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Comments
In what may be related, I'm growing an interesting in X-Com again.
On math stuff, this time it's about number theory. When some lay math intetrnet discussion starts getting philosophical about whether math is "true" or what, someone will bring up modular arithmetic as a different "mathematical system" and something like "2+2=0" (in modulo 4) as a result that contradicts the 2+2=4 that we're used to, but...
1. The basis for modular arithmetic is the same math we're used to, only that it overloads the = symbol (when not using the mod ≡ thing) for a different equivalence relation about whether this divides this other thing. It's called "congruence" after all.
2. 2+2=4 mod k for any k, it's not any more a contradiction to 2+2=4 than "2+2=3+1" is.
Also, for all your D&D needs there's a company producing a Beast of Wadowice model. In case your game had not enough Pope The Pole-themed monsters.
I think I can still do systems of ordinary lineal differential equations, and I think the stuff I self-studied (discrete math, data structures and algorithms) is recent enough that I think I can pick it back up, but clearly if I don't practice that stuff I'll lose it. We all know I won't get back into it though, if I do then I won't have the time/dedication to get back into all the stuff I should be getting back into.
wtf
As a pastime, once in a while I like to grab a piece of paper and a pen and try to solve some simple mathematical problem. Sort of like doodling, but with math. And then I feel stupid for being unable to solve it. Sometimes I give up and search for a solution online. It hurts a bit less when the solution turns out to be some specific named function made up for purpose of there being a solution to the problem.
Related: I eventually learned that there's a solution to the integral of (e to the (x squared)). But it's not actually algebraic; it's literally just a special function defined as the solution to that, which just turns out to be useful for other applications.
Well, okay, not exactly that. But the error function is just a constant times said integral.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Error_function
I'll never not find surprising that the error function, being (almost) the integral of something as ubiquitous as a standard gaussian distribution is something that gets defined into existence.
Also, I think one could use subscripts and superscripts on IJBM before, did something change?
Eh, in general? It's usually something related to celestial or basic quantum mechanics. You know, as long as there's a simple equation I can tinker with for fun. As far as I can say, when I stuff it into WolframAlpha the result has either "Legendre" or "elliptical" in its name.
Also, I've had a cold of some sort of another since, like, two months? Guess that's the price of being alive after thirty. At this point I don't even feel like doing anything with it anymore.
Also this.
And I imagine you were thinking of that:
On relates news, I've begun playing online chess (on chess.com). Man, I'm so rusty, I think my Elo will sit at somewhere in the 400s, my only victory was with the Scholar's Mate. Also, I can't spend more than ~20 seconds on a turno without feeling like I'm wasting my time, so I've only played Blitz Chess so far.
I've sometimes wondered what's the name of the area of math for the things that come Up all the time while working with materials in 3DCG, sounds like it'd be useful. Geometry and linear algebra are obviously relevant but insufficient, and topology is not quite like It.
Tangentially related to chess, recently I've been browsing through some M:tG cards online. For a while I felt picking it up again, but I don't have enough free time on my hands to plan ahead an online game. (Also known as the "Mooom, I can't 'just pause it'!" problem.) My old buddies are planning a meet-up, so I might bring in my old deck, just in case.
My previous knowledge on (not necessarily discrete) differential geometry comes from this.
I now know what Hitler meant when he said that topology had too many definitions.
Also I forgot much of what I learned in vector calculus classes that is now coming up, stuff involving differentials (I thought mathematicians disliked treating dx and such as variables, but differential geometry is full of them, hence the name I guess).
^^ FWIW it was a reference to this.
Speaking of German things, apparently there are huge gaps in what I know of it, because I only recently learned that West Berlin was an exclave in Eastern Germany.
Sorry guys this is hilarious.
I have many updates but I'd like to go into detail on each and I have absolutely no idea where to start and some stuff happened ages ago so I don't even feel like talking about it anymore.
I guess most importantly I got a promotion at work a few weeks ago (a month now?) so now I have like 3 seconds of free time a day (funnily enough you guys were the first people I wanted to tell which was quite odd).
Also there was once this guy called Jack Murphy and the internet was not his friend (tl;dr, he was like last month's Andrew Tate except he was also very into making adult content with his girlfriend and this was discovered and it was super, super embarrassing).
Woah. Congrats!
a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one
(edit: also, I have missed the story of who this whole Andrew Tate guy is, at this point I have at best a vague impression of what it's about, and I feel like actively searching for it would be like giving undue importance to some internet-famous moron. I mean, I wouldn't mind if somebody gave me the short version, but to actively search for it now feels aaawkwaaard.)
Anyways he went around just talking in a vaguely PUA and like... the way you aren't allowed to talk any more in public company in general but he became super big on TikTok and so the regular TikTok/YouTube/etc crowd got him banned from everywhere. Anyways he didn't matter to anybody not a teenage boy until last week so I mean now that he's gone not much has changed.
Also (also? he ran what was essentially an e-brothel out of some Eastern European country which may be how he got the money and stuff he was showing off in his videos and at least two of the girls accused him of kidnapping but these allegations seem to be unfounded.
Despite listening to somebody who holds Peterson in high regard for a long time (how embarrassing), I just never really got into his stuff and didn't buy his books or anything like that. Coincidentally whenever I hear him speak he seems to be going off on how some Disney movie is a moral allegory about something (Frozen, Pinocchio, Frozen again).
I was going to say "However Mikhaila was in Europe and Jordan wasn't" but he was actually in Europe at the time (2019?) for a tour and frankly if my daughter posted this on Instagram I'd high-tail it to wherever and separate them immediately. Apparently though their relationship died of natural causes, and from what I saw of some podcast with her dad and brother it seems like Jordan loves Mikhaila more than he does her brother Julian so their relationship is uh... fine?
Relatedly, Jordan does have Soviet Era artwork all over the Peterson family house because he wants it to remind him of something or was effective so I guess Mikhaila either rebelled or Jordan accidentally programmed "hot dudes and communism" into her psyche.
There is a lot more about these people that I know basically via osmosis and hit-pieces but that feels like enough for now. Though I find it relevant to point out that Jordan's wife didn't take his last name and though he's not like the hyper-trads you'll come across on the internet that's still pretty weird.
Also I have no idea what happened between that instagram post and Mikhaila marrying a whole different person and yet having only one child.
No, I'm not gonna give you any context.