Pythagoras and Doctor Amy
By David Glenn Cox
　
Having been a student of history all my life I have run across many incidents of ignorance and bigotry. I had read that Pythagoras the father of the Pythagorean theorem was once thrown overboard by superstitious sailors who thought that his mathematics were some sort of devils work. I had blindly and in error accepted this as fact, as most all of us in the modern era accept that ancient peoples were ignorant and uneducated. So I believed, until I ran across Doctor Amy and she made me reexamine my historical prejudices. Suppose it had actually gone something like this,
"Look here my good man, the sum of the area of any two squares in a right triangle equals the area of the square on the hypotenuse. a2 + b2 = c2 understand?"
"Ah, Thag, we’re just sailors and don’t really understand what this is got to do with why you took two deserts at dinner tonight."
"Well you would if you weren’t so ignorant! Why you just look here at this scroll that Socrates wrote and that will explain it!"
"Thag, you know very well that we can’t read,"
"That’s my point precisely, you’re too stupid to read therefore you’re too stupid to understand. So I get two deserts and you have a lot of nerve to dare question me why! I’m a doctor you know!"
"Can you look at this sore on my foot?"
"I don’t practice anymore and besides I’m a doctor of Mathematics, I left the profession, I grew tired of milling with those who did not appreciate my greatness! Fools and knaves unworthy to touch the hem of my raiment. Ignorant fools who dared to question my wisdom!
Splash!
　
In the days when Christopher Columbus set out in his three ships, the ship’s compass was kept in a closed box away from the eyes of the crew. The fear was that a needle that appeared to magically point north might incite the superstitious crew to violence.
"Captain Columbus?"
"Yes, what is it sailor?"
"Ah, Captain, the crew and I couldn’t help but notice that you keep looking in that box up on deck. And well, the crew asked me to ask you, what’s in the box?"
"Nothing you need concern your self about you lowly lout!"
"Captain, you know we’ve been sailing into the unknown for weeks now and the men and I with all do respect are becoming worried about sea serpents. It is a well known and respected theory that sea serpents inhabit the ends of the ocean."
"You believe these things only because you are stupid fools! Ignorant men barely above savages! I dine with Kings and Queens and I am a renowned map maker known to all who live in the small city of Genoa and by literally a couple of dozen sea captains in the Mediterranean!"
"Ok, Captain, you’re the boss, the big cheese, the head honcho, Mister know it all, so ah, tell me oh great one! Where are we heading to?"
"You ignorant lowlife dog that would ask that I demean myself by trying to explain magnetism to the ignorant and superstitious inferior life forms such as yourself. When any fool knows that India lies just dead ahead of us! In just a few hours we shall lounging in the Punjab and be remembered as the discovers of the shortcut to India!"
Splash!
Headline- Madrid, Christopher Columbus noted explorer and mapmaker was reported lost at sea in freak boating accident. The crew returned safely to port with no further loss of life.
　
"Citizens of France! God Almighty has called me forth that I should build an army and liberate France for the Gory of God!"
"Whew, that’s some mighty high-falueten talk there Joan. An Army for the glory of god? Got any proof? Are we going to get paid? I mean we’ve all got jobs now and families to take care of and we can’t just drop everything to go join the army without knowing that its on the level and we’re going to at least get paid."
"You fools! You dare to question the will of God Almighty himself!"
"No, no Joan, you’ve got it all wrong. The problem is not with God, we trust him just fine. It’s you that we’ve got the problem with, your yelling at people with that God says do this and God says do that and never any proof except your constant repeating of that same old line, "Because God commands it!" To be quite honest Joan, me and the other peasants are growing more than a little tired of you acting like you’re the only one that God ever speaks to around here."
"But I am! You stupid ignorant foolish peasants don’t you realize that I am God’s chosen messenger! To stand against me is to stand against the will of God himself! When you die you stupid peasants shall burn in the fires of hell forever for disputing with me!"
"Maybe so Joan, but something tells me you’ll be in the flames first. I’m on my way over to the Wal-Mart over in Arc for some charcoal starter and some rope. If you’re still here when I get back it could go real bad for you!"
