Group: alt.philosophy · Group Profile
Author: ArtArt Date: Sep 5, 2008 07:27
On Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:48:58 -0500, John J wrote:
>Art wrote:
>
>> 22/7 = 3.1428 ...
>> pi = 3.1415 ....
>>
>> As you can see, they fail to be equal at only the third decimal place.
>
>Question: how does the presumed precision of Pi (that is, Pi to 4
>decimal places) function in terms of, say, machining some parts that all
>use Pi, for example a series of different sized wheels that must
>interact to function properly as a machine? That is, if the largest
>wheel is, say 100 times larger than the smallest, with n number of
>wheels between, does choosing 22/7 over 3.1415 make a significant
>difference? And if the wheels interacted as toothed gears, does that
>change anything? (The later is clearly fractionalized.)
Ok, so some clown comes along and claims that the magic number 3
is the secret of the universe since it equals pi. You say that's close
enough ... that's wonderful ... you've found the secret of the
universe :)
The point is that "equals" has mathematical (and logical) meaning,
and since 22/7 <> pi the guy made a false statement. He didn't
say "approximately equals" since he obviously enjoys deluding himself
with a bunch of worthless numerical mumbo jumbo.
Art
http://home.ptd.net/~artnpeg
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