2956: Number Line Branch - Revision history

81.179.199.253: Undo revision 405094 by Kynde (talk) By my understanding of the description, not actually intended to be part of the News category.

2026-02-07T19:21:25Z

Undo revision 405094 by Kynde (talk) By my understanding of the description, not actually intended to be part of the News category.

Kynde: Category:News

2026-02-07T14:54:15Z

Category:News

104.23.190.217: /* Explanation */ Add link to 3009: Number Shortage

2025-05-08T16:30:59Z

‎Explanation: Add link to 3009: Number Shortage

DollarStoreBa'al at 15:50, 2 April 2025

2025-04-02T15:50:51Z

Xurkitree10: /* Transcript */

2024-10-18T18:28:57Z

‎Transcript

Coolclawcat: /* Explanation */ Added a new paragraph on induced demand and changed one use of "numbers" to "integers" to clarify the type of numbers displayed on the main branch ("natural numbers" would be even more precise, but that's a less well-known term)

2024-10-07T17:02:17Z

‎Explanation: Added a new paragraph on induced demand and changed one use of "numbers" to "integers" to clarify the type of numbers displayed on the main branch ("natural numbers" would be even more precise, but that's a less well-known term)

Coolclawcat: Fixed formatting/punctuation/grammar and added/reworded statements for clarity

2024-10-06T23:52:17Z

Fixed formatting/punctuation/grammar and added/reworded statements for clarity

162.158.107.19 at 09:50, 21 August 2024

2024-08-21T09:50:13Z

108.162.221.24: /* Explanation */

2024-07-31T15:45:36Z

‎Explanation

172.68.50.13 at 07:11, 30 July 2024

2024-07-30T07:11:02Z

@@ Line 32: / Line 32: @@
 {{comic discussion}}
-[[Category:News]]
 [[Category:Math]]

@@ Line 32: / Line 32: @@
 {{comic discussion}}
+[[Category:News]]
 [[Category:Math]]

@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 This same property of infinite numbers (that all countably infinite sets are the same size) also means that adding the new branch does not increase how many numbers the system can handle. This is similar to the phenomenon of {{w|induced demand}} in transit, where expanding the capacity for a road or train system frequently results in demand rising back up to capacity, becoming just as congested as it was before.
-A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional <em>numerals</em> were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. Similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]].
+A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional <em>numerals</em> were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. Similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]]. A similar joke where numbers were treated as a limited resource appeared in [[3009: Number Shortage]].
 The comic may be a late reference to the opening of the Silver Line extension on the DC metro subway system, which was under construction for 12 years before being opened to the public in 2022.

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:50, 2 April 2025
Line 21:		Line 21:

	A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional <em>numerals</em> were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. Similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]].		A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional <em>numerals</em> were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. Similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]].
		+
		+	The comic may be a late reference to the opening of the Silver Line extension on the DC metro subway system, which was under construction for 12 years before being opened to the public in 2022.

	==Transcript==		==Transcript==

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:28, 18 October 2024
Line 23:		Line 23:

	==Transcript==		==Transcript==
−	~~{{incomplete transcript\|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}~~
	:[A diagram reminiscent of both the number line and a transit system diagram. The line starts at the left and goes right through points labeled 0, 1, 2, and 3, at which point there is a split into two branches. The top branch continues: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, …. The bottom branch is shorter, labeled with five curious glyphs: a square, a near-vertical line with two short horizontal lines jutting out from it, a phi-like/lollipop symbol, a spiral, and a delta/triangle symbol.]		:[A diagram reminiscent of both the number line and a transit system diagram. The line starts at the left and goes right through points labeled 0, 1, 2, and 3, at which point there is a split into two branches. The top branch continues: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, …. The bottom branch is shorter, labeled with five curious glyphs: a square, a near-vertical line with two short horizontal lines jutting out from it, a phi-like/lollipop symbol, a spiral, and a delta/triangle symbol.]

