# 30 + 30 = 39. Please Explain. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 29, 2004, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006 "2004-03-29T03:25:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![WernhamHogg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a587f6/32.png) [@WernhamHogg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WernhamHogg)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/1 "2004-03-29T03:25:45Z")
Yesterday Skutirette and I were watching a Ryan Adams (that’s [**Ryan Adams**](http://www.ryan-adams.com), not Bryan Adams, thank you) DVD and he was wearing a T-shirt that said “30 Plus 30 Equals 39.” Now it might just be an inside joke that no-one could get if they didn’t know him personally, but is there a joke here I’m not getting? Perhaps something drug- or alcohol- or music-related? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/2 "2004-03-29T04:03:29Z")
I don’t know what the answer is but if you put “30 Plus 30 Equals 39.” (just like that quotes and all) into google, you get one link. Don’t click it, it’s some message board, then a couple of strange pop ups, then gator tries to download. ---
**Author:** ![WernhamHogg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a587f6/32.png) [@WernhamHogg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WernhamHogg)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/3 "2004-03-29T04:50:29Z")
Yeah, thanks – I did do that. No issues with Gator for me at home, I’m on a Mac, and Safari has a popup blocker. What I found was a fan site where somebody who saw the original airing of the show in MTV said Ryan’s t-shirt was the coolest evah, but I don’t know if she “gets it,” or just thinks it is funny. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/4 "2004-03-29T05:36:01Z")
There’s an antique joke among people of a certain age that some folks cease to admit to any age past 39. They have many 39th birthdays. This originated, I believe, with a running gag of Jack Benny’s. This was referred to in the movie _Gypsy,_ about Gypsy Rose Lee, a queen among strippers. In some out of the way burly-q hall, Gypsy follows a comic named Jack Benny, who gets a big laugh by claiming to be only 39. Some of us don’t follow the rule. I’m 54. Oh, by the way, I don’t think the Benny gag is in the stage play. ---
**Author:** ![MannyL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@MannyL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MannyL)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/5 "2004-03-29T12:52:39Z")
> [@skutir](#): > > Yesterday Skutirette and I were watching a Ryan Adams (that’s [**Ryan Adams**](http://www.ryan-adams.com), not Bryan Adams, thank you) DVD and he was wearing a T-shirt that said “30 Plus 30 Equals 39.” Now it might just be an inside joke that no-one could get if they didn’t know him personally, but is there a joke here I’m not getting? Perhaps something drug- or alcohol- or music-related? Wasn’t there a saying once don’t ever trust someone over 40? ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/6 "2004-03-29T15:49:03Z")
> [@MannyL](#): > > Wasn’t there a saying once don’t ever trust someone over 40? I believe it’s “Don’t trust anyone over 30.” And believe me, the boomers do not like having that one thrown back at them by their children. ---
**Author:** ![WernhamHogg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a587f6/32.png) [@WernhamHogg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WernhamHogg)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/7 "2004-03-29T16:21:35Z")
AksNott’s notion occurred to me. The joke’s not that funny when the guy wearing is maybe 28 (when the video was made), although that might be the joke, and it’s not that funny anyway… given a lack of other explanations, I’ll take it. I thought maybe there was something I was missing. ---
**Author:** ![Inoshiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a9adbd/32.png) [@Inoshiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inoshiro)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/8 "2004-03-29T16:30:19Z")
> [@skutir](#): > > Yesterday Skutirette and I were watching a Ryan Adams (that’s [**Ryan Adams**](http://www.ryan-adams.com), not Bryan Adams, thank you) DVD and he was wearing a T-shirt that said “30 Plus 30 Equals 39.” Now it might just be an inside joke that no-one could get if they didn’t know him personally, but is there a joke here I’m not getting? Perhaps something drug- or alcohol- or music-related? Well, in base 17 arithmetic it’s true. 39 = 60. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/9 "2004-03-29T17:48:19Z")
