Random thoughts I'm just gonna leave here because I don't Tweet...

[Waterhammer]

Digital clocks and Velcro straps to keep my shoes on. Heh. And cowboy boots.

[Freehold DM]

Ambrosia Slaad wrote:

Theconiel wrote:

A Salisbury steak frozen dinner's directions included the step "Rotate the patty 180 degrees clockwise." They don't tell me what to do, dammit! I rotated it 180 degrees counterclockwise! Ha! So there!

Oh wow, I'd forgotten this exchange from a decade back.

** spoiler omitted **...

Greatest. Aunt. Ever.

[quibblemuch]

In other missed naming opportunities, it still saddens me that scientists didn’t nickname H. floresiensis ‘Neandershorts’.

[DeathQuaker]

quibblemuch wrote:

In other missed naming opportunities, it still saddens me that scientists didn’t nickname H. floresiensis ‘Neandershorts’.

LOL

As a fantasy nerd, I always found it fascinating that our closest relatives were a stout, hairy, sturdy race good at tool making (Neanderthals) and a cave-dwelling people half our size (Homo Floresiensis). In other words, there really were dwarves and hobbits! ;D

[quibblemuch]

DeathQuaker wrote:

quibblemuch wrote:

In other missed naming opportunities, it still saddens me that scientists didn’t nickname H. floresiensis ‘Neandershorts’.

LOL

As a fantasy nerd, I always found it fascinating that our closest relatives were a stout, hairy, sturdy race good at tool making (Neanderthals) and a cave-dwelling people half our size (Homo Floresiensis). In other words, there really were dwarves and hobbits! ;D

And I have a few relatives who I'm pretty sure are orcs... I avoid cook-outs, just to be safe.

[quibblemuch]

Apparently my brain's background thread is working on missed naming opportunities. It would've been awesome if the Hormel Corporation had thought to call Spam 'Charnel No. 5.'

[lisamarlene]

Quibblemuch gets cookies.

[quibblemuch]

I'm a little too busy to do it, but somebody needs to write a 'Conclave' song to the tune of the 1975 novelty hit 'Convoy'.

[Chuck Chick and Jack Tingle]

'Cause we got a Popin' Conclave,
Trapped between four walls,
Guarded by clowns with halberds,
Full of Cardinals,
Choosin' a brand new Pontiff,
A triple-crowned theologian!
Gonna join us a Popin' Conclave,
'Cross the Vatican!

[quibblemuch]

Thank you, good sir. You're doing the Lord's work.

[Theconiel]

A mathematics puzzle:

f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??

What comes next? If you post an answer, please put it behind a spoiler.

[NobodysHome]

Theconiel wrote:

A mathematics puzzle:

f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??

What comes next? If you post an answer, please put it behind a spoiler.

Spoiler:

The inputs seem straightforward enough; you're putting in primes, so it would be:

f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(11) =
f(13) =
f(17) =

The difficulty is that I can fit a nigh-infinite number of curves to the output. A Taylor series. A Fourier series. A stepwise function. Various combinations of the previous outputs (use last 1, use last 2, etc.)

So two easy solutions are:
(1) It's squared minus 1, squared minus 2, squared minus 2, squared minus 2, so I'd have:
f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(11) = 119
f(13) = 167
f(17) = 287
The issue I have with this solution is that behind the curtains you can say, "Oh, no! You were supposed to switch to squared minus 3 after 3 iterations of 2, so the 'correct' answers are 118, 166, and 286!"

(2) Since most such problems are, "Find the polynomial that fits these points," that solution is f(x) = -1/15 x^3 + 2 x^2 -71/15 x + 5. This leads to the rather ugly set of results:

f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(11) = 106.2
f(13) = 135
f(17) = 175

Which I don't think is the "desired" solution because of that 0.2

EDIT: I had one other idea of f(n) = the nth prime, but that doesn't fit at all.

EDIT 2: The other interesting bit of trivia is that throughout K-12, college, and grad school, the definition of a prime was, "A whole number whose only factors are 1 and itself." By this definition, 1 is a prime number. Apparently rules lawyers got involved because it's been redefined to, "A whole number that has exactly 2 unique factors," which eliminates 1.

I feel much like I did when they demoted Pluto from planethood. "Was that really necessary?"

So, given the parameters and my expectations of such mathematical "games", I'd expect either solution (1) or a visual puzzle I'm missing.

[Freehold DM]

fires shotgun wildly

[90s Simpsons Referotron]

Was there a boogeyman or boogeymen inside the house?

[Theconiel]

NobodysHome wrote:

Theconiel wrote:

A mathematics puzzle:

f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??

What comes next? If you post an answer, please put it behind a spoiler.

** spoiler omitted **

So, given the parameters and my expectations of such mathematical "games", I'd expect either solution (1) or a visual puzzle I'm missing.

What I meant was:

f(n) = largest prime number less than n^2

... but your solutions are valid as well.

[Theconiel]

90s Simpsons Referotron wrote:

Was there a boogeyman or boogeymen inside the house?

