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Party Ideas For Math Nerds?

rbf writes "A girl I like at my university, a graduate student in mathematics, will be having a birthday next month. She had thought of throwing a nerd-themed party — show up with tape on your glasses, pants hiked up, etc. However, she decided against it because most of her friends are math nerds and wouldn't even have to dress up! So my question for the community is: What fun party ideas would appeal to a group of mostly math-major nerds?"

381 of 529 comments (clear)

  1. Three things. by Adambomb · · Score: 4, Funny

    Alcohol. Barry White. Intercourse.

    Trust me, its great for the rest of us.

    While you're at it, watch Barton Fink.

    --
    Ice Cream has no bones.
    1. Re:Three things. by cowbud · · Score: 1

      QED

    2. Re:Three things. by palantir · · Score: 5, Funny

      Dont forget to serve pi with the coffee

    3. Re:Three things. by packeteer · · Score: 4, Insightful

      David DeAngelo is pretty good but there is so much info out there for dating tips.

      Absolutely though please go study dating like you study in school. It is common knowledge that you can never understand the opposite sex but it is so wrong wrong wrong! Study women like you study math and you will finally get what you want.

      And take a tip from someone who HAS done the studying. Helping her throw a party wont impress her. It will only make her less attracted to you romantically.

      --
      unzip; strip; touch; finger; mount; fsck; more; yes; unmount; sleep
    4. Re:Three things. by sankyuu · · Score: 1

      ...it is so wrong wrong wrong!
      Study women like you study math and you will finally get what you want.
      And take a tip from someone who HAS done the studying.
      I can't decide whether that's really funny, or really sad.
      Any tips from someone who's had *actual* experience? :)
    5. Re:Three things. by qbzzt · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Married 7.5 years, 4 kids. The simple answer is "it depends". There is a lot of individual variation.

      However, romantic attraction is not everything. For a long term relationship, it is necessary but not sufficient. Being useful and caring about her happiness are also necessary. If your goal is long term, helping her throw the party is a good thing.

      If your goal is short term only, I don't have the experience to comment. Nor do I want it.

      --
      -- Support a free market in the field of government
    6. Re:Three things. by hazem · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Doubling zero still leaves you with zero. Sadly.

    7. Re:Three things. by canUbeleiveIT · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Helping her throw a party wont impress her. It will only make her less attracted to you romantically. Amen. Being too available or too helpful turns the attraction switch off in the brain of most women. Ditto for the "White Knight in Shining Armor" and "Lance Romance" act.

      I have a friend that always shoots himself in the foot with this stupid crap. First, he tries to impress them with how "deep" he is and then with how smart he is. He's actually a great guy until the women come around and then it's like he puts on this "artiste" persona, which comes off as creepy and contrived. Obviously it never works.

      One more little tidbit: while men can be attracted to an unlimited number of women, there is some evidence to suggest that females are at least partially attracted (via smell) to males whose genetics (major histocompatibility complex) is the most dissimilar to theirs. So what does this mean? You probably can't make attraction happen if it's not in the genes.

      Whatever you do, please just relax a little and learn to put "rejection" in its proper context. The fact is that everyone experiences it and the more nonplussed by it you are, the more women will find you attractive. And, by the way, getting out in the sun a little, losing that tire around your middle and getting a little muscle tone will do wonders too.
    8. Re:Three things. by orangesquid · · Score: 1

      You can talk about whether math is discovered or invented. Laten in the party, when everyone is too drunk to comment rationally, just load up the /. responses and everyone can laugh at the responses from those of us who are majoring in applied fields (and not theoretical ones).

      Other fun things: discuss notation through history (particularly interesting is the bracketing notation in Principia Mathematica; if one person is an expert on it already, he can be the answer-key for a drinking game).

      Don't do reciting powers of 2 or digits of pi (or even digits of e). Boring. (Plus, that's not very interesting, theoretically.) However, you can have contests to see who can work out an unusual (but known) integral form the fastest using traditional integral table reference books. Or, working out arbitrary Taylor's series...

      Open discussion about different applications of curve-fitting and interpolation? (Bonus prize for anyone who knows the details of Everett interpolation off the top of his/her head.) Another interesting topic: functions equal (in some form) to their Fourier series. (Use that topic twice---once for discrete transforms, once more for continuous!)

      Maybe just an all-out flamewar between two camps: (1) theoretical math is more imrpotant than applied and (2) applied is more important. Of course, that's probably only good if the two have roughly the same number of supporters.

      --
      --TheOrangeSquid Is it any wonder things seem so awry? We swim in a sea of confusion and don't have to think to survive
    9. Re:Three things. by Dogtanian · · Score: 2, Funny

      Dont forget to serve pi with the coffee Pi? Pfft.... real mathematicians know that 'e' is the most important of all.

