Comments on: Who Knew That a SciFi Writer Could Be So.. http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:02:49 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: ninme http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html#comment-595 ninme Tue, 31 May 2005 06:26:22 +0000 http://d829161.u25.nozonenet.com/?p=1839#comment-595 <p>Oh lord I don't even remember what those are, if I ever even knew. I do remember, though, thinking a really big "woah" when the whole decimal-point's-effect-on-mathmatics thing was pointed out to me. You just don't realize how important that lil' thing is till you...think about it.</p> <p>A friend of mine in grade school (Daria) was Persian. I think she said Daria means ocean in Persian. And her parents were fabulously wealthy and terribly classy, and she was really good looking and terribly glamourous for a 7th grader, and basically she's sort of been my memory aid for the Assyrian/Mesopotamians v. Arabs. The former are really interesting, smart, cultural, classy, and worthy. The latter, not so much.</p> Oh lord I don’t even remember what those are, if I ever even knew. I do remember, though, thinking a really big “woah” when the whole decimal-point’s-effect-on-mathmatics thing was pointed out to me. You just don’t realize how important that lil’ thing is till you…think about it.

A friend of mine in grade school (Daria) was Persian. I think she said Daria means ocean in Persian. And her parents were fabulously wealthy and terribly classy, and she was really good looking and terribly glamourous for a 7th grader, and basically she’s sort of been my memory aid for the Assyrian/Mesopotamians v. Arabs. The former are really interesting, smart, cultural, classy, and worthy. The latter, not so much.

]]> By: Brett_McS http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html#comment-594 Brett_McS Tue, 31 May 2005 05:00:28 +0000 http://d829161.u25.nozonenet.com/?p=1839#comment-594 <p>Assyrians and people from Mesopotamia were definitely not Arabs, although they were subjegated by same in time. The cultural/technical flowering of the Arab world coincided with the take-over that area, and finished after it had been completely subjegated. So I would take all that "invented by Arabs" stuff with a pinch of salt.</p> <p>I was tortured by Logarithms, and I think they have something to do with decimal points.</p> Assyrians and people from Mesopotamia were definitely not Arabs, although they were subjegated by same in time. The cultural/technical flowering of the Arab world coincided with the take-over that area, and finished after it had been completely subjegated. So I would take all that “invented by Arabs” stuff with a pinch of salt.

I was tortured by Logarithms, and I think they have something to do with decimal points.

]]> By: ninme http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html#comment-593 ninme Tue, 31 May 2005 04:01:20 +0000 http://d829161.u25.nozonenet.com/?p=1839#comment-593 <p>Em, who invented the decimal point (thereby making 0 a numerical value thereby making negatives and all that necessary stuff with which we torture our middle- and high school students? Was that part of the decimal?</p> <p>And, Mesopotamians weren't arab, right? Or were they.</p> Em, who invented the decimal point (thereby making 0 a numerical value thereby making negatives and all that necessary stuff with which we torture our middle- and high school students? Was that part of the decimal?

And, Mesopotamians weren’t arab, right? Or were they.

]]> By: Brett_McS http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html#comment-592 Brett_McS Tue, 31 May 2005 03:27:50 +0000 http://d829161.u25.nozonenet.com/?p=1839#comment-592 <p>Another thing. People of Assyrian heritage are very upset that Arabs have taken the credit for what were in fact Assyrian innovations. I believe Algebra was one of those things. Of course the Arabs also try to take credit for the Pythagorian theorem, but that doesn't fly too well in the west, although it is widely believed in the ME.</p> <p>File it under "the winner writes the history".</p> Another thing. People of Assyrian heritage are very upset that Arabs have taken the credit for what were in fact Assyrian innovations. I believe Algebra was one of those things. Of course the Arabs also try to take credit for the Pythagorian theorem, but that doesn’t fly too well in the west, although it is widely believed in the ME.

File it under “the winner writes the history”.

]]> By: Brian H http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html#comment-591 Brian H Tue, 31 May 2005 03:19:30 +0000 http://d829161.u25.nozonenet.com/?p=1839#comment-591 <p>If you want a thorough treatment of the cultural side of Arab war: <a href="http://www.unc.edu/depts/diplomat/AD_Issues/amdipl_17/articles/deatkine_arabs1.html" rel="nofollow"> Why Arabs Lose Wars</a>.</p> <p>It's also a good basis for understanding why keeping the old Iraqi Army intact was pointless.</p> If you want a thorough treatment of the cultural side of Arab war: Why Arabs Lose Wars.

It’s also a good basis for understanding why keeping the old Iraqi Army intact was pointless.

]]> By: Bubblehead http://www.ninme.com/archives/2005/05/who_knew_that_a.html#comment-590 Bubblehead Mon, 30 May 2005 23:46:14 +0000 http://d829161.u25.nozonenet.com/?p=1839#comment-590 <p>I guess I can't be too insightful if I didn't realize that you were making fun of my movie preferences... I was going to put down that I've always been scared of Oompa-Loompas; probably just as well that I didn't...</p> I guess I can’t be too insightful if I didn’t realize that you were making fun of my movie preferences… I was going to put down that I’ve always been scared of Oompa-Loompas; probably just as well that I didn’t…

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