That comment might as well have been written in Tierra del Fuegan, which is the reason I'm a linguist and not a mathematician. Still, sorting through all that business about converging tangents and smooth manifolds, I still think the simplest explanation is best, at least for a Wolf of Very Little Brain.
A curve, by definition, has no angles, even at infinite magnification. The polygons can never truly equal the curve, but only approximate it - and the sum of the sides of the polygons will always equal four.
The original rage comic ended with the Archimedes panel. I added the rest, so I'm the one shouting "moron."
But every time I drive over a bridge, I'm grateful for people who can understand all the squiggles.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2011-05-22 12:28 pm (UTC)A curve, by definition, has no angles, even at infinite magnification. The polygons can never truly equal the curve, but only approximate it - and the sum of the sides of the polygons will always equal four.
The original rage comic ended with the Archimedes panel. I added the rest, so I'm the one shouting "moron."
But every time I drive over a bridge, I'm grateful for people who can understand all the squiggles.