      Though you'd have to watch out for (a) the police, and (b) the 1990s wanting for their drug back ;)
      --
      "Slashdot - News and Chat Sites Deviant". (Click "homepage" link above for details).
    10. Re:Three things. by 19thNervousBreakdown · · Score: 1

      Jesus.

      --
      <xml><I><am><so><damn>Web 2.0</damn></so></am></I></xml>
    11. Re:Three things. by mrmeval · · Score: 1

      Math geeks rule!

      No really, put slide rules out and see if any of them can figure them out without instruction!!!

      And also put out some abacus.

      Then there's the strip cardgame using prime numbers but you'll have to figure that one out.

      --
      I'd go on a Vegan diet but the delivery time from Vega is too long. --brownkitty
    12. Re:Three things. by Kozz · · Score: 1

      Good idea. I suggest this pi, or this fractal pie or a penguin or this rickroll cake or this portal cake (no lie).

      --
      I only post comments when someone on the internet is wrong.
    13. Re:Three things. by billcopc · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Since they're talking graduate school, I think they're too young to be considering long term.

      Yeah, so I'm a jerk / party animal, but I think those people who "try hard" and wind up marrying the first person they meet are absolutely pathetic / desperate. How about a man who worked the same job for 40 years, and ends up hanging himself in the shed because it took them that long to realize he wanted something else, now it's too late to start over.

      I say fail, and fail miserably! Try everything until you can honestly sit down with a complete stranger and tell them precisely what you look for in a partner, with all the details and nuances. Analogy: fifteen years ago when I started dabbling with audio equipment, I was clueless. I couldn't tell the good from the bad, and I kept getting shafted by every dealer in the biz. After a few years of experimenting and much time & money spent, I considered myself a sound freak and was able to seek out the best gear for my tastes (and budget) with minimal effort and confusion, balancing my personal preferences with the inevitable compromises of the loudspeaker industry. Today, all I need is 5 seconds to "feel out" a product and immediately gauge if it will please me and fit with the rest of my setup.

      I can tell you for a fact, the people I dated in my youth weren't anything like the later picks, and frankly if I had stayed with those early flings, well I'd have killed them all eventually! What those "bad" relationships did is help me figure out, through extensive trial and error, who I am and what I truly want. The tricky thing is that most people, including myself, can't figure out what they want, so we have to identify and eliminate what we don't want and take it from there. It's far easier to hate someone over one little peeve, than to see the dozen great things about them. That's human nature.

      So what if they're both math geeks ? Y'know what ? I'm a math geek too, does that mean I should be dating the same ? See above paragraph involving murder. Sure, I like my women to have a mental pulse, and it sure drives me foolish when the wife messes up basic arithmetic, but it's not like I want to discuss polynomials in bed for the rest of my pre-homicide life.

      --
      -Billco, Fnarg.com
    14. Re:Three things. by n9hmg · · Score: 1

      The fact is that everyone experiences it and the more nonplussed by it you are, the more women will find you attractive.

      Yeah, women love a guy who's "at a loss as to what to say, think, or do".... at least the same ones who like guys who use words without knowing what they mean.

    15. Re:Three things. by Stachybotris · · Score: 4, Insightful

      No, he really doesn't. He needs to be himself, and when the right woman finds him, it'll click. The key here is 'finds him'. You don't find a woman when you're looking for one. At least I didn't. Then I met the one who became my wife because I decided to stop 'looking' and just be myself.

      But this is /.. We're not here for dating advice - we're here to help this guy help a girl he likes plan a killer party with math as a theme (though I wonder how many of us routinely go to parties).

      The trick is to do things she and her friends like in unexpected and subtle ways. For example, arrange the appetizers in the Fibonacci series (or get really daring and stack them vertically using Pascal's triangle). Use geometry to decorate (especially Pi) - how about a 3D model of some ungodly shape (like the tings you find in the Discovery Channel store) as a centerpiece?

      But most importantly don't overdo it! You want people to have fun first and be reminded that they're math geeks last. But then again, I usually just make a crapton of food, get some hooch, and put Zeppelin on the stereo. The good times tend to take care of themselves.

    16. Re:Three things. by cyphercell · · Score: 1

      I know you're trying to be sarcastic here, but you're so off base. Do you realize that women love this shit, maybe not all of them, but a good number of them look at this crap and think "ok, win every argument we ever get into ...check".

      My sympathies for the poor bastard that asks slashdot for dating advice...

