Here, I have one. Let's see... Given five numbers, prove that there are always two, x and y, such that |(x-y)/(1+xy)| Hint: rot13(sbhaq va n gevt obbx)
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Jewish Problems (2011) [pdf]
31–36 of 36 posts
Re: Jewish Problems (2011) [pdf]
#32Earlier quoted context omitted.
A representative of the Communist International trying to infiltrate a country under false pretexted through a front organization is hardly a mere "Jewish political activist". It's quite the stretch, and quite the spin, to try to portray Egon Kisch's adventure as something related to jewishness.
The substantive point was the use of a language test, subject to manipulation of what was the Anglo Celtic language.
I referred to your gross misrepresentation of this case as "what do you know, it was a Jewish political activist!".
A member of the Communist International trying to infiltrate a foreign nation under false pretenses to further their geopolitical agenda is hardly related to religion or race or cultural makeup of the agent.
Re: Jewish Problems (2011) [pdf]
#33Earlier quoted context omitted.
The substantive point was the use of a language test, subject to manipulation of what was the Anglo Celtic language.
I referred to your gross misrepresentation of this case as "what do you know, it was a Jewish political activist!". A member of the Communist International trying to infiltrate a foreign nation under false pretenses to further their geopolitical agenda is hardly related to religion or race or cultural makeup of the agent.
A quick skim of the Wikipedia article shows that the same technique was used on other people who weren't communists; for instance, an Irish anti-war activist was asked to complete a test in Dutch. Seems like a perfect example of the phenomenon we're talking about.
Re: Jewish Problems (2011) [pdf]
#34The reason I submitted this was, incidentally, that I discovered I am Jewish. My father was the first to marry outside of the faith, so it’s apparently a long lineage. I’m not sure how to feel. Reactions range from “So what?” to “I have a culture?” I’ve been at least trying to study some history. It’s still kind of amazing it never came up once. It was almost accidental that I found out at all. (Random census questio…
Congratulations! I would love to discover something like that. So your father knew but didn't tell you? Do you know why?
Re: Jewish Problems (2011) [pdf]
#35The US instituted similar measures in the form of "literacy tests"[0] to disenfranchise non-white voters during the Jim Crow era. The questions are intentionally confusing and ambiguous, such that anyone taking them is likely to fail no matter what[1][2]. Whites were exempted from taking the test thanks to a grandfather clause (the origin of the term, incidentally, though now it usually applies to cellphone contracts…
"Grandfathered" - any time a preexisting status means newer rules don't apply.
Another example, a licensed occupation, requirements made stricter, those already licensed don't need to meet the new requirements.
The sinister origins of the phrase are now almost completely forgotten.
Re: Jewish Problems (2011) [pdf]
#36Does anyone think this happens nowadays in interviews? I am not in favor of any kind of “standardized test” for software engineer interviews, but it seems like the practice of picking just 1 or 2 problems could easily be used to reject an undesirable candidate, under the veneer of meritocracy.
I'm sure that happens sometimes in interviews. I think more often there are multiple qualified people for a given position and the chosen candidate is the one that the interviewers feel more comfortable interacting with. People usually feel most comfortable interacting with people who have a similar background to themselves. Also, a lot of people's sense of identity, self worth, and community standing is based on their jobs. Hiring people from groups that diminish or clash with that isn't in the interest of the people doing the hiring. That's the main reason I don't think most hiring is meritocratic, including in tech.