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 ==Explanation==
-This comic likens the {{w|number line}} to a line of a railroad or subway system. These often have branches where different trains continue on to a different destination, with different stops along the way, or travel on parallel lines to allow faster trains to bypass slower ones. In the number line, one branch (presumably the original) contains ordinary numbers, while the newly opened branch consists of some completely different numbers, denoted with various symbols as an analogue to those we use as digits. The branches seem to split around π. The new branch maintains the same distance between numbers as the 'normal' one (as far as it goes) but, due to a longer initial curve away from the junction, the digits of the new branch are also consistently offset slightly to the left from the horizontal positions of the respective digits of the normal branch.
+This comic likens the {{w|number line}} to a line of a railroad or subway system. These often have branches where different trains continue on to a different destination, with different stops along the way, or travel on parallel lines to allow faster trains to bypass slower ones. In the number line, one branch (presumably the original) contains ordinary integers, while the newly opened branch consists of some completely different numbers, denoted with various symbols as an analogue to those we use as digits. The branches seem to split around π. The new branch maintains the same distance between numbers as the 'normal' one (as far as it goes) but, due to a longer initial curve away from the junction, the digits of the new branch are also consistently offset slightly to the left from the horizontal positions of the respective digits of the normal branch.
 The new branch ending with a bold mark at Δ (whereas the original number line fades out after 10) suggests that it is the end of this branching sequence. Mathematicians, apparently, could only afford to construct 5 additional numbers, or their research hasn't yet found other numbers. The branch may have been intended to run much further, but it was possibly {{w|High Speed 2#Cancellation of Phase 2, October 2023|scaled back}} due to budget overruns and cutbacks.
@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 Mathematically, an express train like this would get to its scheduled stops much faster, but it would not actually have any fewer stops overall. Mathematicians that study infinities generally regard all "{{w|Countable_set|countably}}" infinite sets as being the same size (containing the same number of elements). Infinity is not a fixed value; rather, it's the concept of "does not end", so it's paradoxical to try to take a train to a destination that is, by definition, not a single destination. By way of analogue, it's akin to promising to stop hitting your little brother only after you've done so forever.
 A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional <em>numerals</em> were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. Similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]].

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 ==Explanation==
-This comic likens the {{w|number line}} to a line of a railroad or subway system. These often have branches where different trains continue on to a different destination, with different stops along the way, or travel on parallel lines to allow faster trains to bypass slower ones. In the number line, one branch (presumably the original) contains ordinary numbers, while the newly opened branch consists of some completely different numbers, denoted with various symbols as an analogue to those we use as digits. The branches seem to split at π. The new branch maintains the same scale-separations as the 'normal' one (as far as it goes) but, due to a longer initial curve away from the junction, the new-branch digits are also consistently slightly offset from the horizontal positions of the respective old-branch ones.
+This comic likens the {{w|number line}} to a line of a railroad or subway system. These often have branches where different trains continue on to a different destination, with different stops along the way, or travel on parallel lines to allow faster trains to bypass slower ones. In the number line, one branch (presumably the original) contains ordinary numbers, while the newly opened branch consists of some completely different numbers, denoted with various symbols as an analogue to those we use as digits. The branches seem to split around π. The new branch maintains the same distance between numbers as the 'normal' one (as far as it goes) but, due to a longer initial curve away from the junction, the digits of the new branch are also consistently offset slightly to the left from the horizontal positions of the respective digits of the normal branch.
-The sequence ending with a bold mark at Δ (whereas the original number line fades out) suggests that it is the end of this branching sequence. Mathematicians, apparently, could only afford to construct 5 additional numbers, or their research hasn't yet found other numbers. The branch may have been intended to run much further, but been {{w|High Speed 2#Cancellation of Phase 2, October 2023|scaled back}} due to budget overruns and cutbacks.
+The new branch ending with a bold mark at Δ (whereas the original number line fades out after 10) suggests that it is the end of this branching sequence. Mathematicians, apparently, could only afford to construct 5 additional numbers, or their research hasn't yet found other numbers. The branch may have been intended to run much further, but it was possibly {{w|High Speed 2#Cancellation of Phase 2, October 2023|scaled back}} due to budget overruns and cutbacks.
-The title text makes a parallel between a train stopping at a station and a numerical sequence "stopping" at a number – that is, taking it as a value. It's a spoof of announcements that are typically made on trains, so that passengers can confirm that they're on a train that goes to their desired station; an "express train" typically makes fewer stops so it can serve the most popular stops and reach its final destination sooner. In this case, the express train only stops at powers of 2; presumably the "local" stops at every integer. Powers of 2 are 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, …, 2^n, such that the interval between stops grows exponentially larger.
+The title text makes a parallel between a train stopping at a station and a numerical sequence "stopping" at a number – that is, taking it as a value. It's a spoof of announcements that are typically made on trains, so that passengers can confirm that they're on a train that goes to their desired station; an "express train" typically makes fewer stops so it can serve the most popular stops and reach its final destination sooner. In this case, the express train only stops at powers of 2; presumably the "local" train stops at every integer. Powers of 2 are 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, ..., 2<sup>n</sup>, such that the interval between stops grows exponentially larger.
-Mathematically, an express train like this would get to its scheduled stops much faster, but it would not actually have any fewer stops overall. Mathematicians that study infinities generally regard all "{{w|Countable_set|countably}}" infinite sets as being the same "size." Infinity is not a fixed value, rather it's the concept of "does not end," so it's paradoxical to try to take a train to a destination that is, by definition, not a single destination. By way of analogue, it's akin to promising to stop hitting your little brother only after you've done so forever.
+Mathematically, an express train like this would get to its scheduled stops much faster, but it would not actually have any fewer stops overall. Mathematicians that study infinities generally regard all "{{w|Countable_set|countably}}" infinite sets as being the same size (containing the same number of elements). Infinity is not a fixed value; rather, it's the concept of "does not end", so it's paradoxical to try to take a train to a destination that is, by definition, not a single destination. By way of analogue, it's akin to promising to stop hitting your little brother only after you've done so forever.
-A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional ''numerals'' were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. And similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]].
+A fictional number was previously shown in [[899: Number Line]] ("gird"), and fictional <em>numerals</em> were shown in [[2206: Mavis Beacon]]. Similar treatment of mathematics as public infrastructure was seen in [[2735: Coordinate Plane Closure]].
 ==Transcript==
 {{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
-:[A diagram reminiscent of both the number line, and a transit system diagram. The line starts at the left and goes right through points labeled 0, 1, 2, and 3, at which point there is a bifurcation into two branches. The top branch continues: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, …. The bottom branch is shorter, labeled with five curious glyphs: a square, a near-vertical with two short horizontals jutting out from it, a phi-like/lollipop symbol, a spiral and a delta/triangle symbol.]
+:[A diagram reminiscent of both the number line and a transit system diagram. The line starts at the left and goes right through points labeled 0, 1, 2, and 3, at which point there is a split into two branches. The top branch continues: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, …. The bottom branch is shorter, labeled with five curious glyphs: a square, a near-vertical line with two short horizontal lines jutting out from it, a phi-like/lollipop symbol, a spiral, and a delta/triangle symbol.]
 :[Caption below the panel:]

