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    #1

    I need help. Please help.

    This is kind of embarrassing… I used to solve problems like this all the time but I’ve forgotten how. Any help is appreciated (not that I actually expect any. A math problem on the pavilion!? I’m crazy for even asking!).



    I read this sf story that presumably takes place sometime in the future. Nothing’s really defined and half the fun of the story is figuring out what exactly is going on. We’re told that there are 250 “ours” in a day and during the story characters sometimes refer to the time as 076:30 (or whatever) so we can assume that each “our” has 60 “minutes.” We can also assume that this story doesn’t take place on another planet and so that the rotation of the earth takes the same amount of time that it does it real life. Basically 24 hours. So, what I’m trying to figure out is just how long an “our” is.



    If we divide 24 by 250 we find out that an “our” is 1/.096th of a day. And we know that there are 1440 minutes in a day. So how many minutes are in 1/.096th? If I cross multiply I keep coming up with 138.24. But that doesn’t make any sense. I’m stuck. Can anyone help? This has been driving me nuts all day.
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    #2
    Re: I need help. Please help.

    5.76 minutes? Perhaps?

    If there are 1440 minutes in a 24 hour day, and 250 groups of these minutes in their day, 1440 / 250 = 5.76.

    "Couch co-op is the only true co-op." Richard of the Cooks.

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      #3
      Re: I need help. Please help.

      I think it's because you set the problem up wrong.

      So there are 250 'ours'/ 1 day and 1440 minutes / 1 day so you have 250 'our' = 1440 minutes = 1 day. So 1440 minutes / 250 'ours' = 5.76 minutes / 'our'.

      So 5.76 minutes in an 'our' which makes since because there are 250 in a day as opposed to 24, meaning an 'our' is .096 hours long, not .096 days long. Also a 'minute' is .096 minutes oddly enough, so a 'minute' is 5.76 seconds.
      Last edited by thetruecoolness; 10-06-2007, 07:20 PM.
      はじめまして。真（しん）の冷静（れいせい）です。どうぞよろしく。
      http://www.thetruecoolness.com/

      5198-2124-7210 Smash

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        #4
        Re: I need help. Please help.

        Great! Thanks guys. I see my mistake now. And knowing the actual time frame makes the chronology of the story much easyer to understand.

        Thanks a ton!

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          #5
          Re: I need help. Please help.

          What story is this anyhow?
          Last edited by Red Dragon; 10-06-2007, 07:53 PM.

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            #6
            Re: I need help. Please help.

            I think it's called, "The Days of Hour Lives".

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              #7
              Re: I need help. Please help.

              I get it.
              The Cyclops having only one eye, needed to seek shelter from the harsh sun. The shadow cast by the spheres gave him temporary respite.

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                #8
                Re: I need help. Please help.

                It's called Forlesen. It's by Gene Wolfe.

                It's about a man who wakes up remembering nothing except his name, Emanuel Forlesen. Some memories slowly return. He recalls that people cover themselves with clothing. He remembers language. Before he can remember more his wife begins to rush him off to work. She points out a stack of manuals which explain his responsibilities. He only has time to scan them.

                He then begins a day of work that parodies the typical office environment. Dibert-esk in it's humor, but very realistic in it's depiction of a depressing and oppressive life. Here Forlesen meets his co-workers who on the surface level seem confident and knowledgeable but underneath are as lost and befuddled as he is. They are obviously bluffing their way along and after Forlesen begins to imitate them his 'progress' at work becomes streamlined. Through the day he goes from confused new-hire to middle management to retiree and when he arrives home a coffin is waiting for him.

                I've looked at some of the discussion on Urth.net and no one, that I saw, came to the same conclusion I did about the true nature of Forlesen's environment. The two most populated theories is that he's either dead and in hell or in a computer. I came to a completely different conclusion based on the identities of the people that Forlesen meets and some cool naming conventions. I'm surprised that these people, who are accustom to reading Wolfe, are ignoring such important clues. Maybe I'll write in and add my two cents.

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                  #9
                  Re: I need help. Please help.

                  ya...... king hippo is the best character of all time from punchout
                  "Dans le veritable amour c'est l'ame, qui enveloppe le corps"

                  Comment

                    #10
                    Re: I need help. Please help.

                    You should have just told Czechs that in a rep comment. Hit the scales icon under his avatar.
                    The Cyclops having only one eye, needed to seek shelter from the harsh sun. The shadow cast by the spheres gave him temporary respite.

                    Comment

                      #11
                      Re: I need help. Please help.

                      oh lol i didnt know that thanx
                      "Dans le veritable amour c'est l'ame, qui enveloppe le corps"

                      Comment

                        #12
                        Re: I need help. Please help.

                        You should probably just stick to giving out rep and not making posts.
                        The Cyclops having only one eye, needed to seek shelter from the harsh sun. The shadow cast by the spheres gave him temporary respite.

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