Not for the faint of art. |
Complex Numbers A complex number is expressed in the standard form a + bi, where a and b are real numbers and i is defined by i^2 = -1 (that is, i is the square root of -1). For example, 3 + 2i is a complex number. The bi term is often referred to as an imaginary number (though this may be misleading, as it is no more "imaginary" than the symbolic abstractions we know as the "real" numbers). Thus, every complex number has a real part, a, and an imaginary part, bi. Complex numbers are often represented on a graph known as the "complex plane," where the horizontal axis represents the infinity of real numbers, and the vertical axis represents the infinity of imaginary numbers. Thus, each complex number has a unique representation on the complex plane: some closer to real; others, more imaginary. If a = b, the number is equal parts real and imaginary. Very simple transformations applied to numbers in the complex plane can lead to fractal structures of enormous intricacy and astonishing beauty. |
For the ultra-rare three-in-a-row Cracked hat trick. I promise I have a variety of sources in the queue, but random numbers, like farts, often create streaks. Well, that's misleading. There are always rules. A world without these rules is the dream of the angriest teenage punks and Libertarians alike. Angry teenage punks and Libertarians just don't want to face consequences. Leaving the well-being of your neighbors and the continued functioning of society up to the natural good in people might sound feasible, if the only people you’ve ever met in your life were two nuns. Have you met nuns? 5. Slab City The city has no public oversight, or any of the services that comes with it — running water, electricity or the other niceties that are modern requirements for living. Sounds like a libertarian paradise, all right. And yet, if you read the article, sometimes the cops do respond there. Hence, rules, even if unwritten ones. 4. Antarctica Since there’s no owner or governing body, technically, there are no laws on Antarctica. Except that there actually are. And that's not even going into the whole "Don't go outside without a parka" thing; that's more of a natural law. 3. The Autobahn If you’re looking to the Autobahn for pure, unregulated freedom, though, you might be disappointed. In order to keep it from being basically a long stretch of twisted metal, there are plenty of other rules, some of which are policed more closely than elsewhere. "No speed limit" is hardly the same thing as "no rules." 2. International Waters Those are how certain pseudo-religious groups with lots of money and wide-eyed recruits get around pesky things like "child labor laws" and "regulations against slavery," but still... Thanks to the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS, jurisdiction in international waters is pretty cut-and-dry. First, there is international maritime law that applies regardless, and second, legal jurisdiction is decided by the country the vessel in question is registered in. 1. Your Imagination The cops can’t arrest you for what you do in your dreams… yet. But for just $19.99 a month of a low annual payment of $149.99, you can subscribe to DreamVPN. Keep those annoying Dream Police outside your head! |