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[CortJstr]

Well, well Mr. Trout, I see you have a penchant for wearing stretch Lycra.  *Tents fingers ominously*

This should lead to a David Bowie costume next year.

[Bobby Isosceles]

Well, well Mr. Trout, I see you have a penchant for wearing stretch Lycra.  *Tents fingers ominously*

that's not all that's tenting, giggity giggity

[Mr Trout]

that's not all that's tenting, giggity giggity

Hence the shorts. I don't want to end up looking like these guys.

[jaydub]

Rough image for a Friday morning.  Whew. 

[Bobby Isosceles]

Hence the shorts. I don't want to end up looking like these guys.

[bluemoon72]

I call first choice!  The one fourth from the left, please.

[Bobby Isosceles]

I call first choice!  The one fourth from the left, please.

I find it interesting that you wouldn't say "second from the right".

[Ben-San]

I find it interesting that you wouldn't say "second from the right".

We've let the terms of discussion be defined from the right for far too long now.

[bluemoon72]

I find it interesting that you wouldn't say "second from the right".

I'm assuming because I'm a Westerner, I read from left to right, and therefore count from left to right?  Also, I did actually briefly consider the "fourth from left or second from right" phrasing and figured the former just sounded better.

[Bobby Isosceles]

We've let the terms of discussion be defined from the right for far too long now.

Canned.

Still, given that most directions and deictic statements are made for ease of understanding/finding the object in question, one is presented with two options:

• simplicity of search algorithm (i.e., always start from the left, and count however many as needed till you get there)
  
• quickness of search algorithm (i.e., start either on the left or the right, whichever is closer, thus minimizing counting)
  
  I think, had there been a hundred people from left and right (inclusive), it would be a much more logical choice to say "second from the right" rather than saying "99 from the left." Here, however, it's not a show-stopper to count from the left, with only a couple extra hops, so the decision of what deixis to choose is entirely up to the speaker (in thise case, bluemoon72).
  
  I find these sorts of personal decisions interesting and wonder what the threshold is for quickness versus simplicity in a situation like this.
  
  
  OH WAIT WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT WANGS AND PUGS AND GIRAFFE PLACENTA IM SORRY

[Bobby Isosceles]

I'm assuming because I'm a Westerner, I read from left to right, and therefore count from left to right?  Also, I did actually briefly consider the "fourth from left or second from right" phrasing and figured the former just sounded better.

Interestingly enough, one of the theories about why Arabs were such good traders hinged upon the fact that they could balance sums easily in their head or on paper (versus medieval Europeans, who were abacists at the time). Part of the reason, this theory goes, was because in Arabic the numbers were listed least significant bit first (as if we were to represent the number "one hundred twenty three" as 321) thus allowing for very fast addition and subtraction operations. (Not so much multiplication or division, but most retail is based on addition or subtraction).

I don't buy it; if that were the case, then users of the Perso-Arabic script would have a natural aptitude above Westerners for computer science, in understanding how the various bitwise and significant-bit operations worked. To date, I've seen no evidence showing this.

[AugustWest]

Canned.

Still, given that most directions and deictic statements are made for ease of understanding/finding the object in question, one is presented with two options:

• simplicity of search algorithm (i.e., always start from the left, and count however many as needed till you get there)
  
• quickness of search algorithm (i.e., start either on the left or the right, whichever is closer, thus minimizing counting)
  
  I think, had there been a hundred people from left and right (inclusive), it would be a much more logical choice to say "second from the right" rather than saying "99 from the left." Here, however, it's not a show-stopper to count from the left, with only a couple extra hops, so the decision of what deixis to choose is entirely up to the speaker (in thise case, bluemoon72).
  
  I find these sorts of personal decisions interesting and wonder what the threshold is for quickness versus simplicity in a situation like this.
  
  
  OH WAIT WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT WANGS AND PUGS AND GIRAFFE PLACENTA IM SORRY
  

Oh Bobby.  You and your algorithm obsession.

[linnea]

I've been planning my entire life around this one moment

And thanks. I don't think it beats my Aladdin Sane era David Bowie from last year, but people around the office seem to get a kick out of it. Halloween is a pretty big deal here. If you look closely in the background of my giraffe picture you can see the creative director as Cap'n Crunch, one of the PMs is a pretty good Kenny G, a web dev is a Yip Yip Muppet from sesame street, we have the clockwork orange quartet and many other good ones as well.

Oh my GOD that is an AWESOME costume. Well played, good sir, well played.

[greenkoolayd]

i was totally expecting some pole-ac jokes...