      --
      Under the influence of Post-Cyberpunk Gonzo Journalism
    17. Re:Three things. by TerranFury · · Score: 1

      Dumb question, and possibly OT: What's the NHK?

    18. Re:Three things. by SanityInAnarchy · · Score: 1

      I find it hilarious that you're giving us dating advice with a sig like that.

      Just saying...

      --
      Don't thank God, thank a doctor!
    19. Re:Three things. by SanityInAnarchy · · Score: 4, Insightful
      Probably one of the more interesting things David DeAngelo said was that it's a lot easier to turn a sexual relationship into a romantic one than the other way around.

      Or, to put it another way,

      A woman has a close male friend. This means that he is probably interested in her, which is why he hangs around so much. She sees him strictly as a friend. This always starts out with, you're a great guy, but I don't like you in that way. This is roughly the equivalent for the guy of going to a job interview and the company saying, You have a great resume, you have all the qualifications we are looking for, but we're not going to hire you. We will, however, use your resume as the basis for comparison for all other applicants. But, we're going to hire somebody who is far less qualified and is probably an alcoholic. And if he doesn't work out, we'll hire somebody else, but still not you. In fact, we will never hire you. But we will call you from time to time to complain about the person that we hired. Don't be that guy.

      (And by the way, chicks dig bash.org. Really.)
      --
      Don't thank God, thank a doctor!
    20. Re:Three things. by canUbeleiveIT · · Score: 1

      The fact is that everyone experiences it and the more nonplussed by it you are, the more women will find you attractive. Yeah, women love a guy who's "at a loss as to what to say, think, or do".... at least the same ones who like guys who use words without knowing what they mean. ...or guys who correct someone else and are themselves wrong. Please see the Oxford Dictionary's definition

      Now, don't you feel like an ass?
    21. Re:Three things. by Kamokazi · · Score: 1

      Agree with helping to throw a party thing. I notice if I help women/girls do things like that, they begin to see me as a friend, and not a boyfriend, and where I have had success was when I didn't really go out of my way to help them with anything...they seemed to come to me. I've never had success with girls I saw that I liked, just with the ones I noticed that seem interested in me. (Apparently I'm halfway attractive and easy to get along with, so as long as I keep my mouth shut and don't bore them to death about computers, Star Trek, or anime, I can do alright.)

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    22. Re:Three things. by WoodGuard · · Score: 1

      Don't you mean pi and ROOT beer.

    23. Re:Three things. by Alarindris · · Score: 1

      I agree. As far as parties go, from my experience, "themed" parties and the like are generally pretty lame, you can't try too hard or your guests are turned off. Just have booze, a deck of cards out, board games in sight and music on. You don't need to make your guests jump through hoops.

    24. Re:Three things. by DudeTheMath · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Helping her throw a party wont impress her. It will only make her less attracted to you romantically. Friend in HS was trying to plan a surprise birthday party for her boyfriend. Since he was also a good friend of mine, she asked me to help. Long story short, within two weeks we were dating, and, oh yeah, everybody enjoyed the party, including the guy she'd dumped.
      --
      You save only 59 seconds over 8 miles by going 75 instead of 65. Do you really have to pass that guy? Do the Math!
    25. Re:Three things. by phpmysqldev · · Score: 1

      mod parent up, double your dating is not a scam, i can attest that it is actually good info for people that know nothing about girls (yes some people never learn how to interact withe opposite sex), and you don't have to shell out the cash, d/l the dvds and books on bit torrent if you want.

    26. Re:Three things. by phantomfive · · Score: 1

      Thanks, I wasn't trying to troll. Not only that, enough of the info is available free through the website....he has some pretty awesome newsletters. I guess I better be more careful how I give advice in the future.

      --
      Qxe4
    27. Re:Three things. by AftanGustur · · Score: 1

      If your goal is long term, helping her throw the party is a good thing.

      Sorry, but that only works if she already has a interest in the guy.

      In the human mating ritual, female->male interest has to come first.

      If you display interest first, she just owns you as a slave.

      --
      echo '[q]sa[ln0=aln80~Psnlbx]16isb572CCB9AE9DB03273snlbxq' |dc
    28. Re:Three things. by enoz · · Score: 2, Funny

      It could be the "Nihon Hikikomori Kyokai", translated roughly means Japanese Recluse Association. Seems to be subtly relevant.

    29. Re:Three things. by sir+fer · · Score: 1

      ...or people who ask /. for anything after 6 months reading posts etc, I've come across perhaps 2 pieces of good advice.

      --
      Debian FTW ;o)
    30. Re:Three things. by sohare · · Score: 1

      It's not e and it's not pi. Real mathematicians don't talk about numbers at all!

