> I wan't implying an end-of-the-world scenario, either - just that there may be some cosmic significance to the cycle.
Nope. Still a big crock, sorry!
> They understood that the earth was a sphere and that it circled the sun, that the sun was a star, and many celestial cycles to a high degree of precision.
And NASA still gets it wrong, even with their trillions of dollars of stuff.
Speaking of which, I wonder how zacs7 is doing on counter earth.
Last edited by zacs7; 04-24-2009 at 09:41 AM. Reason: Your mum
Speaking of the UNIX timestamp... The OP should be more scared of 2038 than 2012.Originally Posted by cpjust
That's nothing to get excited about. It's not like when the UNIX timestamp reached 123456789 or anything.
Comparing the modern Maya culture to the one we are talking about is ignorance.Typical cultural arrogance....I gained some perspective in the workings of the culture and was actually very impressed with their level of social grace and refinement.
I doubt pre-school math would help you create a calendar and even if it did I'm not going believe pre-school math when it comes to the end of the world. Predicting cycles based on what youUsing simple methods (that could be taught to a preschooler, by the way) they were able to manipulate extremely large numbers quite easily.
observe over a few years is not rocket science but predicting those cycles far into the future means that even a small error becomes enormous when stretched over time.
So since you equated the math of the day to our current pre-school math and since said math predicts the end of the world then you are saying that a pre-schooler could predict the end of the world. Nice. Also one more reason not to believe the calendar is you said that it essentially boils down to math that a pre-schooler could understand so you just by your own admission stated that the Mayan calendar was not all that advanced compared to modern day calendars.
There are also those studying the calendar that say the end is not predicted by the calendar but that was simply where the calendar ended which was taken by others to mean the end of time itself when in reality it was probably something far less nefarious.
Last edited by VirtualAce; 04-24-2009 at 04:19 PM.
2012's when the zombie apocalypse starts, right?
Nope that started when Left 4 Dead was released.
No. Started far before that, come to think on it. Just bought it! I mean a novel with the opening "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains" has the research done. I think it should be reclassified as history, or biographical.
Last edited by twomers; 04-24-2009 at 04:27 PM.
Wow, cboard isn't usually this highbrow
Let us know how it turns out, I heard that guy on the radio the other day, I almost fell off my chair he was so funny. Except it was that "hmmm" kind of funny as opposed to "hahaha", so I got to keep my seat.
C programming resources:
GNU C Function and Macro Index -- glibc reference manual
The C Book -- nice online learner guide
Current ISO draft standard
CCAN -- new CPAN like open source library repository
3 (different) GNU debugger tutorials: #1 -- #2 -- #3
cpwiki -- our wiki on sourceforge
>> Comparing the modern Maya culture to the one we are talking about is ignorance.
Not necessarily. Cultures change, but they also pass along to their descendants some very distinct qualities. You may be different from your ancestors in many ways, but you nonetheless carry forward various mannerisms, behavior, and attitudes.
>> So since you equated the math of the day to our current pre-school math and since said math predicts the end of the world then you are saying that a pre-schooler could predict the end of the world. Nice.
That's was not my implication. I was simply conveying the fact that their math was so highly developed that even a preschooler could learn how to use it. In a similar manner, the computers we use perform very complex operations, but their current level of sophistication allows them to be used by small children.
>> There are also those studying the calendar that say the end is not predicted by the calendar but that was simply where the calendar ended which was taken by others to mean the end of time itself when in reality it was probably something far less nefarious.
Of course - it shouldn't be construed as the end of time any more than December 31 should be, simply because it's the last day. Calenders run in cycles.
Code:#include <cmath> #include <complex> bool euler_flip(bool value) { return std::pow ( std::complex<float>(std::exp(1.0)), std::complex<float>(0, 1) * std::complex<float>(std::atan(1.0) *(1 << (value + 2))) ).real() < 0; }
Yes, necessarily, the two cultures are not even remotely connected. The Mayan's of today where not the mayans that lived in the cities, they were the rural mayan's which were not a significant part of the mayan culture at the time.
In the combined theory of propositional logic and common sense, the mentioned opening is indeed true: you can write it as "A -> B", where A="zombie X in possession of brains" and B="zombie X in want of more brains". Since zombies don't exist (that's the common sense part), A is false and hence A->B == false->B, which is a tautology, i.e. universally true. :-)
Note that there's a difference between pre-school math and math performed by a pre-schooler. For example, I consider the Lambda calculus to be pre-school math in the sense that you can teach syntax and semantics to most persons above the age of 4 (one line of syntax, two lines of semantics). In fact, the rules of Lambda calculus are much easier to learn than the rules of Go, and I've been playing Go with lots of 5-year old guys. Now the Lambda calculus is Turing-complete, rougly implying that every possible computation can also be performed in Lambda calculus. Consequence: you can describe the whole universe in Lambda calculus at least as precise as you can do in any other language (English, math, physics). So you can do it with pre-school math, but probably not if you're a pre-schooler.
Now the Mayans probably didn't know Lambda calculus, but given enough time, there are lots of facts about the universe waiting to be discovered given just Euclidian geometry (i.e. common sense). I wouldn't be surprised to hear that the Mayans knew something about the universe that we don't.
Computers are about as complex as toasters, they are just bigger. Can you make an example of a complex operation?In a similar manner, the computers we use perform very complex operations
Greets,
Philip
All things begin as source code.
Source code begins with an empty file.
-- Tao Te Chip
>> Computers are about as complex as toasters, they are just bigger. Can you make an example of a complex operation?
By 'computers' I mean the combination of hardware and software (converting electrical impulses on a wire into an interactive web page, for example).
>> In fact, the rules of Lambda calculus are much easier to learn than the rules of Go
Wow, really? I'm seriously going to check that out.
>> Yes, necessarily, the two cultures are not even remotely connected.
Pure nonsense. Life does not evolve in a vaccuum.
Code:#include <cmath> #include <complex> bool euler_flip(bool value) { return std::pow ( std::complex<float>(std::exp(1.0)), std::complex<float>(0, 1) * std::complex<float>(std::atan(1.0) *(1 << (value + 2))) ).real() < 0; }
But of course, it is also a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must not be in want of brains
That may or may not be true, e.g., it may turn out that the universe cannot be described by a Turing machine. However, natural language and mathematics (and hence physics) in general can be adapted to describe the universe, however imprecisely, even in such a case.
Look up a C++ Reference and learn How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
10 fingers=base 10.
People just like how it looks on paper imo 12212012. Looks nice huh
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZeIq...eature=related --- sexyness
rap sucks, grow up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0ELWgMp5Ik
Last edited by abachler; 04-26-2009 at 04:51 AM.
Interesting. Around 3000 BC there is evidence that an impact event occurred somewhere near Madagascar (now known as Burckle Crater). At around this same time, civilizations across the world record stories of "massive flooding" and the like, such as the Hindu Bhagavata Purana (circa 3100 BCE), the Great Flood of the Bible, etc. Incidentally, the Mayan Long Count begins in the year 3114! So, curious, I look into the Mayan's story of creation as told in the Popol Vuh. Lo and behold, it says the world was created after a great flood! That may very well explain the origins of their calender (or not - it could be just a coincidence, of course), but if so, and if they *did* happen to know about some celestial cycle we're not yet aware of, it could of course mean we're completely doomed. I'm just trying to be objective here, mind you.
Code:#include <cmath> #include <complex> bool euler_flip(bool value) { return std::pow ( std::complex<float>(std::exp(1.0)), std::complex<float>(0, 1) * std::complex<float>(std::atan(1.0) *(1 << (value + 2))) ).real() < 0; }
