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A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

blog.tanyakhovanova.com

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Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#61

Post by skookumchuck »

albertgoeswoof wrote: post #53
teddyh wrote: post #23

“ ‘You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear. For example, you have frequently seen the steps which lead up from the hall to this room.’ ‘Frequently.’ ‘How often?’ ‘Well, some hundreds of times.’ ‘Then how many are there?’ ‘How many! I don’t know.’ ‘Quite so. You have not observed. And yet you have seen. That is just my point. Now, I know that there are seventeen steps, because I have both seen and ob…

While good fiction, this is pretty dumb. Did Sherlock count the number of tiles on the wall as well? What about the colour of the carpet or the number of cracks in the ceiling? Knowing how many steps there are is useless information and wasteful to retain.

I learned how many steps on the stairs in my house because sometimes I navigate them at night, and don't bother turning the light on. I also count steps when carrying something big and heavy and can't look down.

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#62

Post by skookumchuck »

albertgoeswoof wrote: post #59
wmccullough wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you may have missed the goal of the exercise friend. I think this is a larger metaphor about walking through the waking life without really observing what’s going on. Disclaimer: I meant this constructively in case it comes of wrong.

I get the metaphor, I just think it’s stupid. There are an infinite number of things you can observe about the world around you, and there are many many more things you will not see than things you will see. All the way from high society people relations down to individual quantum particle interactions, it’s mind boggling how much there is out there happening at all times in all spaces. It’s not possible to observe a…

I tend to agree. Our brains have evolved to focus on what is important, and to ignore irrelevance. (For example, we are attuned to notice unexpected movement.) We sometimes get that wrong, but the strategy is advantageous.

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#63

Post by ethbro »

edanm wrote: post #32
chippy wrote: post #25

13 is the standard amount of steps in stairs in houses (in the UK at least). So statistically, you should just go with 13 instead of counting them and you will get it right almost all of the time.

Fascinating! Why is that the standard?

I'd imagine since building codes maximum stair rise has been standardized.

So that, plus a limited number of common ceiling heights, results in a few standard numbers of stairs.

Additionally, building to standards allows you to use interchangeable materials [e.g. 1], decreasing onsite time, which usually directly translates into profit. (Labor is expensive)

It seems reasonable the same has generally been true throughout modern history.

[1] https://www.homedepot.com/p/5-Step-Ground-Contact-Pressure-T...

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#64

Post by ozzmotik »

albertgoeswoof wrote: post #59
wmccullough wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you may have missed the goal of the exercise friend. I think this is a larger metaphor about walking through the waking life without really observing what’s going on. Disclaimer: I meant this constructively in case it comes of wrong.

I get the metaphor, I just think it’s stupid. There are an infinite number of things you can observe about the world around you, and there are many many more things you will not see than things you will see. All the way from high society people relations down to individual quantum particle interactions, it’s mind boggling how much there is out there happening at all times in all spaces. It’s not possible to observe a…

profundity is relative to the mind that creates the experience of the profound; it's all with respect to some other ideal. what you may consider as trite and lacking substance or meaning, from another perspective may be perceived to be extremely in depth with several layers of indirection and connection to other ideals and with networks of influence going back and forth between said ideals. it's all in how you look at a thing. i certainly agree that some people can be quite cringe inducing with their perception of the profundity of things, but that being said, that cringe is an experience that I am creating within my own mind based on my reaction to their behaviors and expression, not an intrinsic feature of said behaviors and expression. i just think it's important to remember that whatever we say and think, it really truly does define how we actually perceive reality around us and frame the way we interact with the world.

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#65

Post by lostlogin »

VBprogrammer wrote: post #51
fanf2 wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I looked at our stairs at home and they have 13 steps with a rise of what looks like a bit less than 20cm - hard to measure accurately with the carpet. That gives a total height of 2.5m which is nice and round. A bit of searching around and I find the building regulations permit a rise per step between 15cm and 22cm. And I find a site which says “A typical rise is 2,600mm, which divides easily into 13 200mm risers, o…

I'd wager that when that standard was established the divisivility of those metric measurements would not have been a consideration. Most likely it's also close to some even fraction of feet and inches.

2.5m is 8 foot 2.4 inches according to Google (decimals in measurement that are in inches is a thing? I’m metric so don’t know). The standard ceiling distance between floors must be 8 feet in the U.K..

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#66

Post by ChristianGeek »

lostlogin wrote: post #65
VBprogrammer wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd wager that when that standard was established the divisivility of those metric measurements would not have been a consideration. Most likely it's also close to some even fraction of feet and inches.

2.5m is 8 foot 2.4 inches according to Google (decimals in measurement that are in inches is a thing? I’m metric so don’t know). The standard ceiling distance between floors must be 8 feet in the U.K..

The joists and surfaces between floors in a home are 12-14 inches thick in total, bringing the distance between the floor and ceiling in each level closer to 7 feet.

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#67

Post by dhekir »

tvanantwerp wrote: post #7

I'm the type of person who quantifies a lot of information from my everyday life, but it has never occurred to me to count the number of steps on flights of stairs that I climb. Quantification isn't a costless activity, and knowing numbers of steps just doesn't seem useful. I'm content to remain ignorant of these data.

It can be useful for OpenStreetMap, for instance, where you want to have an idea of the height difference between two points. For instance, if you are moving or carrying a large suitcase/stroller to a place you've never been to. Luckily you only have to count it once and fill it in the database, then others will benefit from it.

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#68

Post by YeGoblynQueenne »

albertgoeswoof wrote: post #53
teddyh wrote: post #23

“ ‘You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear. For example, you have frequently seen the steps which lead up from the hall to this room.’ ‘Frequently.’ ‘How often?’ ‘Well, some hundreds of times.’ ‘Then how many are there?’ ‘How many! I don’t know.’ ‘Quite so. You have not observed. And yet you have seen. That is just my point. Now, I know that there are seventeen steps, because I have both seen and ob…

While good fiction, this is pretty dumb. Did Sherlock count the number of tiles on the wall as well? What about the colour of the carpet or the number of cracks in the ceiling? Knowing how many steps there are is useless information and wasteful to retain.

Also: he did not solve his cases by deduction; rather, it was (logical) abduction [1].

Hah. How's that for pedantry, eh?

_______________

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abductive_reasoning

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#69

Post by _emacsomancer_ »

notyourwork wrote: post #36
NeedMoreTea wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please don't. It's bad enough that the US and UK can't agree on floor numbering. :) USA 1st, 2nd, 3rd UK Ground, 1st, 2nd Is the basement in the US 0?

Basement is -1

In the US or UK system? And, in any case, then what is 0?

Re: A Nerd’s Way to Walk Up the Stairs (2011)

#70

Post by tambourine_man »

skookumchuck wrote: post #62
albertgoeswoof wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I get the metaphor, I just think it’s stupid. There are an infinite number of things you can observe about the world around you, and there are many many more things you will not see than things you will see. All the way from high society people relations down to individual quantum particle interactions, it’s mind boggling how much there is out there happening at all times in all spaces. It’s not possible to observe a…

I tend to agree. Our brains have evolved to focus on what is important, and to ignore irrelevance. (For example, we are attuned to notice unexpected movement.) We sometimes get that wrong, but the strategy is advantageous.

“I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skillful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones.”

A Study in Scarlet

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