    31. Re:Three things. by bitrex · · Score: 1

      The bash.org quote forgets the part where the company says of the other candidate "but he's soooooo totes hot. And doesn't punch us that often."

    32. Re:Three things. by packeteer · · Score: 1

      As for hosting a good party. Make sure that you have more food than people will consume. It's important to make a display of wealth at social gatherings.

      The only people that flaunt their wealth are those that are not truly wealthy. Women pick this up really fast. If you try and play the part of "big spender" it will come off as cheezy to them. A rich guy doesn't have to prove he is rich because it is who he is.

      This also applies to being an atractive man. An attractive man does not need to impress a women to make her think he is attractive. He should be able to turn her on simply by doing his own thing that he has been doing. That is what a women truly wants. A guy who is self confident and not out to impress her, it speaks to the woman that you are someone who knows what they are doing. This is a universally attractive trait in men.

      --
      unzip; strip; touch; finger; mount; fsck; more; yes; unmount; sleep
    33. Re:Three things. by syousef · · Score: 3, Insightful

      David DeAngelo is pretty good but there is so much info out there for dating tips. Eben W. Pagan (aka David DeAngelo) is pretty good at making money by preying on stupid desperate people. All these supposed self help books - get rich quick, or marry a man within a year, make women fall over on their back with their legs in the air - are bunk. In each a master manipulator suggests ways in which you can manipulate other people for your benefit, but only in order to distract you while he/she manipulates you out of money. Study women like you study math and you will finally get what you want. If all you want is casual sex and if you're able to manipulate dumb women, you MAY get what you want. If what you want is a long lasting relationship with anyone intelligent all you're doing is blowing opportunities. Helping her throw a party wont impress her. It will only make her less attracted to you romantically. If she's already totally uninterested, throwing a party will neither make her differently nor make her less attracted. The fact is that if you're at that point and she's already gotten use to thinking of you that way, nothing short of a minor miracle is going to bring her around. You're much better off finding someone who is attracted to the real you, rather than ANY fake persona you can put together. Otherwise the minute you stop putting the effort in to perpetuate the fake person she'll lose interest again. "Treat 'em mean to keep 'em keen", "negging", withhold sex till you get the ring, don't go on dates if they don't ask days in advance, don't call and email so they think you're not easy to obtain, make them laugh while being an over-assertive arrogant ass so they see you're smart and strong - all a bunch of manipulative bullshit. Save your time and money, realize that you're no more messed up than any other jerk or moron out there (so don't walk around like a doormat), and that it really doesn't matter if you "understand" a woman who's only impressed if you're being an asshole since being romantically attached to her will RUIN your life. If she's such a child, move on and find someone you can be nice to who'll be nice back! Do you REALLY want to share your life with someone who'll lose interest if you're nice to them? That's insane! A one way ticket to alimony and child care payments IF you succeed. ...and if you're really intent on a short term casual shag, finding a woman that doesn't think you're a dweeb is much less work than trying to convince on who thinks you are that you're not. Be sure to fasten your condom (and even then cross your fingers you don't get something nasty). I'm not a looker, and I am a geek. With my partner almost 5 years. Married less than a year, 1st child on the way. Had a couple of nasty relationships before and I can tell you the difference between a good relationship and one where you're treated like shit is day and night. Never had an STD but didn't live like a monk when I was single and can tell you casual sex is not worth the risk or effort.

      --
      These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
    34. Re:Three things. by syousef · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Since they're talking graduate school, I think they're too young to be considering long term.

      We're designed to have children from our mid teens on. You should probably hold off till mid 20s but beyond that it gets harder, not easier. Do you really think it's easy or clever trying to have and raise a child STARTING in your late 30s? I'm starting in my early 30s and finding it daunting.

      Yeah, so I'm a jerk / party animal, but I think those people who "try hard" and wind up marrying the first person they meet are absolutely pathetic / desperate

      So are those people who are so picky, socially unskilled or so disloyal that they wake up at 40, realize they've been a big kid all their life, and marry the first person they can latch onto that will have their sad, pathetic, mutton dressed as lamb selves.

      How about a man who worked the same job for 40 years, and ends up hanging himself in the shed because it took them that long to realize he wanted something else, now it's too late to start over.

      If you hate your job that badly either find something else to make a living at or fill your time away from work with things that interest you. (Preferably do both).

      I say fail, and fail miserably! Try everything until you can honestly sit down with a complete stranger and tell them precisely what you look for in a partner, with all the details and nuances.

      If you're too picky and have an inflexible list, you'll likely wind up alone. You should have several lists - what you can put up with, or won't. What you think is essential in a partner, and what's nice to have. The the hard part is to realize life isn't perfect and you certainly won't get all your nice to haves and may still have to find a balance compromising some of the essentials (but if you get it wrong your life turns to shite).

