this quote is really famous but I can't help but wonder if it's not quite on the mark. suppose you were trying to ask a question like "how do you know if the machine logic has any bugs?" but you've never seen a computing machine before and the word bug doesn't exist yet.https://twitter.com/CompSciFact/status/991327675850657793 …
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how many times have I written a unit test where I actually assert that when I put in the "wrong figures" it really does throw an error (or whatever is expected to happen to handle that case). this isn't such a strange thing to ask.
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Replying to @danlistensto
TBF one time on a physics exam my approach to the problem was completely wrong but by pure coincidence my answer was right to the appropriate number of sigfigs. The professor told me he would have thought I cheated but he couldn't figure out how.
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Replying to @legalinspire @danlistensto
That said, I think you're overextending the principle of charity here. I could be wrong.
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the uncharitable received interpretation is that the person asking Babbage is an innumerate shit-for-brains lord peer who is flapping his gums for the sake of appearing smart in front of his lord peer friends and Babbage is taking the piss out of him.
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