ICP

[NobodysHome]

Theconiel wrote:

NobodysHome wrote:

Theconiel wrote:

A mathematics puzzle:

f(2) = 3
f(3) = 7
f(5) = 23
f(7) = 47
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??
f(?) = ??

What comes next? If you post an answer, please put it behind a spoiler.

** spoiler omitted **

So, given the parameters and my expectations of such mathematical "games", I'd expect either solution (1) or a visual puzzle I'm missing.

** spoiler omitted **... but your solutions are valid as well.

Thank you! I was curious. I don't regret not seeing it, but I'm surprised how close I got *without* seeing it.

As a side note..

Spoiler:

I asked Impus Major and he identified 1 as a prime as well. According to Wikipedia, it was rejected as a prime early in the 20th century because you had to make so many exception statements in theorems because of it (oh so true), but it was still being published in tables of primes up to 1956. Which explains why I learned it, since my teachers would have learned it. But 1.5 generations later in my kids' school? The anti-1 crowd needs to get a better publicist.

[BigNorseWolf]

At least we stopped letting the mathematicians toss each other off cliffs over these kinds of disputes...

**ponders. Ponders. Ponders...**

[Freehold DM]

Math is evil.

[Celestial Hippeh Lawyer]

Freehold DM wrote:

Math is evil.

{quickly skims character sheets of everyone in thread, notes lisamarlene's and Freehold's inventory; much secretive dice rolling behind screen}

Freehold's jade amulet of protection from Alton Brown grants a +4 to his Fort save. Similarly, lisamarlene's fresh cookies rations grants a +2 to her save. Everyone else in the thread takes 1 point of Taint from the corrupting effects of mathematics in the Shadowlands OffTopiclands. Celestial Hippeh Lawyer, due to your current low hit points and very low caffeine points, this proved fatal; you are now "pining for the fjords."

Wait- that can't- Noooooooo... {fades from existence }

[Vanykrye]

Celestial Hippeh Lawyer wrote:

Freehold DM wrote:

Math is evil.

{quickly skims character sheets of everyone in thread, notes lisamarlene's and Freehold's inventory; much secretive dice rolling behind screen}

Freehold's jade amulet of protection from Alton Brown grants a +4 to his Fort save. Similarly, lisamarlene's fresh cookies rations grants a +2 to her save. Everyone else in the thread takes 1 point of Taint from the corrupting effects of mathematics in the Shadowlands OffTopiclands. Celestial Hippeh Lawyer, due to your current low hit points and very low caffeine points, this proved fatal; you are now "pining for the fjords."

Wait- that can't- Noooooooo... {fades from existence }

Wait...what happened with my taint?

[Freehold DM]

MY LIFE FOR YOU DAIGOTSU-SAMA

[Abdul Al'Gebra]

Celestial Hippeh Lawyer wrote:

Freehold DM wrote:

Math is evil.

{quickly skims character sheets of everyone in thread, notes lisamarlene's and Freehold's inventory; much secretive dice rolling behind screen}

Freehold's jade amulet of protection from Alton Brown grants a +4 to his Fort save. Similarly, lisamarlene's fresh cookies rations grants a +2 to her save. Everyone else in the thread takes 1 point of Taint from the corrupting effects of mathematics in the Shadowlands OffTopiclands. Celestial Hippeh Lawyer, due to your current low hit points and very low caffeine points, this proved fatal; you are now "pining for the fjords."

Wait- that can't- Noooooooo... {fades from existence }

Ah, but I have the Pact of the Numerologist class feature! I am immune to all Math-based deductions and divisions, while retaining full advantage of all additive and multiplicative benefits thereof!

Rule logarithm and log tan rule all!

... oh, you're dead. Well, even I can't divide by zero.

[quibblemuch]

The black and white smoke codes for the Conclave are the most well-known, but there are a number of other smoke signals the cardinals can send:

Green - the Conclave wishes Cardinal O’Brien a happy St. Patrick’s Day

Pink - the Conclave has an upset tummy and needs some Peptobismol

Lavender - the Conclave has voted to have a nice relaxing bubble bath with essential oils

Crimson - the Conclave are Alabama fans; Roll Tide!

Orange and White Stripes - the Conclave has voted that Frosted Flakes are GRRREAT!

Plaid - the Conclave has been overrun by Scottish Presbyterians - send in more Swiss Guards

[Scintillae]

I'm just waiting to hear the Cardinals hit a home run.

[quibblemuch]

Chuck Chick and Jack Tingle wrote:

'Cause we got a Popin' Conclave,

Trapped between four walls,
Guarded by clowns with halberds,
Full of Cardinals,
Choosin' a brand new Pontiff,
A triple-crowned theologian!
Gonna join us a Popin' Conclave,
'Cross the Vatican!

"Breaker, breaker, we got a smokey up ahead."

"Roger that, Red Hat. Is it black or white, over?"
"Crozier Whack, confirm it is black. Smokey is black, over."
"Dangit Red Hat, I gotta get two tons of Wonderbread and Welch’s to Baloney by midday tomorrow. Any chance we could whiten 'er up by sundown?"