      I can tell you for a fact, the people I dated in my youth weren't anything like the later picks, and frankly if I had stayed with those early flings, well I'd have killed them all eventually! What those "bad" relationships did is help me figure out, through extensive trial and error, who I am and what I truly want.

      We all grow and change. Part of the challenge is to include your partners in that growth and change so that you don't grow apart. If you've changed so much, have you considered that your former partners may also have changed drastically?

      The tricky thing is that most people, including myself, can't figure out what they want, so we have to identify and eliminate what we don't want and take it from there. It's far easier to hate someone over one little peeve, than to see the dozen great things about them. That's human nature.

      Realize that you may not get what you want even if you work out what that is. You do have to compromise.

      Hate takes a lot of effort. It comes from being stuck with someone you don't want to be with, or from them having done you harm (either suddenly or over the course of the relationship).

      So what if they're both math geeks ? Y'know what ? I'm a math geek too, does that mean I should be dating the same ?

      There are pros and cons. Having someone that can understand your life's work in detail would be a wonderful thing, but so can the variety of bringing in a whole other set of talents, skills and and passions. I'm a coder who wanted to be a scientist for a long time. My wife is a primary school teacher with strong artist tendancies. One reason our relationship works so well is that we enrich each other's lives and expose each other to things we'd never have looked into on our own. It's about having the RIGHT things in common (similar attitudes, beliefs, goals), not about having everything in common or everything opposite. THEN it's about compromise and genuinely caring about the other person's happiness enough to make sacrifices and still be happy.

      --
      These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
    35. Re:Three things. by syousef · · Score: 1

      If you display interest first, she just owns you as a slave.

      That's garbage. If she's the type of girl who'll mistreat you given the chance, you just don't even want her interested in you in the first place. I'd actually say that showing interest first is an excellent bitch filter.

      --
      These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
    36. Re:Three things. by DiEx-15 · · Score: 1

      Like Booger said on "Revenge of the Nerds" - WONDER JOINTS! Play some Thriller and post it on YouTube... then pray to [insert deity here or leave blank if you are an atheist] that you don't get busted for weed or sued because I laughed my arse off!

    37. Re:Three things. by mwvdlee · · Score: 1

      There's only one girl in the world who does university math.
      Being a nerd she probably reads Slashdot.
      She now knows one of her math-nerd classmates likes here.
      There isn't going to be a party anymore; by posting this question on slashdot you've effectively scared her out of it.

      --
      Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
    38. Re:Three things. by Prune · · Score: 1

      This is simply nonsense. I've used both Mystery and DeAngelo type indirect methods, and though there was success, I realized I was wasting my time when being very direct works better. Now my opener is most of the time something along the lines of "hey, you're cute". Of course, if you take a random geek and put him in the street and he says that to a woman, well it won't get him anywhere. It's all in the delivery and who's behind it. Working on your social behavior alone is not sufficient--it's just the surface and most women will figure it out. Mystery's routines will go the way of the pickup lines of old. DeAngelo's cocky&funny is just as lame unless it's who you really are. It's the thing someone risk averse and afraid to throw themselves in a situation does--however you spin it, it comes down to trying to chip away at the defenses of the woman with the C&F--the hidden assumption being that she is your opponent. Mystery and DeAngelo have gotten me a lot of one night stands and some FBs, but direct works just as well and is much faster to lead to whatever the eventual result would've been anyway (sex or rejection). And, the first two almost never lead to a relationship with any sort of deep connection.

      The redeeming factor for DeAngelo's stuff is that in his more advanced material (specifically, his Mastery program, you can probably find torrents of the DVDs) he moves beyond the behavioral tricks of Double Your Dating and goes into inner game, which what it's really all about.

      For the noobs, I recommend you skip the keyboard jockey's of mASF, Mystery's tired routines, and some of DeAngelo's stuff (Double Your Dating). The most important thing is to find people in your area that you can learn from, and you should be biased towards guys that are naturally good with women rather than self-styled PUAs. If you insist on gurus and material, look at Swinggcat's ebook on torrents/shareaza, Zan Perrion's stuff, or if you're in Vancouver BC check out Ronald Lee. Some of Tyler Durden's recent stuff is good as well.

