in simple terms

jbml thln 34c

ONE
IS NOW
DOING HIGH SCHOOL
GEOMETRY ON GRAPH PAPER,
FIRST SPECIFYING OBJECTS BY THE COORDINATES OF THEIR ENDPOINTS,
AND THEN DESCRIBING SHAPES BY CALCULATING
THE LENGTHS OF THE LINE SEGMENTS
THAT CONNECT THE ENDPOINTS.

Similarly, it is possible to reformulate the mathematical description of physical interactions, replacing all references to physical distance with references to the coordinates (location) of the participating objects. Now as we play with the rubber band, we specify the five sets of coordinates describing the independent locations of our fingertips, & calculate the distances over which we are stretching the rubber, using the Pythagorean theorem and similar mathematical relationships.

Although this approach has been a strategic success for physics, it subtly changes the underlying conception of the physical process in two significant ways. First, by emphasizing the individual location of each object, the coordinate method encourages us to regard systems as consisting of ontologically independent entities that enter interaction at some fortuitous moment only after they are wholly formed, rather than parts of a whole that owe their existence to the relationships that characterize their species.
06 mrt 2013 - bewerkt op 07 mrt 2013 - meld ongepast verhaal
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Asih, man, 81 jaar
   
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