Posts About How Hard Basic Math

[ihaveanappforthat]

[Someone has been spending a lot of his free time on one of the Slytherin common room sofas, keeping to himself and a couple of texts on Arithmancy. If it wasn't obvious by the dark circles under his eyes, he had not been sleeping enough and probably spending far too much time writing papers, testing theories and reading.]

I've taken notice to the startling reality that hardly anyone understands anything about Arithmancy other than it being a class, and those that do have a plethora of misconceptions about the study.

Bridget Wenlock first discovered the magical properties of seven - many might know how seven is generally a rather lucky number. Stir a potion seven times do a little jig and you've got one lucky batch of whatever you're making - that was me being facetious, I hardly advise dancing whilst making potions. That doesn't alter the fact that the number seven is used in potion making and even in other fields of magic aside from Arithmancy and Potions.



That being said, I am going to dispel a few of those misconceptions about Arithmancy:

First and foremost -- Divination and Arithmancy are not the same.

Divination is the field of magic that uses methods of divining the future or gathering insights into future events via the use of various rituals and tools.

Arithmancy is the field of magic that utilizes the magical properties of numbers, including predicting the future with numbers and numerology.

So someone may enjoy Divination and dislike Arithmancy, or the total opposite (I am in this statistic). As I state they are different -- I could spend paragraphs comparing apples and oranges but really no one wants that. ☺

We're now onto the next fallacy; lucky numbers, sounds easy enough. How wrong and boring. In Arithmancy the numbers used are single digit numbers: one to nine. Everything must always be simplified to single digits so it's not just lucky numbers that you see or use in your life over the years.

If your lucky number is, say fourteen. In Arithmancy your lucky number would be five;
14
1+4 = 5

No two digit numbers, you must always add.

14 = ☹

1+4 = 5


Now, there isn't just one chart you can use to assign number to letters; there are two. Yes, I said two.

There is the Agrippan Method (Also known as the Pythagorian Method) which is believed to be discovered by Cornelius Agrippa, a german wizard and philosopher. There are some texts on him in the library, they're quite interesting if you ever are bored! He divided the Latin alphabet and gave each number a value from one to nine.




The second method is Chaldean Method. Instead of being based off of Latin and the other Romance Languages, it is based off Arabic languages. It also does not assign the value nine to any letter of the alphabet. It is, however, the same in that it you gather the sum of values and then that sum is reduced for a final number.




This is where things are going to get a bit biased, please forgive me in advance.

Many will say that the future is unchangeable, that it is already predetermined. The future is ever changing, quite a few would disagree with me, say that it is a preset destination that everyone will come to - but those people think inside the box. The future is what you make of it. As Rene Descartes said -- Mind over matter - cogito ergo sum: I think, therefore I am. That is how I look at the future, it exists however we make it to.

I see Arithmancy as a fluid field of magic, so many factors and possibilities affecting it.

Onto my theory for the matter:

As I mentioned earlier, it is a mix of science and magic.

A well known law in physics is Newton's Third Law, wherein he states that "for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." This of course was related to gravity but in all numbers there seems to be truth to this. If seven is an extremely magical and lucky number there must be an opposite. Theoretically this must be true if we look at Newton's laws and apply them to mathematics.

I'm not generally a pessimist, but I cannot be the only one raising an eyebrow at all the positivity in Arithmancy.

Comments

[rule_britannia]

.. Alright, Jim.

What's upset you this time?

[ihaveanappforthat]

[DEFENSIVE.]

I don't see how the possibility of me being upset invalidates anything I've said.

Did you read it?

[rule_britannia]

[AMUSED.]

Every word. Brilliant as always.

But you only ever do things like this when something's upset you, so out with it.

[ihaveanappforthat]

[WORST FRIEND EVAR.]

So you agree?

I don't know what you're talking about.

[lefilschanceux]

Didn't find anything on 13, then? It's the one people usually go for bad luck.

[ihaveanappforthat]

That's what I'm testing now, actually. I started with six since it is on the chart, to make sure it was nothing boring like 666. How blasé that would be. But I think thirteen holds more promise.

[lefilschanceux]

Not interested in 616 either, then?

But I suppose 13 would make sense. 13 turns of a noose, 13 people at the last supper, 13 full moons would disturb the lunar calendar... It's got plenty of baggage, at least.

[ihaveanappforthat]

Everything is option for study until I find at least one result to prove my theory.

Do you have any other suggestions?

[kantstoppfantstopp]

Soooo what was the point in writing all of this?

[ihaveanappforthat]

To educate.

[kantstoppfantstopp]

It's not particularly educational if it's not new information.

[ihaveanappforthat]

So new minds cannot learn old things? Hm. There seems to be a flaw with your logic.

[Someone is grumpy!]

[3potionproblem]

What futures are you trying to read into?

[ihaveanappforthat]

[OH LOOK, THE MAN WHO GOT HIM INTO THIS TIZZY.]

I'm not. I just wish to figure out if I'm correct.

[3potionproblem]

I didn't think you believed in luck.

[ihaveanappforthat]

I believe in magic.

[angelfruitcake]

A well done and thoughtful essay, young man.

Were I your Arithmancy professor, I'd give you full marks.

[ihaveanappforthat]

Thank you. I've been doing a lot of research.

I'm surprised I haven't been shoo'd out of the library with a broom.

[angelfruitcake]

That would make me quite the hypocrite, given how many hours I spent in the library when I was a lad. I, too, was an assiduous student.

Yes, I've needed to keep the library open irregular hours once or twice for the sake of your studying, but it hasn't disrupted my sleep patterns in the slightest. I have a... long-term acquaintance who indulges in excessive sleep entirely too often. It can so put one off of unnecessary slumber.

Besides, surely you know the old idiom: idle hands are the Devil's workshop.

[preanimator]

You're missing the fact that both Arithmancy and Divination are bollocks. Is this homework?

[ihaveanappforthat]

The former has the potential to be interesting if not just something to pass the time with.

No, not homework, simply boredom induced writing. I'd rather not let my brain rot out from tedium.

[preanimator]

Are you expecting someone to debate you?

[Is actually genuinely curious about that - he understands intellectual exercises to stave off boredom as much as the next Ravenclaw, but he's not sure why anyone would do it in their journal.]

[actuallyspeakslatin]

Who in their right mind mixes those classes up?

[ihaveanappforthat]

I've noticed it's a common thing that people to mix up.

[actuallyspeakslatin]

You should give this to all the second years to read so they can make informed choices.