Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for November 03, 1990
November 02, 1990
November 04, 1990
Transcript:
Calvin: Today I drew another picture in my "dinosaurs in rocket ships" series, and Miss Wormwood threatened to give me a bad mark in her grade book if I didn't stop! The arts are under attack! Freedom of expression is being squelched! The authorities are trying to silence any view contrary to their own! Hobbes: What does your teacher object to about dinosaurs? Calvin: Mostly my drawing them during math.
Explore Calvin and Hobbes
More From Calvin and Hobbes
Some dinosaur-related math problems:
Me: Supersaurus, a giant long-necked plant-eating dinosaur of late Jurassic western North America, was approximately 105 feet long overall and 15 feet high at the hips. It weighed about 33 tons. Its hip height was therefore what fraction of its overall length?
Calvin: Hmmmm…one-seventh?
Me: Correct! Now, a giraffe’s neck is 6 feet long. Supersaurus’s neck was at least 6 times this length. Therefore, how long was Supersaurus’s neck?
Calvin: Let’s see, uh…at least 36 feet.
Me: Correct again. There was another long-necked browsing dinosaur, smaller than Supersaurus but still quite massive at 14 tons, called Barosaurus. If Barosaurus’s head was 2 feet long, and its neck 32 feet, and its torso 12 feet, and its tail 43 feet, how long was Barosaurus altogether?
Calvin: That’d be…89 feet.
Me: Right you are once more. And if Diplodocus’s neck was 11 feet shorter than Barosaurus’s, and its tail 4 feet longer, how long was Diplodocus?
Calvin: I’m guessing about…82 feet.
Me: Right yet again.
Calvin: I guess math’s not so boring if I apply it to dinosaurs.
Me: Exactly.