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NT: Nerd Alert


Catherine

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I made a mistake.  I listened to a Vi Hart YouTube video on the decimal .9999.... = 1 issue (which was fun).  But then she mentioned split octonians, which are eight-dimensional algebraic expressions.  And I looked them up.  Hence the mistake.  the Wikipedia article is strange; all the *words* are in English, but they don't make any sense.  Kinda like portions of the IRC, except these have a point (UN-like the IRC, frankly, too often) because they describe sophisticated wave equations.

Here's the link:  Split octonians and here's the first paragraph:

"In mathematics, the split-octonions are an 8-dimensional nonassociative algebra over the real numbers. Unlike the standard octonions, they contain non-zero elements which are non-invertible. Also the signatures of their quadratic forms differ: the split-octonions have a split-signature (4,4) whereas the octonions have a positive-definite signature (8,0).

Up to isomorphism, the octonions and the split-octonions are the only two octonion algebras over the real numbers. There are corresponding split octonion algebras over any field F."

 

Umm... I'm really glad they included that bit about isomorphism, 'cuz that just helped SO much.  Not.

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3 hours ago, Catherine said:

In case y'all didn't think I was weird enough, and have been wondering what sort of things I do in my spare time...

:lol:

Well, you're among friends anyway and, isomorphically speaking, I'd say you're a pretty good ol' gal.  Besides, I don't have a thing in the world against those octonians.

Here's one of your comrades-in-axioms -- he started out as a kid repairing transistor radios for his neighbors.  One of the world's great physicists (and comedians).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Feynman

Read this book (I have and think you'll like it). The used paperbacks are cheap and good. 

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=RICHARD+FEYNMAN

Cheers! :D

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12 hours ago, Catherine said:

In case y'all didn't think I was weird enough, and have been wondering what sort of things I do in my spare time...

:lol:

Catherine.......Weird.?......NAH.....

catherine-bach-001.jpg

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10 hours ago, BLACK BART said:

Read this book

"Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman" is one of the best books I have *ever* read.  His tale of the missing/hidden fraternity door had me crying, I was laughing so hard.  And it was really interesting to read about Los Alamos from before my husband's family lived there (they moved out there post-WW2).

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