Belum. Trims. A Rusli 6 Agu 99 At 09:12 PM 8/6/99 +0700, you wrote: >Sent: Friday, August 06, 1999 3:06 PM > > >The great logician Bertrand Russell (or was it A.N. Whitehead?) >once claimed that he could prove anything if given that 1+1=1. > So one day, some smarty-pants asked him, "Ok. Prove that >you're the Pope." > He thought for a while and proclaimed, "I am one. The Pope >is one. Therefore, the Pope and I are one." >---------------------------------------------------------------------------- > >A team of engineers were required to measure the height of a flag >pole. They only had a measuring tape, and were getting quite >frustrated trying to keep the tape along the pole. It kept falling >down, etc. > >A mathematician comes along, finds out their problem, and proceeds to >remove the pole from the ground and measure it easily. > >When he leaves, one engineer says to the other: "Just like a >mathematician! We need to know the height, and he gives us the >length!" >---------------------------------------------------------------------------- > >Einstein dies and goes to heaven only to be informed that his room is >not yet ready. "I hope you will not mind waiting in a dormitory. We >are very sorry, but it's the best we can do and you will have to share >the room with others." he is told by the doorman (say his name is >Pete). Einstein says that this is no problem at all and that there is >no need to make such a great fuss. So Pete leads him to the dorm. >They enter and Albert is introduced to all of the present >inhabitants. "See, Here is your first room mate. He has an IQ of >180!" >"Why that's wonderful!" Says Albert. "We can discuss mathematics!" >"And here is your second room mate. His IQ is 150!" >"Why that's wonderful!" Says Albert. "We can discuss physics!" >"And here is your third room mate. His IQ is 100!" >"That Wonderful! We can discuss the latest plays at the theater!" >Just then another man moves out to capture Albert's hand and shake it. >"I'm your last room mate and I'm sorry, but my IQ is only 80." >Albert smiles back at him and says, "So, where to you think interest >rates are headed?" > >---------------------------------------------------------------------- >The following problem can be solved either the easy way or the hard way. > >Two trains 200 miles apart are moving toward each other; each one is >going at a speed of 50 miles per hour. A fly starting on the front of >one of them flies back and forth between them at a rate of 75 miles >per hour. It does this until the trains collide and crush the fly to >death. What is the total distance the fly has flown? > >The fly actually hits each train an infinite number of times before it >gets crushed, and one could solve the problem the hard way with pencil >and paper by summing an infinite series of distances. The easy way >is as follows: Since the trains are 200 miles apart and each train is >going 50 miles an hour, it takes 2 hours for the trains to collide. >Therefore the fly was flying for two hours. Since the fly was flying >at a rate of 75 miles per hour, the fly must have flown 150 miles. >That's all there is to it. > >When this problem was posed to John von Neumann, he immediately >replied, "150 miles." > >"It is very strange," said the poser, "but nearly everyone tries to >sum the infinite series." > >"What do you mean, strange?" asked Von Neumann. "That's how I did it!" > >--------------------------------------------------------------------------- >One day a farmer called up an engineer, a physicist, and a mathematician >and asked them to fence of the largest possible area with the least >amount of fence. The engineer made the fence in a circle and >proclaimed that he had the most efficient design. The physicist made >a long, straight line and proclaimed 'We can assume the length is >infinite...' and pointed out that fencing off half of the Earth was >certainly a more efficient way to do it. The Mathematician just >laughed at them. He built a tiny fence around himself and said 'I >declare myself to be on the outside.' >---------------------------------------------------------------------- >Enrico Fermi, while studying in college, was bored by his math >classes. He walked up to the professor and said, "My classes are too >easy!" The professor looked at him, and said, "Well, I'm sure you'll >find this interesting." Then the professor copied 9 problems from a >book to a paper and gave the paper to Fermi. A month later, the >professor ran into Fermi, "So how are you doing with the problems I >gave you?" "Oh, they are very hard. I only managed to solve 6 of >them." The professor was visibly shocked, "What!? But those are >unsolved problems!" > >-------------------------------------------------------------- >A mathematician and a physicist were asked the following question: > > Suppose you walked by a burning house and saw a hydrant and > a hose not connected to the hydrant. What would you do? > >P: I would attach the hose to the hydrant, turn on the water, and put out > the fire. > >M: I would attach the hose to the hydrant, turn on the water, and put out > the fire. > >Then they were asked this question: > > Suppose you walked by a house and saw a hose connected to > a hydrant. What would you do? > >P: I would keep walking, as there is no problem to solve. > >M: I would disconnect the hose from the hydrant and set the house on fire, > reducing the problem to a previously solved form. > > > A Rusli.-