When I saw this thread, I thought it was like those “reunify Ireland” slogans (12+3=1, maybe? Can’t remember how many counties in Ireland). Can’t say why that sort of stuff annoys me so–must be the nerd in me, raging at such a blatantly incorrect math equation. ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/10 "2004-03-29T18:06:08Z")
> [@Joey P](#): > > …then gator tries to download. What is this? An up-and-coming “Everglades” virus? - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/11 "2004-03-29T18:20:32Z")
> [@Jinx](#): > > What is this? An up-and-coming “Everglades” virus? > > - Jinx Horrible spyware program (from a company called GAIN) that poses innocently as a helpful “Fill in the Forms For You!” program - it stores your information (eg, email address, address, name, etc.) and then auto fills any forms you might encounter on the web. And then it uses all that nifty little info that an unwitting user supplies it and whisks it off to… wherever it whisks it off to. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/12 "2004-03-29T18:24:21Z")
> [@](#): > > Some of us don’t follow the rule. I’m 54. Sure. And for how many years have you been 54, now? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/13 "2004-03-29T18:38:52Z")
That was the first thing I thought when I saw this thread’s title, that it was some play on bases. (_God_, I’m a geek!). It also works for base 3: 30base3 = 9base10 = 9 39base3 = 18base10 = 18 ===\> 9 + 9 = 18 > [@Inoshiro](#): > > Well, in base 17 arithmetic it’s true. 39 = 60. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sergio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@Sergio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sergio)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/14 "2004-03-29T18:56:41Z")
> [@F. U. Shakespeare](#): > > That was the first thing I thought when I saw this thread’s title, that it was some play on bases. (_God_, I’m a geek!). It also works for base 3: > > 30base3 = 9base10 = 9 > 39base3 = 18base10 = 18 ===\> 9 + 9 = 18 Base 3 uses only the digits 0, 1 and 2. So, neither 30 nor 39 have any meaning in base 3. ---
**Author:** ![Inoshiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a9adbd/32.png) [@Inoshiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inoshiro)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/15 "2004-03-29T21:03:03Z")
> [@Sérgio](#): > > Base 3 uses only the digits 0, 1 and 2. So, neither 30 nor 39 have any meaning in base 3. I think what he’s getting at is that 3 \* 3^1 + 0 \* 3^0 = 9 and 3 \* 3^1 + 9 \* 3^0 = 9 + 9 = 18. So if you allow the oddball idea of having a symbol in base 3 to represent 3 then you can see that 30 = 9. Admittedely, the canonical way to write 9 would be 100 in base 3 and 18 would be 200. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/16 "2004-03-29T21:03:56Z")
You’re right – mea culpa. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2004, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/17 "2004-03-29T21:12:10Z")
> [@toadspittle](#): > > When I saw this thread, I thought it was like those “reunify Ireland” slogans (12+3=1, maybe? 26 + 6 = 1 –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![Atrael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Atrael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atrael)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2004, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/18 "2004-03-30T16:19:08Z")
Huh…and here I thought it was a play on an old Abbot and Costello bit. I can’t remember the details, but they add up some numbers to equal a totally wrong answer, yet it somehow makes perfect sense at the time. ---
**Author:** ![TJdude825](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@TJdude825](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJdude825)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-30-39-please-explain/237006/19 "2004-03-31T05:45:10Z")
[hijack] Did anyone read the Wayside School books by Louis Sachar (same author as Holes and some other books)? In one story, one of the kids is learning to add, and the teacher (Mrs. Jewels?) is explaining how adding is really just counting, and then suddenly discovers that the kid never learned how to count. She puts 5 objects on a desk and asks him to count them. He points at each one, saying, “8, 23, 105, 394, 5. There are 5 objects.” Mrs. Jewels: No… you see, there are… oh. Well yes, you counted the wrong way, but you did get the right answer. Try counting this way: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Now count these objects. \ Kid: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. There are 10 objects. J: \ No… there are 3. K: I don’t get it! I count the wrong way and I get the right answer, but then I count the right way and I get the wrong answer! \ [/hijack]