Roger Hicks
Veteran
Well, by definition, half the people in the world are below average intelligence.
Cheers,
R.
Nerd or Non-Nerd?
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Well, by definition, half the people in the world are below average intelligence.
Cheers,
R.
gdi
Veteran
Most likely not, but half are definitely below median intelligence.
Roger Hicks
Veteran
'Average' is a wonderfully weasel word, to be used Humpty-Dumpty fashion: 'Words mean what I pay them to mean'. Likewise 'intelligence'. How are you going to measure it?
In this context, I suggest that 'average', 'median' and 'mean' (and even 'arithmetic mean', 'geometric mean' and for that matter 'root mean square') can be used interchangeably.
Cheers,
R.
Jamie123
Veteran
I don't think "average" is a "weasel word" and while ''intelligence'' might be up for debate I don't think there should be any doubt about what average means. Words don't just mean what you pay them to mean. Language is a social practice and while words might change their meaning in time it doesn't mean that just because you mean them a certain way they automatically mean what you pay them to mean. I mean...that would be meaningless.
And yet, the world will never know how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.
gdi
Veteran
You are right that they are often used interchangeably, I see many people use average or mean instead of median to make the "half of the x are below average" point - but it is not so common in the Geek vs. Nerd thread!
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gdi
Veteran
kuzano
Veteran
Geeks VS Nerds....
Geeks VS Nerds....
Geeks malign, antagonize and abuse Nerds much the same as Sadists do the same to Masochists.
Example:
A Masochist jumps into bed with a Sadist and immediately begins pleading, "Hurt Me, Hurt Me".
The Sadist, quickly assessing the situation to his/her advantage, responds, "NO!"
Geeks VS Nerds....
Geeks malign, antagonize and abuse Nerds much the same as Sadists do the same to Masochists.
Example:
A Masochist jumps into bed with a Sadist and immediately begins pleading, "Hurt Me, Hurt Me".
The Sadist, quickly assessing the situation to his/her advantage, responds, "NO!"
If you assume that the dwell time over each surface point remains constant, true. But- add in a feedback loop for the licking process that optimizes for taste, eack lick will consume the same volume of tootsie pop. And once you get to the Tootsie Pop Event Horizon, you could get sucked in. Only those who bite the pop survive to tell about it.
Tompas
Wannabe Künstler
kossi008
Photon Counter
Wow! Thanks for the Venn diagram. I possibly don't possess the full amount of social ineptitude to go with my intelligence and obsession, hence I guess I'm a geeky Nerd or nerdy Geek or so... 😀
I voted "hell, yes!", because I HAVE been known to photograph bookcases and such for testing lenses. Anyone who does that and says no to being a Nerd is lying flat out... 😀😀😀
I voted "hell, yes!", because I HAVE been known to photograph bookcases and such for testing lenses. Anyone who does that and says no to being a Nerd is lying flat out... 😀😀😀
Roberto V.
Le surrèalisme, c'est moi
Yeah, I'm definitely a photography nerd, but I try to keep it to myself to avoid boring others to death.
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Well, gdi challenged 'average' versus 'mean', and one of the OED definitions of 'average' is 'arithmetical mean'. I completely agree that there should be no doubt about the meaning of 'average' but a statistician, for example, will distingish several different types of average. It's worth pointing out, too, that 'average' as in 'the average man' has a significantly different meaning from 'average' as in 'batting average' and that the 'average' in 'average intelligence' can have either meaning.
Also, there is a difference between common usage and what lawyers call 'terms of art'. Thus, legally, 'immediately' does not always mean exactly the same as it does in common usage. These are mathematical and legal examples; there are plenty of others.
Maybe it's not so much a question of words meaning what you pay them to mean, as a matter of the currency in which you choose to pay them.
Cheers,
R.
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GEEK.
PROGRAM AVERAGE
IMPLICIT NONE
INTEGER* 4 COUNT
REAL* 8 VALUE, AVRAGE, SUM
COUNT= 0
SUM= 0.0D0
5 READ( *, 100, END= 1000) VALUE
100 FORMAT( F10.4)
SUM= SUM+ VALUE
COUNT= COUNT+ 1
GO TO 5
1000 CONTINUE
AVRAGE= SUM/ DFLOAT( COUNT)
WRITE( *, 200) AVRAGE
200 FORMAT( ' AVERAGE= ', 1PG12.4)
STOP
END
PROGRAM AVERAGE
IMPLICIT NONE
INTEGER* 4 COUNT
REAL* 8 VALUE, AVRAGE, SUM
COUNT= 0
SUM= 0.0D0
5 READ( *, 100, END= 1000) VALUE
100 FORMAT( F10.4)
SUM= SUM+ VALUE
COUNT= COUNT+ 1
GO TO 5
1000 CONTINUE
AVRAGE= SUM/ DFLOAT( COUNT)
WRITE( *, 200) AVRAGE
200 FORMAT( ' AVERAGE= ', 1PG12.4)
STOP
END
gdi
Veteran
Roger, you misread my post - I didn't challenge "average" vs. "mean". They would be interchangeable in most contexts.
My comment was related to the fact that the value at which the same number of other values fall above or below it is the definition of the "median" rather than the mean/average. Of course we all know what you meant - but I was trying (a bit too obliquely, I believe) to point out it could be considered a grave mistake in the world of Geekdom! (Nerdom, I am not so sure)
gdi
Veteran
You be sucked in, inescapably. But to an outside observer, of course, you would never progress past the TPEH!
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Histogram the data, sum the bins until you reach the 50% mark.
Things to do to pass the time inside the TPEH .
Things to do to pass the time inside the TPEH .
Roger Hicks
Veteran
rbiemer
Unabashed Amateur
patois
Established
What if you are a geek?