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Post by bracknellboy on Feb 4, 2022 8:48:45 GMT
for me 2/3 66% is a fair approximation 3.142 is a good approximation to PI So to get this from HL re a recent open offer on shares The open offer was oversubscribed, all basic elections were satisfied in full and excess elections were satisfied to the extent that shareholders received approximately 70.97747% of the excess shares applied for.that right the last digit is 100,000th of a percent , I'd hate it if they were being precise Sorry to be a pedant, but surely 67% is a better approximation of 2/3 😁 It might be a better approximation, but is it any more approximate ? I think not, by definition.
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Post by bracknellboy on Feb 4, 2022 8:52:32 GMT
Ah, but 100,000th of a percent could completely spoil the present. 🎁 Imagine God tying a ribbon right around the Earth, as a gift to another god. If the ribbon were 100,000th percent too long, for a 25,000 mile circumference, that would equate to around 4 metres of excess ribbon. This excess would look very untidy and God wants to keep the bow in a proper circle, with no rucks. So how high off the ground would s/he have to lift the ribbon to take up this 4 metres excess slack? The answer might surprise you. Instinctively, you might imagine raising it a centimetre right around the globe would be way too much, meaning the ribbon would be left far too short. In fact, the ribbon would have to be raised a whole 2 feet off the ground right around the entire circumference, to make the two ends meet. No mean feat, and all because of that 100,000th percent inaccuracy! [ 2pi (R-r) = 4 metres, leading to (R-r) of 64cm or very roughly 2 feet ]. Sorry for my crazy little diversion, but the ribbon (or rope) around the world paradox has always fascinated me since school days! 😁 Finally, finally an explanation ! All this time we've wondered why Assetz Capital has felt it necessary to store and display holdings down to 1x10^-19 pence, and it turns out just because some designer/programmer had read the parable of God and his gift wrapped planet as a toddler and has been scarred for life.
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Post by bracknellboy on Feb 4, 2022 8:57:41 GMT
The main paradox to me is the wanton mixing of metric and imperial going on! I did consider this at the outset, but decided 2 feet was a nice agreeable figure and far easier to visualise for most people than the fairly meaningless 60-something centimetres.I suspect you still talk about miles per gallon, though, despite buying your fuel by the litre. It's much easier to visualise than litres per 100km. Just remember the mental calisthenics involved in leaping around between these different dimensions are positively good for the old grey matter..... and I charge nothing for this service. Sorry, that isn't meaningless, nor difficult to imagine. Its approximately Qty 4 15cm rulers laid end to end.
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IFISAcava
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Post by IFISAcava on Feb 4, 2022 9:33:02 GMT
The main paradox to me is the wanton mixing of metric and imperial going on! I did consider this at the outset, but decided 2 feet was a nice agreeable figure and far easier to visualise for most people than the fairly meaningless 60-something centimetres. I suspect you still talk about miles per gallon, though, despite buying your fuel by the litre. It's much easier to visualise than litres per 100km. Just remember the mental calisthenics involved in leaping around between these different dimensions are positively good for the old grey matter..... and I charge nothing for this service. I actually used to do miles per litre when I rode my Vespa, so I accept the rebound paradox! But that was some years ago and I do tend to use KM for distances now. EDIT: and the main reason was that the odometer was in miles and the petrol delivered in litres so no conversions required. I mainly cycle now and Strava helpfully gives me kilometres
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keitha
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Post by keitha on Feb 4, 2022 10:32:11 GMT
imperial were sensible measurements
1 yard is distance to tip of nose from tip of outstretched finger 1 inch is 3 barleycorns end to end a foot was the length of a mans foot ( must've been bigger in days gone by ) 1 furlong the distance that could be ploughed in a straight line by an ox without a rest
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agent69
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Post by agent69 on Feb 4, 2022 10:35:08 GMT
imperial were sensible measurements 1 yard is distance to tip of nose from tip of outstretched finger 1 inch is 3 barleycorns end to end a foot was the length of a mans foot ( must've been bigger in days gone by ) 1 furlong the distance that could be ploughed in a straight line by an ox without a rest 1m - the length of the path travelled by light in a vacuum in 1/299 792 458 of a second.
Just doesn't sound the same
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Post by bernythedolt on Feb 4, 2022 11:31:01 GMT
I did consider this at the outset, but decided 2 feet was a nice agreeable figure and far easier to visualise for most people than the fairly meaningless 60-something centimetres. Entirely depends on what you're used to... I suspect the vast majority of people of middle age and below in this country would find 60cm at least as easy to visualise as 2ft. Globally, no contest. So I judged my audience well.... 2ft it is then.
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Post by bernythedolt on Feb 4, 2022 11:34:13 GMT
I suspect you still talk about miles per gallon, though, despite buying your fuel by the litre. It's much easier to visualise than litres per 100km. Just remember the mental calisthenics involved in leaping around between these different dimensions are positively good for the old grey matter..... and I charge nothing for this service. Sorry, that isn't meaningless, nor difficult to imagine. Its approximately Qty 4 15cm rulers laid end to end. ...Or four 6 inch rulers as I have to think of them.
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tallsuk
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Post by tallsuk on Feb 4, 2022 11:40:36 GMT
Sorry, that isn't meaningless, nor difficult to imagine. Its approximately Qty 4 15cm rulers laid end to end. ...Or four 6 inch rulers as I have to think of them. Does 2 30cm Helix shatterproof rulers not mean anything to anyone??
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Post by Badly Drawn Stickman on Feb 4, 2022 12:30:56 GMT
...Or four 6 inch rulers as I have to think of them. Does 2 30cm Helix shatterproof rulers not mean anything to anyone?? I'm not sure using measuring implements to give a visual image of a measurement is really the way forward. Standard kitchen worktop is 60cm wide. Many paving slabs are 60cm square so far better examples. Multiples of things tend not to work either. I can easily visualise one double decker bus, start stacking them and it no longer really works. Something being shatterproof, well that is simply an invitation to prove it ain't.
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tallsuk
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Post by tallsuk on Feb 4, 2022 12:43:32 GMT
Does 2 30cm Helix shatterproof rulers not mean anything to anyone?? Something being shatterproof, well that is simply an invitation to prove it ain't. Yep, happened many years ago when I was at school and it is still happening today. I think that is exactly why they write it on them, as a challange to bored school boys.
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