The reason I am posting this is that I was reading Cecil’s column about whether Newton was a virgin or not.
In the column,he said that “How the math gene perpetuates itself is one of the mysteries of our age”
I don’t know whether he was ironic or not, but as the daughter of two mathematicians, (who met in the maths building of their university), I had to comment.
I don’t know how the math gene perpetuates itself either…since I’m HOPELESS at maths. Ironically. Maybe I’m lacking a gene somewhere, who knows.
Welcome to the SDMB, and thank you for posting your comment.
Please include a link to Cecil’s column if it’s on the straight dope web site.
To include a link, it can be as simple as including the web page location in your post (make sure there is a space before and after the text of the URL).
Cecil’s column can be found on-line at this link:
Was Isaac Newton a virgin? (21-Jun-1996)
The column (including Slug Signorino’s illustration) can also be found on pages 208-209 of Cecil Adams’ book «The Straight Dope Tells All».
moderator, «Comments on Cecil’s Columns»
If there’s any doubt, then that’s your answer: you can safely assume irony.
It’s the "spirit"s little joke. heheh
The latest theory is that the math gene doesn’t just divide and multiply like others do, it uses logarithms.