The World is Irrational

In his latest opinion article, Steve Strogatz writes about the fact that the world is irrational.

Also, his article links to this lovely exchange with a customer service representative, which unfortunately hits way too close to home. Just remember that units are important, and apparently that many people find both units and decimals to be confusing.

Update (2/23/10): Apparently, the comments written by readers of Strogatz's article, which I am told express profound disbelief and taking offense at his statement that 1 = .9999999999 (with the 9s repeating ad infinitum), are only supporting just how little people know about mathematics. (Disclaimer: I haven't read these reader comments; I was only told about them. I don't even want to look because it's just going to depress me. Hence, I am purposely qualifying my phrasing to indicate that I am taking somebody else's word for what these reader comments say.)