Frazz by Jef Mallett for September 12, 2011
Transcript:
Mrs. Olson: And that's the fable of the tortoise and the hare. Reports are due Friday. Caulfield: Can we turn it in early? Mrs. Olson: Of course. Caulfield: Ok, so we know she doesn't quite get the point herself. Frazz: It's nice to see you enjoying your homework so much.
kathrynismerry about 13 years ago
Mrs. Olsen gets the last laugh by giving the speedy, unresearched, poorly thought-out paper a D-.
Basqueian about 13 years ago
Probably will have fifteen different philosophical takes and she will get none of them
SusanSunshine Premium Member about 13 years ago
Starting with @Trapper John from yesterday — hey I was only about seven.
I don’t believe I ever thought at that age about any clothes being “made.” They just sprang full-blown into existence on the racks at Montgomery Ward..
My Mom didn’t sew, and replacing a button was a major undertaking.
Ergo, sewing Superman’s big S onto indestructible material seemed impossible.
Later I learned that things like Superman’s suit and Caulfield’s genius are both created from the stuff of dreams…..
ie, the suspension of disbelief required for the enjoyment of superheroes and comic strips, from talking animals to wise, knowing, 8-year-old philosophers.
Of COURSE Caulfield’s paper will be great – but in it he’ll explain her mistake, and she’ll need some more Excedrin.
titans4227 about 13 years ago
How does Caulfield ever keep from getting a swelled head?He needs to take the road of all great innovators of the day; drop out of school so he has the freedom to use his genius.
fritzoid Premium Member about 13 years ago
Caulfield doesn’t say he will turn the paper in early, he’s just asking if he may.
If Calufield really wants to mess with Mrs. Olson’s mind, he should write his paper on “The Tortoise and Achilles.” It will be incomplete, and he’ll argue that the Friday deadline could never have been met, because before the paper could be finished it would have to be half finished, and then three-quarters finished, and then four-fifths finished, ad infinitum.
cissycox about 13 years ago
fritzoid: I think my students often used that theory.
fritzoid Premium Member about 13 years ago
Similar concept, Trapper (essentially it’s identical), but as it was posited the Achilles paradox DID involve Achilles closing the distance towards a goal. At every increment, whenever Achilles reaches the point where the tortoise was the tortoise has nonetheless moved a finite distance further; ergo, Achilles will never catch the tortoise, hoever infinitessimally close he comes.
I was originally going to have Caulfield pursuing a receding deadline, perhaps asking for a three-day extension, then a one-day extension, then a 3-hour extension, etc., but that got too wordy.
Seeker149 Premium Member about 13 years ago
If Caulfield really wanted to emulate the hare, he would have to write most of the report right away but never complete it.