      --
      "Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason."
    39. Re:Three things. by buckthorn · · Score: 1

      I have a friend that always shoots himself in the foot with this stupid crap. First, he tries to impress them with how "deep" he is and then with how smart he is. He's actually a great guy until the women come around and then it's like he puts on this "artiste" persona, which comes off as creepy and contrived. Obviously it never works. One of my favorite write-ups of this particular brand of behavior is here, regarding the "Male Feminist"... so deep, so complex, how could she not be interested? Well she's not, and she tells you why.
    40. Re:Three things. by AftanGustur · · Score: 1

      Well, most of this is accurate, except that they are all right, i.e. what DeAngelo, Mystery and Style are teaching is not mutually exclusive.

      If you look deeper you realise that they are all teaching a different side of the "ball", but you have to have it complete so that it all works.

      The only one I would recommend against is Stephane. Not that he doesn't get laid like a pornstar, but he simply can't teach.

      I subscribed to DeAngelo's Interview series (and also downloaded heaps from emule), and after a few months, I just realised the "big picture", not that I have mastered it yet, nor that I intend to (Way to much work and time).

      The assumption in C&F is not that women are your enemy, think "Tease to please", you have to convey high status, positive view on life and generally being a funny guy top be around. Well, actually you have to *be* that guy. Because just like you said, women will figure it out in a few seconds if you are just putting on a mask.

      I haven't listened a lot to the guy yet, but I think "Carlos Xuma" with his "Alpha life" is a guy who I would recommend.

      --
      echo '[q]sa[ln0=aln80~Psnlbx]16isb572CCB9AE9DB03273snlbxq' |dc
    41. Re:Three things. by Morose1 · · Score: 1

      I have to disagree. Helping a girl throw a party won't raise attraction if she's the stereotypical jaded, "hot chick" who's used to guys fawning over her. But if she's intelligent and of only *gasp* average attractiveness, thus has to sort through less douchebags on a regular basis? Well, it's a different situation and will most likely find someone helping her out with no expectations to be a good thing. FYI, several of my best relationships (and by far the best sex) came when I had friendships that eventually developed into more. Try starting with a friendship and no expectations and whatever happens, happens. That's what I've found makes me happiest anyway. So if you're only interested in "scoring", well... then ignore this post. ;) And yes, I've done lots of reading/studying on the subject (D'Angelo, Mystery, Tynan, etc.) However, I've found the women I'm attracted to just don't respond well (via experience) to a lot of what's proposed outside of some pretty obvious basics (have confidence, a sense of humor, and the ability to converse comfortably). YMMV.

    42. Re:Three things. by SanityInAnarchy · · Score: 1

      Probably is from Seinfeld. I first saw it on bash.org, anyway.

      Can you source the Seinfeld quote, though?

      --
      Don't thank God, thank a doctor!
    43. Re:Three things. by mazarin5 · · Score: 1

      1. Fresh baked pie
      2. Ecstasy
      3. Roughly eight girls for every five boys

      A formula for a night of irrational fun!

      --
      Fnord.
    44. Re:Three things. by J.R.+Random · · Score: 2, Funny

      I did in fact make a serious study of women. It was very depressing. I know what women want. I'm not it.

    45. Re:Three things. by geekoid · · Score: 2, Insightful

      ""White Knight in Shining Armor" "
      Actually that does work, just not the way you think.

      It doesn't mean 'rescued her' it means a physically fit guy with land and money rescued her.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    46. Re:Three things. by packeteer · · Score: 1

      Women as well as men don't choose who they are attracted to. A women can't be interested in a certain kind of person just because she is intelligent. Becuase you have read up on the subject im sure you are familiar with how bad supplicating to a woman can be. Sure you might get a relationship out of it but often it will be an unequal relationship. If you supplicate from the beginning a women may unknowingly grow to control you. This does not mean that men should be seizing the power when they can. It means people need to enter relationships as equals. Anything else is bound for disaster.

      --
      unzip; strip; touch; finger; mount; fsck; more; yes; unmount; sleep
    47. Re:Three things. by Arthur+B. · · Score: 1

      I had very bad experiences. I dedicated almost two years, full time, failing to find a gf. (I'm fine now thanks, yeah here's the card). I learn three things based on my very limited experience (results and effects may vary)

      - "Just be yourself" helps, but definitely not for the reason people will tell you it does. It doesn't help you initially, in fact it probably harms you if you're reading this. However, in the long run (even a matter of hours, day) there's no way you can't avoid being yourself, it oozes out. Thus, not being yourself only deceives you into thinking you have a chance, and makes you lose time. Being yourself is a useful time saver.

      - If it's going to work you'll know almost immediately. If you're wondering then the answer is "no", it won't work. It has to be obvious.

      - You can't 'win' a girl by convincing her. Maybe you can, but it's generally not worth the effort. People do this because they watch movie. It doesn't work. And you can't escape an explosion by jumping either. Don't. Keep it simple.

