John Allen Paulos discussing Innumeracy on Letterman.wmv

[jgwphilly1969]

I am taking two classes with a guy who was taught by John Allen Paulos

[jarhead4life]

dude thats my teacher wtf

[geddypasto]

This is how he teaches, as well!

[XvTdormant]

although i did not verify the validity of that statement :X

[XvTdormant]

what he was trying to say abt the molecules .. is that the number of molecules is so unimaginably huge that the last breath of Caesar has engh molecules that after being distributed evenly across the earth atmosphere .. the probability is still more than 99% to inhale 1 of tat molecule he exhaled .. which is extremely non intuitive and it adds on to the point that innumeracy is usually a result of intuitive fallacies

[angela1894]

OMG folks, we've just witnessed the most boring interview on Letterman. Who gives a SHIT how many days it takes for a million/billion/trillion seconds to tick by ? And he's not even that qualified, a math professor at Temple University ? Not Harvard or MIT, but Temple.

[dudev]

@angela1894

The point flew over your head like a jumbo jet, and you didn't even notice.

[JeromeMatthewLam]

His molecule claim is false,nevertheless.If we can breath the same air Caesar breath every time we take a breathe then won't we be dead because when we breath, we breath in all the poisonous stuff in the world.Other than this error.I think he's brilliant.

Thanks for sharing.Hope you have more of his materials.

[hyperbolaisagraph]

@JeromeMatthewLam No, I don't think so. At least, not necessarily. Compared to regular old air, the amount of harmful compounds in each breath has got to be unfathomably dilute.

[PhantomAct]

Am currently reading his book #LOL

[TomValedro]

His book is naiz.

[PrisonerJohnDrake2]

Prof. Paulos's book has many better, substantive points about the importance of developing one's quantitative ability, both for an individual and a culture.

Innumeracy is a fun book, not a trivial one.

John Allen Paulos has also written such worthwhile and fun books as 'Beyond Numeracy' and 'A Mathematician Looks At The Newspaper'.

Glad he got in the point here about alcohol being a carcinogen.

Kudos to Letterman for putting him on the show.

[onlyblackstranger215]

Dr Paulos........................­..Wow

[anacasillas1]

Excellent! Thanks for sharing this.