My ignorant, foolish, superstitious and sainted Irish Mother used to speak in praise of the gift of Gab. Not just the ability to speak or to speak well, but the ability to win people over to your point of view. It doesn’t require the gift of gab to call someone a fool or to make up names to call them. It is a foolish waste of education to know so much but to express it so poorly as to resort to name calling with those whom you disagree. Some will never be won over and you can think of them whatever you wish but name calling makes their point and not yours.
I think Doctors Amy’s answers could set back medical science by generations. I’d much rather be treated by a pleasant witch doctor than a snarling doctor witch.
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Dr. Amy, No matter how medically correct you may be in what you are saying, and I am certain you are correct quite a lot of the time, your responses to people who doubt or question you are boorish. And really, I don't think it matters if they are equally boorish.
You are a highly privileged woman with a better education, and many more options and resources available to you than most people can afford, and yet, you don't seem to have grasped the concept that you attract more flies with honey than you do with vinegar. That glaring omission reflects on both your character and your judgment.
My grandmother, a simple farm woman, wouldn't have let me go to kindergarten without having taught me that simple principle. It has always been clear to me, no matter how far I travelled and what I learned that demonstrating respect does not depend on the behavior of others. I can't say I have always been good at this, but I work hard to do my best.
Your unkindness undercuts any benefit you feel inclined to render. That seems emotionally and deeply unintelligent to me.
I stumbled over this site, and saw the name Pythagoras in a blog-post. I love mathematics myself, so I gave it a click.
All I found was some garbled, sarcastic nonsense that appeared to be directed at someone named Doctor Amy. I did a search, found one of her posts, and came across a reply you had left there. It “kinda” confirmed my suspicion that you were a few fries short of a Happy Meal.
In your reply - You made the rather startling assertion that this Doctor Amy person is a “hack.” Then you claim that she was forced out of practice. Whoa.
Was she? Is that true?
Or are you making a purely libelous statement? And do you realize that she can (probably) take legal action against you if your statement is untrue? (She may have to prove damages – I’m not a lawyer.)
Either way, who the heck do you think you are?
(Doctor Amy - If you're reading this, if not legal action, at least consider notifying the site owners, and request that this gentleman be expelled from the site for his libelous, defamatory statements.)
And Cox, how did you manage to squeeze so many spelling errors into your three-paragraph reply anyway? “She mantains”? “indepently wealthy”? “lawfull driver”?
Not to mention your grade-school writing level, found in both your reply, and here in your “Pythagoras” article. Run-on sentences, juvenile content, horrible composition. And, again, the grammar: “two deserts at dinner”? “Doctors Amy’s answers”?
Your writing is barely coherent – heck, it’s barely even writing at all.
Also, realize that sarcasm and wit are two different things - please learn the distinction. You reek of the former and utterly lack the latter.
And the witch doctor metaphor and photo? How old are you anyway?
I think I understand who you are. You hate your impotent, ineffectual self, and can only find satisfaction in ridiculing people that you’re simply incapable of confronting with cogent arguments – put simply, a fool.
But none of the above inspired me to write this reply.
I’m writing because you don’t have a clue as to Pythagoras. That’s where you stepped into my domain, and “inspired” me to step into yours.
You claim that you “read somewhere” that Pythagoras was thrown overboard by superstitious sailors. No… you never read that. It was Hippasus who was allegedly thrown overboard by Pythagoras’ followers for his discovery of irrational numbers.
You claim to be a ”student of history.” Who are you trying to fool? If you knew anything about history, you would have also known that Pythagoras died well before Socrates was born.
May I suggest that , while you’re brushing up on your history, you work on acquiring some English skills, composition, spelling, and grammar in particular – and maybe mathematics too.
And here’s a tenet you may wish to consider adopting:
“It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
That's the problems with elitists like yourself. You talk-down to other people, boasting a superior knowledge. But you're really just an insecure little man, with nothing to offer, save for streams of sarcastic, banal remarks.
Sir, you are Fail.