      --
      \u262D = \u5350
  2. Sex party! by Kymermosst · · Score: 3, Funny

    It'll be the first time for a lot of things for you math nerds! :)

    --
    "Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives" should be a convenience store, not a government agency.
    1. Re:Sex party! by grammar+fascist · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It'll be the first time for a lot of things for you math nerds! :) Yeah! Awesome new things like syphilis and herpes! Whee!
      --
      I got my Linux laptop at System76.
    2. Re:Sex party! by bothwell · · Score: 1

      How will these diseases spread if none of them have ever had sex?

    3. Re:Sex party! by cyphercell · · Score: 1

      1. Condoms Rock!!
      2. This attitude will never get you laid.

      --
      Under the influence of Post-Cyberpunk Gonzo Journalism
  3. Hookers by AuMatar · · Score: 1, Informative

    Most of them are probably virgins.

    --
    I still have more fans than freaks. WTF is wrong with you people?
    1. Re:Hookers by peterwade · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You would be surprised- dating is more difficult for nerds because *meaning* is more important, but when it happens, *attention to detail* trumps all :)

    2. Re:Hookers by shwouchk · · Score: 2, Funny

      Most of them are probably virgins. Most hookers are probably virgins? but how can that be?
    3. Re:Hookers by The_reformant · · Score: 1

      You would be surprised- dating is more difficult for nerds because *meaning* is more important, but when it happens, *attention to detail* trumps all :)
      Yes attention to detail. That's why I use ICU whenever I'm dating.....
      --
      I have discovered a truly remarkable sig which this post is too small to contain.
  4. I have a few ideas... by Izabael_DaJinn · · Score: 5, Funny
    See who can recite Pi the furthest in Hexadecimal (3.243F6A8885A308D31319...)

    Play pin the tail on the integer?

    Dress up as your favorite nonlinear equation.

    Start a drinking game where everyone increases their drinks parabolically. (or alternatively: everyone drinks when someone says "Archimedes.")

    TP the English department utilizing the golden spiral....

    --
    Careful What You Wish For....
    1. Re:I have a few ideas... by __aaahtg7394 · · Score: 1

      Play pin the tail on the integer? Don't you mean pin the tail on the irrational?
    2. Re:I have a few ideas... by Psychotic_Wrath · · Score: 2, Funny

      Dress up as your favorite nonlinear equation. So get some girls and try x^3.

      --

      Doctors do Massage in Longview WA now, who knew?
    3. Re:I have a few ideas... by Malevolyn · · Score: 1

      That makes more sense, sure, but do you have any idea how heavy a never ending tail would be?

      --
      Your ad here.
    4. Re:I have a few ideas... by buanzo · · Score: 1

      > Start a drinking game where everyone increases their drinks parabolically. (or alternatively: everyone drinks when someone says "Archimedes.")

      That's actually pretty cool :D

      --
      Buanzo Consulting - 15 Years of GNU/Linux experience, for you.
    5. Re:I have a few ideas... by Deadstick · · Score: 1

      Hire a hooker to do a Möbius strip.

      rj

    6. Re:I have a few ideas... by cleatsupkeep · · Score: 2, Funny

      I was going to say dress up as: The integral from 10 to 13 of 2x.

      Or, in t-shirt form: http://www.cafepress.com/buy/calculus/-/pv_design_prod/p_1893551.71056139/pNo_71056139/id_14094545/fpt_/opt_/c_666/pg_3

    7. Re:I have a few ideas... by Xarin · · Score: 1

      See who can recite Pi the furthest in Hexadecimal
      (3.243F6A8885A308D31319...)


      Play pin the tail on the integer?


      Dress up as your favorite nonlinear equation.


      Start a drinking game where everyone increases their drinks parabolically. (or alternatively: everyone drinks when someone says "Archimedes.")


      TP the English department utilizing the golden spiral....

      Sounds like my last math party.
      We played pin the tail on the infinite series
      Watched American PI
      Had a drinking game where everyone had to drink if there was an awkward pause in the conversation
      Played spin the bottle. Not so much fun though as there weren't any girls.
      There was a heated argument about the best Doctor Who but luckily no fights broke out because everyone was wearing glasses
      Someone told a hilarious joke about a frayed knot
      A bunch of people competed to see who could solve the Rubiks's cube the fastest
      Someone brought a great Lori Anderson compilation CD.

    8. Re:I have a few ideas... by Random_Goblin · · Score: 1

      Hire a hooker to do a MÃbius strip.
      I think that would just go nowhere
  5. Dude! Drinking games by AchiIIe · · Score: 2, Funny

    Come on, its' a given Drinking games. Let's see how well you integrate after a couple !

