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From: kanner@tymix.UUCP (Herb Kanner)
Newsgroups: net.math
Subject: Re: a piece of folk-lore
Message-ID: <538@tymix.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 24-Sep-85 12:48:53 EDT
Article-I.D.: tymix.538
Posted: Tue Sep 24 12:48:53 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 26-Sep-85 07:35:47 EDT
References: <> <320@proper.UUCP>
Reply-To: kanner@tymix.UUCP (Herb Kanner)
Distribution: net
Organization: Tymnet Inc., Cupertino CA
Lines: 51
Summary: 

In article <320@proper.UUCP> judith@proper.UUCP (judith) writes:
>In article <> ian@psuvax1.UUCP (Ian Parberry) writes:
>>Great Moments in the History of Mathematics:
>>
>...
>>
>>    "A cyclist is exactly x miles from home.  She rides home at a constant
>>    speed of c miles per hour.  At the exact instant she starts out, a fly
>>    leaves the front wheel of her bicycle at i miles per hour (i>c),
>>    heading towards home.  When it reaches there, it turns around (in zero time)
>>    and heads back to the bicycle.  It flies backwards and forwards at the
>>    same speed between the bicycle and the house until the rider gets home.
>>    How far does the fly fly?"
>>
>>       The Master replies, without pause, "ix/c miles".  Deflated, the student
>>    observes that "a surprising number of people miss the easy solution, and
>>    try to sum the infinite series of distances flown by the fly".  To which
>>    the puzzled mathematician replies, "But I did!".
>>
>>Can anyone answer the following questions:
>>1.  Is this a true story, or just a piece of mathematical folk-lore?
>It was told to me as a true story.
>
>>3.  Who was the great mathematician?  (I've forgotten).
>I was told it was Steinmetz, but I've been shot down on my other Steinmetz
>story, so don't take my word for it.
>
>>6.  How was the original problem stated?  For example, every time I've heard the
>>    fly-and-bicycle problem, the person telling it has used different values
>>    for i, c and x.
>The way I heard it, there were two trains on a collision course, and a bee
>flying back & forth between them until they met and pureed it.  I don't
>remember the exact values stated.
>
>>Ian Parberry.
>>!psuvax1!ian
>>Dept. of Computer Science, Penn. State University.
>
>Judith Abrahms
>{ucbvax,ihnp4}!dual!proper!judith
>------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>A man who is a genius and doesn't know it probably isn't.  -- Lec
>------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This story was kicking around the University of Chicago circa 1960.  The
scenario as I remember it was two trains and the mathematician was
allegedly John von Neumann.
-- 
Herb Kanner
Tymnet, Inc.
...!hplabs!oliveb!tymix!kanner