Of Coconuts and Beings: Peculiarities of a Diophantine Problem
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Lou Marinoff
Abstract
This paper reconsiders a well-known Diophantine problem-“the coconut puzzle”-with two philosophically humorous motives. The first motive is methodological; the second, ontological. First, different methodological approaches to solving this problem, namely those of the stereotypical engineer, physicist, and mathematician, are informed by different conceptualizations of the mathematical puzzle itself. This is illustrated by comparing stereotypical solutions by an engineer, a physicist, and a mathematician. Second, ontological implications of Dirac’s unorthodox (negative) solution precipitate heuristic questions concerning correspondence between mathematically admissible answers and physically possible states. An anecdotal history of this problem is also cited, in order to prepare the ground for a concluding satirical solution by an erstwhile Carlylean economist.
© 2022 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Titelei
- Table of Contents
- The Excess of Moderation: Clement of Alexandria against Laughter
- Toward Moral Sublimity: Elements of a Theory of Humor
- Truth and Autobiography in Stand-up Comedy and the Genius of Doug Stanhope
- The Visual Rhetoric of Monty Python’s Flying Circus: Fulfilling Noël Carroll’s Hopes for a Classification of Sight Gags
- Framing the Ethical Boundaries of Humor
- Is Laughing at Morally Oppressive Jokes Like Being Disgusted by Phony Dog Feces? An Analysis of Belief and Alief in the Context of Questionable Humor
- What Is Wrong with Laughing? Faulty Laughter as a Case of Negligent Omission
- Discussion: Short Article for Further Debate
- Mind the Gap! On Dmitri Nikulin’s Case for the Affectionate Laughter of Agnes Heller
- Laughter’s Affect and Effects
- Aunt Eggs Chicken (E.C.) Dents
- The Robot Sol Explains Laughter to His Android Brethren
- Philosophical Satire and Criticism
- Of Coconuts and Beings: Peculiarities of a Diophantine Problem
- Humor in Philosophy Education
- Has Higher Education Fallen Down the Rabbit Hole?
- Symposium
- Critics
- An Infallible Assassin: On Lydia Amir’s The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter
- Philosophical Laughter: Divine or Annihilating?
- Reflections on Lydia Amir’s The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter
- Author’s Response
- “The Good Life” Is Not Necessarily “Good,” Nor Is Humor Always Funny
- Book Reviews
- Call for Papers, Book Reviews, Guidelines
Articles in the same Issue
- Titelei
- Table of Contents
- The Excess of Moderation: Clement of Alexandria against Laughter
- Toward Moral Sublimity: Elements of a Theory of Humor
- Truth and Autobiography in Stand-up Comedy and the Genius of Doug Stanhope
- The Visual Rhetoric of Monty Python’s Flying Circus: Fulfilling Noël Carroll’s Hopes for a Classification of Sight Gags
- Framing the Ethical Boundaries of Humor
- Is Laughing at Morally Oppressive Jokes Like Being Disgusted by Phony Dog Feces? An Analysis of Belief and Alief in the Context of Questionable Humor
- What Is Wrong with Laughing? Faulty Laughter as a Case of Negligent Omission
- Discussion: Short Article for Further Debate
- Mind the Gap! On Dmitri Nikulin’s Case for the Affectionate Laughter of Agnes Heller
- Laughter’s Affect and Effects
- Aunt Eggs Chicken (E.C.) Dents
- The Robot Sol Explains Laughter to His Android Brethren
- Philosophical Satire and Criticism
- Of Coconuts and Beings: Peculiarities of a Diophantine Problem
- Humor in Philosophy Education
- Has Higher Education Fallen Down the Rabbit Hole?
- Symposium
- Critics
- An Infallible Assassin: On Lydia Amir’s The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter
- Philosophical Laughter: Divine or Annihilating?
- Reflections on Lydia Amir’s The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter
- Author’s Response
- “The Good Life” Is Not Necessarily “Good,” Nor Is Humor Always Funny
- Book Reviews
- Call for Papers, Book Reviews, Guidelines
