It Could Be So Easy: Mathematical Solutions To Social Problems

The Romans built architectural marvels with nothing but basic trig and muscle, while modern engineers can't get through the day without their software crashing. Nothing says engineering evolution like going from "I'll eyeball this aqueduct with some rope and a plumb bob" to "Please don't update Windows during my rendering." The most sophisticated Roman calculation was probably "this angle looks about right" and yet their structures are still standing 2000 years later. Meanwhile, I just lost 3 hours of work because AutoCAD decided to have an existential crisis.

The social distancing diagram shows four people positioned in a square, each 6 feet apart, creating perfect right triangles. Meanwhile, Pythagoras is having an absolute breakdown because the hypotenuse between diagonal people would be 8.5 feet, not 6 feet as labeled. The mathematical inconsistency has sent him into a theorem-induced rage while modern scientists attempt to restrain him. Classic case of ancient Greek mathematician vs. pandemic graphics department.

Ever notice how mathematicians judge you based on how you calculate π? This alignment chart is mathematical gatekeeping at its finest! From the righteous "lawful good" infinite series (for those who enjoy suffering through 1000 terms) to the chaotic evil "π = 5" (basically mathematical terrorism). My personal favorite is the "chaotic good" approach—dropping sticks randomly and counting crossings. Nothing says "I respect mathematics but refuse to be controlled by it" like calculating π via glorified toothpick tossing. Engineers sitting in the "neutral evil" corner with π = 4 are just waiting for the building to collapse, while physics teachers everywhere defend "lawful neutral" π = √g because apparently gravity should determine geometry.

The mathematical pun here is working on multiple levels. Seven contains the letters "even" despite being an odd number (7). In mathematics, even numbers are divisible by 2 (like 2, 4, 6), while odd numbers aren't. So yes, technically it is odd that "seven" contains "even." Just like how it's suspicious that the word "monosyllabic" has five syllables. Mathematicians secretly love these linguistic paradoxes while pretending to care only about numbers. We keep a collection of them in the department break room next to the expired coffee.

The geometry gang's all here! This meme brilliantly captures the hierarchy of regular polygons that can tessellate (completely cover a plane without gaps). The fierce hexagon and triangle dragons look down on their simple square sibling who's just happy to be included in the tiling party! 😂 What makes this extra hilarious for math nerds is that only these three regular polygons can perfectly tile a plane. Hexagons are often considered the "superior" shape in nature (just ask bees about their honeycombs), triangles are the structural MVPs, while squares are... well, just squares doing their best! The derpy square dragon is mathematical perfection!

The ultimate engineer's passive-aggressive mug! That diagram is a control systems feedback loop saying "If I wanted your input F(s), it would be factored into my system." The transfer function shows that input A(s) goes through controller G(s) to produce output X(s), with feedback H(s) creating signal B(s) - but there's no pathway for external input F(s) to influence the system! It's basically the mathematical way of saying "nobody asked for your opinion." Engineers will silently sip from this during meetings while their colleagues ramble on with unsolicited advice.