Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for September 18, 1990

Hahaha, this was also something my dad did when I didn’t get math

We did something like this when I was Calvin’s age- only my class used M&Ms.

Calvin’s got a point, you know, Dad. :P

“Forget it, you’re the one with a steady paycheck!” LOVE IT!

Back to the drawing board.

Calvin is being obstinate about math.

Calvin is being decidedly stupid when it comes to math

Given Calvin’s love of dinosaurs, his Dad could apply them to a math problem. They could try something like this:

Calvin’s Dad: Struthiomimus had a 10-inch-long head, a 32-inch-long neck, a 42-inch-long torso, and a 96-inch-long tail. What was this dinosaur’s overall length?

Calvin: Let’s see, it was…180 inches…or 15 feet long altogether! Its tail alone was 8 feet long, and its torso measured 3½ feet.

Calvin’s Dad: Correct! Now, if the arms of Struthiomimus were 34 inches long including the foot-long hands, what was the length of just the arm bones?

Calvin: Uh…22 inches.

Calvin’s Dad: Right again! If Struthiomimus had 35 caudal vertebrae—you know, tail bones—how long was each caudal vertebra?

Calvin: Roughly 2¾ inches.

Calvin’s Dad: Excellent. What fraction of the overall length of Struthiomimus was its neck?

Calvin: 8/45ths.

Calvin’s Dad: Brilliant! Now you’re getting it.

Sources:

•Farlow, James O., and Ralph E. Chapman. “The Scientific Study of Dinosaur Footprints”. The Complete Dinosaur , illustrations redrawn from John Ostrom et al., edited by James O. Farlow and M. K. Brett-Surman, Indiana University Press, 1997, page 530.

•Lambert, David. “Dinosaur Profiles”. The Ultimate Dinosaur Book , photographs by Andy Crawford et al., edited by Edward Bunting et al., Dorling Kindersley Limited, 1993, pp. 64-65.

Calvin’s Dad: Let’s try this. You’ve heard of the “ostrich mimic” dinosaur Struthiomimus , I presume?

Calvin: Yep.

Calvin’s Dad: Now, then…this dinosaur’s feet were about 26 inches long*. Its tail, therefore, was 8 feet long. Its torso, 3 feet 4 inches. Its neck, 2 feet 10 inches. Its head, 10 inches**. How long was Struthiomimus altogether?

Calvin: 15 feet.

Calvin’s Dad: Excellent! Now you’re getting it!

SOURCES:

*•Farlow, James O., and Ralph E. Chapman. “The Scientific Study of Dinosaur Footprints”. The Complete Dinosaur , illustration redrawn from John Ostrom (1969, 1978) et al., edited by James O. Farlow and M. K. Brett-Surman, Indiana University Press, 1997, page 530.

**•Lambert, David. “DINOSAUR PROFILES: THEROPODS”. The Ultimate Dinosaur Book , Struthiomimus skeleton from the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology, Alberta, edited by Edward Bunting et al., Dorling Kindersley, Inc., 1993, pp. 64-65.