Basic concepts that seem to escape the grasp of most people

[Blackjack200]

Simple example: I walked into the kitchen at my parents' house the other day and the oven door was open, even though the oven was off. My mom leaves the oven door open so as not to waste the residual heat after the baking is finished (during the winter).

Few years back I was talking to my dad about insurance and how the premiums go up every year even if you never make a claim. He said "Well, the insurance company knows that if you go for a while without an accident, you're due." I argued no, that's not the case, and pointed out that if you flip a quarter and it comes up tails 9 times, it's still 50/50 odds on the tenth flip. He told me 'no', heads is more likely on the 10th flip.

I'm always amused by these seemingly straightforward scientific and mathematic concepts that seem to elude people for whatever reason.

Another one that I've heard of but never personally run into is people that don't understand how graduated income tax rates work. i.e. they believe there are certain breakpoints where earning another dollar of income will result in reduced earnings because the taxes on their entire gross income will increase.

Anyone else have examples?

 

[Nograts]

The Vikings had it right with their rape, pillage and plunder mentality. Because YOLO.

 

[rsbennett00]

Simple example: I walked into the kitchen at my parents' house the other day and the oven door was open, even though the oven was off. My mom leaves the oven door open so as not to waste the residual heat after the baking is finished (during the winter).

Few years back I was talking to my dad about insurance and how the premiums go up every year even if you never make a claim. He said "Well, the insurance company knows that if you go for a while without an accident, you're due." I argued no, that's not the case, and pointed out that if you flip a quarter and it comes up tails 9 times, it's still 50/50 odds on the tenth flip. He told me 'no', heads is more likely on the 10th flip.

I'm always amused by these seemingly straightforward scientific and mathematic concepts that seem to elude people for whatever reason.

Another one that I've heard of but never personally run into is people that don't understand how graduated income tax rates work. i.e. they believe there are certain breakpoints where earning another dollar of income will result in reduced earnings because the taxes on their entire gross income will increase.

Anyone else have examples?

I'm pretty stupid about taxes (I pay a cpa to do them and tell him not to pull any BS to get me to pay less) so it wouldn't surprise me if your example was how it worked.

Here's a crazy story that I never figured out. When I was a teenager, long long ago, and was working my first job, my employer switched from a weekly pay period to a two week pay period. Instead of being paid every friday, it was every other friday. I remember looking at my two pay stubs from the switch and being baffled as to why it wasn't simply double, it was less. My gross pay was exactly double but the federal taxes being withheld was more than double so I was essentially making less money, simply because I was paid less frequently? None of us teenagers knew and I never did figure out what the hell.

 

[pete6032]

If an airplane was on a runway that was a conveyor belt going to opposite direction of which the plane was trying to take off, would the plane actually be able to lift off the ground and take off?

 

[Kaido]

Anyone else have examples?

Yes:

1. Finances
2. Free time

People complain about how they don't have any money, but walk in with a $6 Starbucks drink in the morning & don't think twice about blowing $10 for lunch at McDonalds. That's literally a car payment every month if you do it every day of the workweek, which a lot of people do! The only way you can be completely honest about your budget is if you write down what you spend every night to track it, or if you have good enough habits that you can mentally stay within your spending power without exceeding it or getting overdrawn. People DO have money, but it's more convenient to spend it on eating out, smoking, drinking, etc. Addictions & small daily spending add up & people don't realize how much! I went through a period of my life where I didn't go out to eat at all for a long time & was amazed at how much money I saved! (I later realized that I love food & food is awesome & recanted that project )

That and free time. "I don't have time to go the gym", and yet you binge-watch Netflix every night for hours on end or stay up on forums, Reddit, Imgur, Youtube, etc. all night. Not having enough time is a convenient cover for not working on getting motivated to do something they should. And it's not really even about motivation...it's about picking a goal, making a plan, and committing yourself to it, even when you don't feel like doing it. Most people don't just magically change their lives overnight & start hitting the gym every day because they feel like they should...everyone does that every year for their New Year's resolutions & then quit going shortly thereafter

And thus, most of us are fat & poor (myself included :awe, despite having access to every food on the planet regardless of the season & living in a country where we make more money than anyone ever.

 

[feralkid]

If the belt were going in the same direction as the plane, would it take off twice as fast?

 

[MongGrel]

If an airplane was on a runway that was a conveyor belt going to opposite direction of which the plane was trying to take off, would the plane actually be able to lift off the ground and take off?

Not unless it had VStol capability, or possibly flying into major hurricane force winds att for lift.

 

[MongGrel]

If the belt were going in the same direction as the plane, would it take off twice as fast?

Faster at any rate, the energy expended just to run the belt wouldn't be worth it.

 

[Caveman]

Simple example: I walked into the kitchen at my parents' house the other day and the oven door was open, even though the oven was off. My mom leaves the oven door open so as not to waste the residual heat after the baking is finished (during the winter).

Few years back I was talking to my dad about insurance and how the premiums go up every year even if you never make a claim. He said "Well, the insurance company knows that if you go for a while without an accident, you're due." I argued no, that's not the case, and pointed out that if you flip a quarter and it comes up tails 9 times, it's still 50/50 odds on the tenth flip. He told me 'no', heads is more likely on the 10th flip.

