Comments on: Real World

By: Mark W. Farnham

Mark W. Farnham — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:17:38 +0000

I’ve always used the “go to the driest spot of floor” protocol when selecting an individual urinal.

At Fenway Park, with the troughs (not sure if they still have them, I’ve not been in a while), you want to make sure there is not a tall guy behind you waiting. They only think they are tall enough to pee over your shoulder.

By: Jared

Jared — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 19:40:56 +0000

No doubt you will be interested in the serious global consequence that ensue when urinal protocol is ignored. Urinal Protocol

By: Kerry Osborne

Kerry Osborne — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:43:28 +0000

Ha. The quiz is hilarious. I wonder if the rules are any different in the UK than they are in the US?

Kerry

By: Jonathan Lewis

Jonathan Lewis — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 17:03:56 +0000

Centinul,
It looks as if if might have been something that started with a bit of trial and error guesswork, which could then be proved by induction – especially if you think about the alternating condition that causes the waste of space. Having made the suggestion, I’ll leave the proof as an exercise for the reader.

For anyone who wants a less challenging problem on a Saturday night, though, I’ve added a link to take you to a quiz on the same topic.

By: Centinul

Centinul — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 12:02:43 +0000

I thought that was a pretty hilarious read. I wonder how he came up with the closed form expression? Maybe it’s just been too long since I’ve been out of college for me to remember.

By: Noons

Noons — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 08:27:54 +0000

Now that’s what I like to see: applied maths! No f**ting around.
(oops, I meant no p**sing around! er…, never mind!)
I can see the queueing already!