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> There's no problem here to solve. Who cares when they pass each other? Why do we care? Not trying to “but acktually” you, however, this is more or less how I

> There's no problem here to solve. Who cares when they pass each other? Why do we care? Not trying to “but acktually” you, however, this is more or less how I calculate the optimal time to take a pit stop in a lap-based auto race. I have a little spreadsheet widget that I made to be able to plug the numbers in, but the problem is simply stated: If old tires decrease my speed, and making a pit stop takes time, when should I stop. Agreed that elementary school word problems are dumb, though.

zdragnar 2y ago
See, you're providing a reason to care that doesn't exist in the word problem. That's fully supporting what I would have wanted in school.
- Brian_K_White 2y ago
  The original problem, and the racing one, are both logistics problems, and everything in the world runs on logistics, and people have to be good at it. If you don't like it or aren't good at doing it even while not liking it, the problem is not the problem. I have no sympathy for this complaint.
  - simtel20 2y ago
    I don't think you are arguing against the parents position, but for it, while your answers' odd contrarian positioning also exhibits how critical context and caring are to answering questions. Good job, you.
  - zdragnar 2y ago
    I think you've missed my point. There's no interesting logistics problem in "when do the trains meet?" Yes, the underlying math is useful for all sorts of things, but the word problem doesn't offer any motivation for knowing the answer. It's purely asking as an impartial observer. Back when I took calculus in high school, my teacher explained how traffic speed cameras used mean value theorem to prove a car exceed the speed limit. Here, there's an actual problem, actual actors and observers, and a motivation. It answers the question why is this useful to know, or to be able to answer.
    - quesera 2y ago
      > There's no interesting logistics problem in "when do the trains meet?" This is trivially resolved with "and the first train is carrying an urgent package for a passenger on the second train. When will the trains meet to deliver the package?". But on the exam form, that's just extra irrelevant noise.

zdragnar 2y ago

See, you're providing a reason to care that doesn't exist in the word problem. That's fully supporting what I would have wanted in school.

Brian_K_White 2y ago
The original problem, and the racing one, are both logistics problems, and everything in the world runs on logistics, and people have to be good at it. If you don't like it or aren't good at doing it even while not liking it, the problem is not the problem. I have no sympathy for this complaint.
- simtel20 2y ago
  I don't think you are arguing against the parents position, but for it, while your answers' odd contrarian positioning also exhibits how critical context and caring are to answering questions. Good job, you.
- zdragnar 2y ago
  I think you've missed my point. There's no interesting logistics problem in "when do the trains meet?" Yes, the underlying math is useful for all sorts of things, but the word problem doesn't offer any motivation for knowing the answer. It's purely asking as an impartial observer. Back when I took calculus in high school, my teacher explained how traffic speed cameras used mean value theorem to prove a car exceed the speed limit. Here, there's an actual problem, actual actors and observers, and a motivation. It answers the question why is this useful to know, or to be able to answer.
  - quesera 2y ago
    > There's no interesting logistics problem in "when do the trains meet?" This is trivially resolved with "and the first train is carrying an urgent package for a passenger on the second train. When will the trains meet to deliver the package?". But on the exam form, that's just extra irrelevant noise.