What is the newest installment of 'Random Thoughts' on Physics Forums?

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SUMMARY

The forum discussion revolves around the latest installment of the "Random Thoughts" thread on Physics Forums, highlighting various topics including critiques of documentary programming on the History Channel and National Geographic's recent ownership change. Participants express concerns about the quality of content in documentaries and share personal anecdotes, such as a humorous incident involving a clogged kitchen extractor fan. The conversation also touches on mathematical discussions regarding prime numbers and cultural observations about societal norms and language use.

PREREQUISITES
  • Familiarity with documentary programming and its impact on public knowledge.
  • Basic understanding of prime numbers and mathematical proofs.
  • Awareness of cultural commentary and societal norms.
  • Knowledge of language variations and their implications in communication.
NEXT STEPS
  • Explore the impact of media ownership on documentary content quality.
  • Research advanced mathematical concepts related to prime numbers.
  • Investigate cultural differences in language use and societal expectations.
  • Learn about the effects of solar irradiation in different geographical locations.
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for media analysts, educators in mathematics, cultural commentators, and anyone interested in the intersection of media, society, and education.

  • #8,131
Mayhem said:
For those unaware, there is a meme that people who pretend to be smart (/r/iamverysmart) almost always state "quantum mechanics" as an interest.

NO ONE WHO ACTUALLY STUDIES QUANTUM MECHANICS FEELS SMART STUDYING QUANTUM MECHANICS.
And if you think you understand QM, you don't understand QM. - Feynman
 
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  • #8,132
Ivan Seeking said:
And if you think you understand QM, you don't understand QM. - Feynman
If your solutions seems elegant and intuitive, you definitely made a mistake.
 
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  • #8,133
Mayhem said:
If your solutions seems elegant and intuitive, you definitely made a mistake.
I remember my first senior QM course so very well. I would read the chapter and sit through the lecture and it all made perfect sense. Then when I got to the homework problems, I thought I must have studied the wrong chapter. :olduhh:
 
  • #8,134
So, what is it with the double negatives here. I don't understand it (never studied it beyond the most basic). Does that imply I actually understand it? Looks like an Abbot and Costello routine:
Abbot: I am in First Base and I don't understand QM.
Costello: No, I thinks I understands QM and I is in Second.
Ebonics Translate: You mean I be in Second and I be not understand QM?
 
  • #8,135
WWGD said:
So, what is it with the double negatives here. I don't understand it (never studied it beyond the most basic). Does that imply I actually understand it? Looks like an Abbot and Costello routine:
Abbot: I am in First Base and I don't understand QM.
Costello: No, I thinks I understands QM and I is in Second.
Ebonics Translate: You mean I be in Second and I be not understand QM?
Generally, you can no longer conceptualize the subject. It becomes purely mathematical.

That's why philosophers have been arguing about the implications for almost a century now.
 
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  • #8,136
Mayhem said:
If your solutions seems elegant and intuitive, you definitely made a mistake.
And if they make sense when you've been drinking, they probably don't make sense.
 
  • #8,137
When you take an exam in it, if you get more than one right, that's an F --because you seemingly understood something.
 
  • #8,138
Citrin tastes like soap...or so the story goes (does to me anyway); this has been "cited" as an explanation of the "aversion" to citrin spiced cuisine among an unknown sized group of people/gourmets/gourmands. Just did a little browsing, and could find no mention of this factoid/folklore/old wive's tale/"everybody knows that" ancient common knowledge.

Was in pursuit of an explanation for the gasoline/kerosene/coal oil flavor of artificial "sweeteners."
 
  • #8,139
Ivan Seeking said:
And if you think you understand QM, you don't understand QM. - Feynman
an_i_think_i_can_safely_say_that_nobody_un_lz6oe44.jpg
 
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  • #8,140
1632534568709.png
 
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  • #8,141
Woht?
 
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  • #8,142
1632536014132.png
 
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  • #8,143
Ivan Seeking said:
Even Physics got me a date once. I was 19 years old and living in a cheap apartment with a friend. While sitting by the closed pool reading a physics book, a beautiful young Mexican woman who could barely speak any English, came up to me and indicated that she wanted to know what I'm reading. I said hello and showed her the page I was reading, which of course was filled with equations. She looked at me wide-eyed and said in broken English, "Ooooooh, you must be smart!" We dated for the next several months even though we could barely talk to each other. But we always managed to find something to do. LOL

Only as I found her climbing out my window one morning did I learn that she lived in our apartment complex with her boyfriend - the dangerous-looking biker dude.

Ironically, her name was Lourdes.
Yes:
 
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  • #8,144
Ok, Glue on Nails. Not Gluon Nails. Now it makes sense.
 
  • #8,145
Some nails have a coating of plastic that melts from the heat generated when they are hammered in.
Its like hot glue gun glue.
 
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  • #8,146
BillTre said:
Some nails have a coating of plastic that melts from the heat generated when they are hammered in.
Its like hot glue gun glue.
Hammering and Scolding-hot glue? Yikes.
 
  • #8,147
Reminiscent of spin welding, which is used for metals as well as plastics.

Spin welding is used on the thousands of alignment pins used for many parts for commercial aircraft assemblies.
 
  • #8,148
Ok, Cost function, not Cos(t). That helps.
 
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  • #8,149
WWGD said:
Ok, Glue on Nails. Not Gluon Nails. Now it makes sense.
I was concerned when I first heard about Nuclear Visine. Radioactive eye drops didn't seem like a good idea. So you can imagine my relief when I saw an ad for New Clear Visine.
 
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  • #8,150
Ivan Seeking said:
I was concerned when I first heard about Nuclear Visine. Radioactive eye drops didn't seem like a good idea. So you can imagine my relief when I saw an ad for New Clear Visine.
It seems that some people are afraid of nuclear magnetic resonance imaging.
 
  • #8,151
Keith_McClary said:
It seems that some people are afraid of nuclear magnetic resonance imaging.
That's why they changed the name to MRI for medical scans - Magnet Resonance Imaging. I was working on NMR imaging scanners when they first came out. But they soon became MRI.
 
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  • #8,152
Ivan Seeking said:
That's why they changed the name to MRI for medical scans. I was working on NMR imagine scanners when they first came out. But they soon became MRI.
And I hear your take was glowing . Just like with Homer ;).
 
  • #8,153
The line " What are you wearing" does not seem as effective in person.
 
  • #8,154
WWGD said:
And I hear your take was glowing . Just like with Homer ;).
No but it did nearly take off my arm once. Someone had put a regular metal chair onboard that looked just like the stainless steel chairs. I slung my arm through and walked back to make an adjustment at the magnet. By the time I felt the tug of the magnetic field on the chair, I was airborne.

1632946744575.png
 
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  • #8,156
Ouch! I got locked out of a Python Jupyter file. I wrote a simple * algorithm to spit out all primes between 2 and10000. It had an incorrect loop and looped for who knows how long. I saved it , including the output repeated (looped) who knows how many times, to the tune of ending up being 99MB in size, which is larger than Jupyter Notebook can handle without ending on its knees. Still buffering after 45 minutes. May have to try to open as a .txt file or something.* And incorrect, obviously
 
  • #8,158
 
  • #8,160
Is it a coincidence thin Germans I know are called Dieter. You diet, you lose weight. And some mention stays at a Gymnasium as well.
 

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