Ontology Memes

The mathematical philosophy throwdown we never knew we needed! Someone boldly claims "0 isn't an integer" and chaos ensues. While most mathematicians would immediately say "of course zero is an integer" (it's literally in the definition), our philosophical friend goes full galaxy-brain suggesting zero is "not really a number but a state" and just "a definition of convenience without ontological grounding." This is like showing up to a basketball game and arguing that the hoop is just a social construct. Technically true? Maybe. Helpful for actually playing basketball? Not so much! 😂 The beauty here is watching someone try to sound profoundly intellectual while rejecting basic mathematical consensus. It's the mathematical equivalent of "but actually, cereal is soup" debates that happen at 3am in college dorms.

The age-old philosophical crisis that's caused more existential breakdowns than failed grant applications. Is math discovered or invented? Platonists sweat profusely while contemplating whether 2+2=4 existed before humans did. Meanwhile, formalists are smugly certain we just made it all up. Nothing like the mathematical foundations debate to turn a perfectly normal conference dinner into three hours of increasingly desperate hand gestures and napkin equations.