicist and the implications of ownership, with one noting that physicists may come with their own names.
  • There are humorous exchanges about the perceived reliability and characteristics of various STEM-related figures, including mathematicians and engineers.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

The discussion remains largely unresolved, with participants sharing competing humorous views on the care and characteristics of physicists, engineers, and economists without reaching a consensus.

Contextual Notes

Participants express various assumptions about the nature of physicists as pets, with humor influencing the discussion. The conversation reflects a playful exploration of stereotypes rather than serious claims.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in humor related to STEM fields, playful banter about academic stereotypes, or those looking for lighthearted community interactions may find this discussion entertaining.

Math Is Hard
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ok, so my friends gave me the greatest Christmas gift ever - a physicist! But the darn instruction manual is all in Japanese! He's so adorable, and very interactive - more than I expected - but I have no idea how to care for him or what to feed him. Any suggestions? What do they like to eat? What makes them happy? Do they like to be scratched on the belly, or just behind the ears?
 
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Heck if I know. Mine is like a damn defective Furrbie. I can tell you where NOT to insert the batteries though.
 
That sounds really cool.

What's it like? Pictures?
 
I'll send pics soon. Thank heavens it came pre-assembled! I am so useless with those diagrams!
 
I'm surprised you assembled a pre-assembled toy!

I would have got lost. I'm not good with toys, unless its Lego's.
 
Do you suppose I should try to learn its language? (It's very sophisticated and mathematical and I don't even know if I could learn its language. :confused: ) It responds pretty well when I just babble and coo at it in English, and maybe that's enough for basic communication?
 
Don't worry, anything makes physicists happy.

If you hit them in the head with a brick, they're happy kinetic energy is only equal to 1/2 mv^2.
 
In the last survey I saw, 9 out of 10 physicists preferred to have their bellies rubbed and scratched behind the ears. They did have some odd dietary requirements though.
 
do you think he would like frozen brocolli?
 
  • #10
Math Is Hard said:
do you think he would like frozen brocolli?
Frozen broccoli was at the top of the list.
 
  • #11
Will it be frightened if I try to kiss it? How long should I wait?
 
  • #12
Ooh, how fun, a physicist for Christmas! It's what every girl wants nowadays, and you actually got one! I hear they like being rubbed on the belly, really low on the belly. As for food, that's easy. They can go days without eating if you give them a really good problem to solve, just provide coffee ad libitum and that will cover the drinking part. They require very little maintenance, though they might bite if you try to take that napkin covered in equations away from them at the end of meals. Just let them keep the napkins, and everything will be okay. They are quite wonderful to have around, I'm so glad you got one for Christmas! :biggrin:
 
  • #13
Moonbear, thanks so much for the advice. Ohmigosh - it's so cute! It keeps trying to do little experiments. Should I let it roam around the apartment? Maybe I should get a little terrarium for it that's like its lab at the university.
 
  • #14
Okay, I'm a little lost...What's a physicist? A new toy like furby? :-p :redface:
 
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  • #15
Yeah - almost exactly the same thing, actually. Just less marketing involved.
 
  • #16
This has got to be politically incorrect, or something.

Anyway, you can also get the action figure but he's called an Engineer.
 
  • #17
Did you name it yet? :biggrin:

The action figure is really pretty good too. But my experience is they're great for a short time, but don't last long. Physicists really last.
 
  • #18
I thought if you took the Physicist and put his head up his butt you got an Engineer.
 
  • #19
Ivan Seeking said:
This has got to be politically incorrect, or something.

Anyway, you can also get the action figure but he's called an Engineer.
I was planning on getting one of those too. I really, really, really want the Chronos model - but they are almost all sold out - in very short supply this year.
Also, I am afraid he might beat up my physicist. I have heard that Engineers tend to be more aggressive and surly, so I don't know if they make good pets??
 
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  • #20
tribdog said:
I thought if you took the Physicist and put his head up his butt you got an Engineer.
oh, mercy - yer killin' me, trib! :smile:
but do you really want to start world war 3 here?
 
  • #21
oooh, golly by gosh! I want one too. So if I go to the store asking for one, they'll know right?

What are good names for a physicist?
 
  • #22
Actually, the physicist already came with a name when I took it out of the box, but, ironically, it had the SAME name as the astronomer I got for Christmas last year (which was a complete piece of junk that I have since thrown in the trash!)
I suggest that you make up your own name for your pet. :biggrin:
 
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  • #23
or don't worry about a name. I've heard that they either come before you want them or they don't come at all.
 
  • #24
tribdog said:
I thought if you took the Physicist and put his head up his butt you got an Engineer.
It's like a Transformer or a GoBot
 
  • #25
All I got for Christmas was an economist :frown:
 
  • #26
Brad_Ad23 said:
All I got for Christmas was an economist :frown:
now that's comedy!
 
  • #27
tribdog said:
I thought if you took the Physicist and put his head up his butt you got an Engineer.
Correction, an engineer is a physicist whose head has been successfully extracted by a proctologist.
 
  • #28
I've heard bad things about engineers.

DeadWolfe said:
I don't go near engineers, because they smell of booze and modernism, but I'm told that they use log to mean log to the base 10.
 
  • #29
I just hope you got a receipt with your Physicist.
They talk a good game, but not much action.
 
  • #30
tribdog said:
I thought if you took the Physicist and put his head up his butt you got an Engineer.
No. Just put the batteries in, when it starts working it's an engineer.
 

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