I'm always amused by these seemingly straightforward scientific and mathematic concepts that seem to elude people for whatever reason.

Another one that I've heard of but never personally run into is people that don't understand how graduated income tax rates work. i.e. they believe there are certain breakpoints where earning another dollar of income will result in reduced earnings because the taxes on their entire gross income will increase.

Anyone else have examples?

I'm missing the point of the example you gave with your mother... Opening the oven door in the winter after using it makes perfect sense. What was the point of the example?

 

[waffleironhead]

I'm missing the point of the example you gave with your mother... Opening the oven door in the winter after using it makes perfect sense. What was the point of the example?

Wat? The heat will enter the room no matter what, it just enters faster with the door open. The heat is not wasted with it closed.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

I'm missing the point of the example you gave with your mother... Opening the oven door in the winter after using it makes perfect sense. What was the point of the example?

I'm guessing it's because the heat has to dissipate somewhere eventually, and whatever metal it is that covers the interior of an oven probably does so quickly enough that even leaving it closed will result in a cool oven within the hour. That being said, if she's working in the kitchen, leaving it open may allow her to feel the heat more noticeably.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

1) Look
2) Read
3) Choose what to click on
4) Click once
5) Wait for internet

 

[TheSlamma]

"Higher octane gas burns hotter" no understanding of flash point

People who claim 0 on their W4 to "get a bigger tax return"

 

[manimal]

its a dresscket

duh

 

[Caveman]

Wat? The heat will enter the room no matter what, it just enters faster with the door open. The heat is not wasted with it closed.

Um, no... While it is true that the total amount of heat liberated from the oven does not change as it goes from a high energy state to a low energy state, the useful heat energy does change with the door closed.

If we are too use your reasoning, perhaps we can put all the heat vents in one room at the corner of our house because after all: "none of the heat is being wasted"...

Opening the oven door in the winter IS a smart idea.

 

[DesiPower]

its a dresscket


http://i.imgur.com/B1Tq4QQ.gifv


duh

Protip, remove the "v" at the end and you can embed it, wrap it with IMG tag, unless, of course, you want to leave it that way

 

[justoh]

If an airplane was on a runway that was a conveyor belt going to opposite direction of which the plane was trying to take off, would the plane actually be able to lift off the ground and take off?

Yes. Obviously.

 

[manimal]

Protip, remove the "v" at the end and you can embed it, wrap it with IMG tag

well ill be a monkeys unkle.

 

[tynopik]

Few years back I was talking to my dad about insurance and how the premiums go up every year even if you never make a claim. He said "Well, the insurance company knows that if you go for a while without an accident, you're due." I argued no, that's not the case

Well, I know of someone who never had an accident and was dropped because he 'was due'

 

[angminas]

Let's don't bother to establish the position of the oven in the room before talking out our asses. If it's on an outside wall, you'll lose some of the heat. If it's on an island, you won't. Either way, the heat being transferred to the air from the oven cooling to room temperature isn't going to make a large difference if she lives in anything vaguely resembling a modern home.

Back on topic- following too closely while driving. You're using more gas and brakes, you're increasing your odds of an accident, and you're being an asshole. Yet people do it constantly, even when the car in front of them is going above the speed limit, even in the right lane when the left lane is wide open, even on narrow twisty roads at night, even on hills covered with black ice. WHY.

 

[angminas]

Pronouncing extremely simple words incorrectly. Wolf becomes woof. Jaguar becomes jagwire. Toilet becomes tollet. WHY.

 

[master_shake_]

When a telemarketer calls let it ring.

Why the fuck are you picking up the phone dad!

They don't have anything you want.

 

[Paratus]

No gravity in space.

Of course there's gravity in space. If there wasn't the ISS wouldn't circle the Earth, the Earth wouldn't circle the sun, etc.

What people mistakenly call 'no gravity ' is actually free-fall.

 

[dullard]

I remember looking at my two pay stubs from the switch and being baffled as to why it wasn't simply double, it was less. My gross pay was exactly double but the federal taxes being withheld was more than double so I was essentially making less money, simply because I was paid less frequently?

Taxes are withheld per paycheck, not per hour worked. Double the paycheck and you don't double the amount that is withheld. This is because the formulas/tables see a high paycheck and assume that you are more likely to be in a higher tax rate. Thus the employer is thus required to withhold more than double the taxes per check. But the formulas/tables that the employer uses are just guesses. The formula/table creators don't know your exact tax situation. It is just a general formula for general people.

It is all a wash when you file taxes though - you made the same amount after you filed taxes whether you were paid weekly or twice a week. Just in the weekly situation you would have gotten a small amount withheld per paycheck and a small refund but in the twice a week situation you get a large amount withheld per paycheck (more than double) and a large refund (more than double).

 

[Blackjack200]

Well, I know of someone who never had an accident and was dropped because he 'was due'

I have heard of this too, though I've never seen proof of it. It was the coin flip thing that blew my mind.