Assumptions Memes

Posts tagged with Assumptions

That'd Be Too Easy
Physics Science Academia Engineering
1 day ago 4.3K views 0 shares
That'd Be Too Easy
The physics textbook vs. real world showdown! Physicists start by "simplifying" problems: ignore friction, air resistance, pretend objects are perfect spheres, no internal resistance, no energy loss, and round gravity to a neat g=10 m/s². Then they wonder why their calculations don't match reality. It's like building a swimming pool model while pretending water doesn't exist. The purple Teletubby-looking character represents the idealized physics world, cheerfully explaining to confused students why their lab results are "wrong." Welcome to physics, where reality is just an inconvenient obstacle to beautiful equations!

When Math Problems Cut Deep
Math Academia
3 days ago 4.2K views 0 shares
When Math Problems Cut Deep
The eternal battle between linear and non-linear thinking! The teacher expects the answer to be 20 minutes (assuming 10 min per cut), but our green monster student realizes it's actually 15 minutes. Why? Because Marie needs 2 cuts to make 3 pieces, not 3 cuts! It's a classic rate problem that trips up even seasoned problem-solvers. The key insight: count the cuts, not the pieces. For n pieces, you need (n-1) cuts. The student's logic is flawless - if 10 minutes = 1 cut (creating 2 pieces), then 2 cuts (creating 3 pieces) would take 20 minutes. But wait! The original problem stated 10 minutes for the WHOLE JOB of creating 2 pieces, not per cut! This is why engineers triple-check their assumptions before building bridges. One wrong assumption and suddenly your Mars orbiter is playing hide-and-seek with the Martian surface!