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 The sequence ending with a bold mark at Δ (whereas the original number line fades out) suggests that it is the end of this branching sequence. Mathematicians, apparently, could only afford to construct 5 additional numbers, or their research hasn't yet found other numbers. The branch may have been intended to run much further, but been {{w|High Speed 2#Cancellation of Phase 2, October 2023|scaled back}} due to budget overruns and cutbacks.
-The title text makes a parallel between a train stopping at a station and a numerical sequence "stopping" at a number – that is, taking it as a value. It's a spoof of announcements that are typically made on trains, so that passengers can confirm that they're on a train that goes to their desired station; an "express train" typically makes fewer stops so it can serve the most popular stops and reach its final destination sooner. In this case, the express train only stops at powers of 2; presumably the "local" stops at every integer. Powers of 2 are 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and so on, such that the interval between stops grows exponentially larger.
+The title text makes a parallel between a train stopping at a station and a numerical sequence "stopping" at a number – that is, taking it as a value. It's a spoof of announcements that are typically made on trains, so that passengers can confirm that they're on a train that goes to their desired station; an "express train" typically makes fewer stops so it can serve the most popular stops and reach its final destination sooner. In this case, the express train only stops at powers of 2; presumably the "local" stops at every integer. Powers of 2 are 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, …, n^2, such that the interval between stops grows exponentially larger.
 Mathematically, an express train like this would get to its scheduled stops much faster, but it would not actually have any fewer stops overall. Mathematicians that study infinities generally regard all "{{w|Countable_set|countably}}" infinite sets as being the same "size." Infinity is not a fixed value, rather it's the concept of "does not end," so it's paradoxical to try to take a train to a destination that is, by definition, not a single destination. By way of analogue, it's akin to promising to stop hitting your little brother only after you've done so forever.

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:11, 30 July 2024
Line 10:		Line 10:

	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|Created by a SECOND BOT TO REDUCE CONGESTION - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}~~
	This comic likens the {{w\|number line}} to a line of a railroad or subway system. These often have branches where different trains continue on to a different destination, with different stops along the way, or travel on parallel lines to allow faster trains to bypass slower ones. In the number line, one branch (presumably the original) contains ordinary numbers, while the newly opened branch consists of some completely different numbers, denoted with various symbols as an analogue to those we use as digits. The branches seem to split at π. The new branch maintains the same scale-separations as the 'normal' one (as far as it goes) but, due to a longer initial curve away from the junction, the new-branch digits are also consistently slightly offset from the horizontal positions of the respective old-branch ones.		This comic likens the {{w\|number line}} to a line of a railroad or subway system. These often have branches where different trains continue on to a different destination, with different stops along the way, or travel on parallel lines to allow faster trains to bypass slower ones. In the number line, one branch (presumably the original) contains ordinary numbers, while the newly opened branch consists of some completely different numbers, denoted with various symbols as an analogue to those we use as digits. The branches seem to split at π. The new branch maintains the same scale-separations as the 'normal' one (as far as it goes) but, due to a longer initial curve away from the junction, the new-branch digits are also consistently slightly offset from the horizontal positions of the respective old-branch ones.