Door math?

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ArtW said:
OMG! prescient computers? Oh noooooeeeeessss!

Not closely, nor at expert level, but I've been following the Artificial Intelligence (AI or prescient computer) issue in the news the last couple of years.  Recently, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Stephen Hawking (just to name a few) all said in their own ways, "We better be very careful what we ask for.  Danger, Will Robinson!"  I think it was Hawking who said if we create real AI, it will be an amazing achievement ... and maybe our last.

I said that to say this:  On CNN/Fareed Zakaria GPS this week, I saw an interview with the CEO of IBM, a woman named Ginni Rometty.  A main topic was IBM's Watson supercomputer and its accomplishments, future of AI, etc.  The most interesting part was watching her continually deny that AI will displace any humans, and certainly won't be a danger to any of us.  Her story (and she stuck to it) was that AI will only "augment" or "supplement" human ability, making us even more amazing than we think we are now.  

Hmmm.  Who to believe?!?   :p

Went a long way toward proving gender equality though -- she can lie her ass off with the best of them!

On the bright side, if we do end up with AI, just before they become our overlords, maybe we can teach them to conclusively count van doors!

Vagabound
 
Not a chance, the van door count issue will never be resolved!
NEVER i SAY!! :D
 
ArtW said:
Not a chance, the van door count issue will never be resolved!
NEVER i SAY!! :D
And this will be the shortest thread ever.............................

Um, what went wrong? :p
 
Ballenxj said:
And this will be the shortest thread ever.............................

Um, what went wrong? :p

Been there, done that.  You need to add an original off-topic thing to keep the thread going.  ;-)

Vagabound
 
I didn't add, I responded to your comment
I have to be original? oh bother
 
ArtW said:
I didn't add, I responded to your comment
I have to be original? oh bother

No, silly, I was talking to Ballenxj.  You've met the minimum originality threshold for this thread. ;-)

Vagabound
 
WAIT! What about the hood?
Don't laugh!
It's a door. It opens. It has a handle.
Some people stow a cooking pot in it.
Sometimes.
They probably stow other stuff too, meaning to or not...  :s


Thinking outside the box...errr, van...
 
Ella1 said:
WAIT! What about the hood?

Good point. Somebody should take those dealers and manufacturers to task about their definitions.
They need to standardize them.
 
I was telling a friend about this thread, and she nodded and reminded me about the New Math* (1960s) and Common Core (now). She said, "The American educational system has a lot of idiot teaching behind it. You can't teach clever techniques when you can't even teach that two plus two equals four."

So, that's probably the trouble with doors: the New Math victims count one way, and the Common Core people count another way. The problem is that they don't even know how many fingers (or doors) each number represents.

*I missed the New Math by two years, but my sister got it right between the eyes. Mom tried to help her at home, but when her papers came back, Mom's answers were wrong. So she went to the teacher and asked her to explain the new way of teaching. Mom came home dumbfounded -- the teacher couldn't explain it to HER.
 
In my case, it was old math.  Regardless of math title, all I know is it could have been more effective.  Had a similar problem trying to help kids with their "new math".  Contrary to what the TV commercials have taught us, I guess the words "new and improved" don't always belong together.

When it comes to the door counting debacle, while the math-types thing is funny, I suspect that anyone with minimal common sense and any type of math training could accurately count the doors.  The problem arises when the marketing and PR people get involved, who have the "fruits" of their devious mental labor further muddied by lawyers.  When that's over with, it's amazing that anyone knows the name of anything.

Vagabound
 
Update just for fun:

About two weeks ago, when this topic was pretty active, I decided, "Hey, I'm tired of messing around.  I'm gonna ask the big boys."  So, I sent an email to Ford and one to GM.  Doesn't come much more authoritative than that. I asked them the door counting question.

Status:  Two weeks later they are both still thinking.  

Ford:  They first said something like "Thanks for contacting Ford Motor Company.  We invite you to enjoy the great expanse of the Internet as you search endlessly for your answer.  Let us know if we can help you again."  I always love that last part, certain to be tacked onto the end of a reply in which nothing helpful exists.  I replied, saying basically "What?  That's it?!?"  Then they said they would refer my question to a "Technical Subject Matter Expert."  This expert, if not named "Recycle Bin", is still thinking also.

GM sent this:
"At this time, we do not have information readily available that is needed [to] answer your question.  However, we have escalated your inquiry and we will contact you when we have received a response.  Depending on the complexity of the inquiry and the department required to answer the question, it may take some time to get a response back.  We hope this delay will not cause you any inconvenience in your research or purchase decision.  In the meantime, please let us know if we may be of additional assistance."

So, I think it's safely official now -- van door counting isn't simple after all. ;-)

Vagabound
 
Vagabound said:
About two weeks ago, when this topic was pretty active, I decided, "Hey, I'm tired of messing around.  I'm gonna ask the big boys."  So, I sent an email to Ford and one to GM.  Doesn't come much more authoritative than that.  I asked them the door counting question.

Status:  Two weeks later they are both still thinking. 

Sounds like they both just admitted they don't know? :p
 
this thread has gone from interesting to silly to ridiculous to absurd
Only in Corporate America can you manufacture a product and be unable to answer a simple, basic question about it
I will continue my method of counting points af entry which are clearly designed for passenger entry into the passenger compartment as door, and not cargo hatches (trunk, rear hatch, rear van door, pickup tailgate) or maintenance hatches (hood, doghouse cover) as doors untill Higher Authority says I'm wrong. I will also continue to count barn doors as one pair, rather than 2 separate door, since removing one of them renders the other worthless

Oh BTW, since we're being so absurd as to include the hood, you forgot the doghouse :D
Now, I really, really want to see someone post a CL ad selling an "8 door Chevy 2500 van" and then explain to the potential buyers that the barn doors count as 2 doors, rather than a 'pair of doors' and that the hood and doghouse count as doors, too
Please post the number of respondents who look at you like you suddenly grew an extra head and three new eyes in random locations
 
ArtW said:
this thread has gone from interesting to silly to ridiculous to absurd
Only in Corporate America can you manufacture a product and be unable to answer a simple, basic question about it
I will continue my method of counting points af entry which are clearly designed for passenger entry ...

And people think that _I_ take topics seriously! hahaha

Agree about Corporate America, but the truly scary thing is, they're better than most Corporate Anywhereelse.

Vagabound
 
Do you honestly think I was serious about the sales experiment? lol
 
Corporate America tends to overthink things that are simple, and ignore matters that are important. Common sense is as rare there as anywhere else.
 
ArtW said:
Do you honestly think I was serious about the sales experiment? lol

No, not at all.  I was referring to the "I will continue to count ..." part.  It just struck me as very serious and formal, like I will strive on, persevere, overcome .... (music crescendo, etc).  Just my failed attempt at humor.  Carry on!

If I ever get actual replies from Ford or GM, I'll post them here.  Should be some good entertainment. ;-)

Vagabound
 
I think this thread needs a bump as it was both humorous and non enlightening/enlightening at the same time.
Everybody deserves the chance to read this. :p
 

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