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From: meister@linus.UUCP (Phillip W. Servita)
Newsgroups: net.med,net.math
Subject: Re: The Perils of Nutrasweet: digits of precision
Message-ID: <509@linus.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 20-Aug-85 03:56:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: linus.509
Posted: Tue Aug 20 03:56:52 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 21-Aug-85 07:08:52 EDT
References: <771@burl.UUCP> <394@petrus.UUCP> <182@steinmetz.UUCP>
Reply-To: meister@linus.UUCP (Philip W. Servita)
Organization: The MITRE Corporation, Bedford, MA
Lines: 48
Xref: linus net.med:1927 net.math:1820

In article <402@phri.UUCP> roy@phri.UUCP (Roy Smith) writes:
>	This is getting rather off the point, but some of you might like
>this.  During one of my interviews for college, I was asked a typical
>stupid interview question: "What's the area of a table 3 meters wide by 4
>meters long?"  I poked around with various counter-probes like, "Do you
>mean the area of just the top surface, or the top and bottom combined?" and
>then came up with the obvious answer; 12 meters^2.
>
>	Anyway, it turns out the "correct" answer is 1 * 10^1 meters^2;
>since the initial data only had 1 digit of accuracy, that's all the final
>answer can have.

   When my high school physics teacher asked this (actually, the figures 
were different, but the question the same) question, and then told us the
"correct" answer, i said: "BULL PATTIES!!!" this was 4 years ago, as a high
school junior. If i was asked the same question now, however, I WOULD STILL
SAY 12 METERS SQUARE. And when i would get the "correct answer" in return,
I WOULD STILL SAY "BULL PATTIES!!!". Sorry, significant figures freaks, but
the question "Whats the area of a table 3 meters wide by 4 meters long"
is totally theoretical in nature. You have GIVEN me a table 3 by 4. i dont 
know how or care how you measured it, you have GIVEN me a table 3 by 4. and 

    GIVEN: a table 3 x 4 meters

    THEN:  that table has an area of 12 meters square. PERIOD.

To illustrate this further, let me ask two other questions: 

1) (the math majors question)

    What is the area of a two dimensional rectangular pink elephant
    3 meters wide by 4 meters long?

2) (what the physics and sig figs people SHOULD ask)

    Using a stick ruled only in meters, i measured a table to be about 
    3 meters wide by 4 meters long. What is its area? (correct answer 
    about 10 meters square)

you were right with your 12 meters square answer.

                                 -phil