Forum: Writers


Subject: The "Why-The-Heck" Tale and Secret.

-Klaus opened this issue on Sep 19, 2002 ยท 4 posts


-Klaus posted Thu, 19 September 2002 at 7:48 AM

Hi, This is a writing about fiction-reality, or reality-fiction. I have a real story to tell you, about something happening to me when I was younger. This is it: One day, long ago, my father (who was a math-engeneer, a researcher & a rocket-scientist)_ asked me once to try & solve a geometry problem. An it was a kind of joke & reality geometrical problem to solve at the same time, a parable too... The problem was: _"A farmer possesses a round (circular) closed field of grass to have his goat grazing. _But, (by a bizarre decision of his), he wanted that the goat could only graze (and eat) half of the surface of the circular field, with a peg (stake) planted exactly on one point the field's perimeter, to keep the goat in leach" with a rope to be able to eat only the half of the field's surface's grass. _The question was: "_If you know the diameter's length of the round (circle) field of gras is "x", then what must be the length "y" of the rope that holds the goat so that it allows the animal to eat only the half surface of the round field of grass, and not more ?" I was told that it needs knowledge about "Integrals"-Maths to solve this one. I am not a mathematician, I still do not know the answer_and, really, I don't care too much, you'll see why, but much later, it just made me think tomyself: "Why the heck, and what kind of farmer, peasant, or ANY farmer would want or need his goat - or any other kind of cattle _ being allowed or not eating ONLY half the surface of a round field, and what the heck is this bloody funny & strange idea coming from, if not from a tortured & sick-minded person ?" That 's what I think now, after so many years my father told me and saidit was an interesting Geometry problem. Yes, it's interesting, and..very difficult to find the solution.....of the problem. The thing is: Do we really need to CREATE problems that don't exist in the Nature ? ...And can we apply this question to Politics & Human Life, and is this very last question here relevant ? Excerpts of my book: "Why the heck ?" or "A New Approach into the Philosophy of Mathematics and other matters like Arts & History". ..I love so much my Dad. Bless you, Daddy, wherever you are today.