    --
    Nature journal lied in Britannica vs Wikipedia Ask to retrac
    1. Re:Dude! Drinking games by Reinsarn · · Score: 5, Funny

      Don't drink and derive!

    2. Re:Dude! Drinking games by GeneralCC · · Score: 3, Funny

      Don't drink and derive! Unless you have a designated philosophy major.

    3. Re:Dude! Drinking games by stereoroid · · Score: 2, Funny

      Careful now - too many snorts, and you lose the power to differentiate. Before you know it, you'll be inviting some irrational number around to Laplace for a Root...

      --
      (this is not a .sig)
    4. Re:Dude! Drinking games by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      I believe that the 'philosophy major' is the base unit of a pyramid scam. The eventual goal of a philosophy major is to become a philosophy instructor. In order to be a philosophy instructor, you need philosophy students. From there, the cycle eventually degrades where there are not enough philosophy students and the instructor must become a wal-mart greeter.

  6. Well... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Pin the tail on the Gaussian Curve?
    Bobbing for Protractors?
    Spin the Klein Bottle?

    1. Re:Well... by howlingmadhowie · · Score: 2, Funny

      this reminds me of my favorite maths joke:

      what's yellow, complete and normed?

      a bananach space.

    2. Re:Well... by Exit*2* · · Score: 1, Redundant

      Or, even:

      What's purple and commutes?

      An abelian grape.

    3. Re:Well... by pjt33 · · Score: 1

      What's purple, commutes, and has a non-infinite number of worshippers?

      A finitely venerated abelian grape.

    4. Re:Well... by Angostura · · Score: 1

      I know virtually nothing about maths, and understand not a jot of what you wrote. It made me chuckle out loud, nonetheless. Odd.

    5. Re:Well... by Timosch · · Score: 1

      Two curves meet at +-Infinity. One says to the other: "Get lost, or I'll differentiate you!" The other answers: "Just do it, I am e^x..."

    6. Re:Well... by Seto89 · · Score: 1

      "Just do it, I am e^x..."

      and the first one said: "Well, I'll differentiate you in respect to y!"

      ...and e^x ran away.

      --
      There are two kinds of people - those who are radioactive and those who have already decayed..
  7. Blackjack and hookers by Cocoshimmy · · Score: 3, Funny

    In fact, screw the Blackjack!!!

    1. Re:Blackjack and hookers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      In fact, screw the Blackjack!!! Can't, busy screwing the hookers.
    2. Re:Blackjack and hookers by LasseF · · Score: 1

      In fact, screw the Blackjack!!! ... and screw the hookers too!!!
    3. Re:Blackjack and hookers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      blackjack and hookers...you want to screw the blackjack?

    4. Re:Blackjack and hookers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      For all you fucktards that didn't get it, this is a quote from Bender of Futurama.

    5. Re:Blackjack and hookers by Vectronic · · Score: 2, Funny

      "I'll go build my own lunar lander with blackjack and hookers. In fact, forget the lunar lander and the blackjack. Eh, screw the whole thing"

    6. Re:Blackjack and hookers by jyunderwood · · Score: 1

      No, no, no. You screw the hookers.

    7. Re:Blackjack and hookers by Asmor · · Score: 1

      In fact, screw the Blackjack!!! Wait-- isn't that what the hookers are for?
    8. Re:Blackjack and hookers by simoncrute · · Score: 1

      In fact, screw the Blackjack!!! I'm sure it's not the blackjack you're supposed to screw...
    9. Re:Blackjack and hookers by telamonides · · Score: 1

      I would rather screw the hookers, thank you!

  8. Party ideas that would appeal to math majors? by allio · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How about not having one?

    1. Re:Party ideas that would appeal to math majors? by jonadab · · Score: 1

      > How about not having one?

      Heh. I majored in math, and I have to say, I'd pretty much rather have an unnecessary root canal performed on me by an inebriated dental-school student, and pay most of two weeks' wages out of pocket for the privilege, than attend the kind of party most college students would plan.

      However, there are ways to get a group of people together and actually have a good time. Some key points:

      1. Avoid calling it a "party". That sets the wrong expectations. Call it a "game night" or something.
      2. Have some group games available that are actually fun to play and require at least a little intelligence (e.g., Taboo, Beyond Balderdash, that sort of thing). Have a variety of them, and make sure there are enough people coming that you can get two different ones going at the same time, because there'll always be somebody who's really not into the game somebody else really feels the need to play. It's generally also a good idea to have a couple of chess sets available. Maybe they won't get used, but having them around is a good precaution.
      3. Don't just not provide alcohol: prohibit it. It only takes one drunk person to ruin _everybody's_ time. Tell the frat boys to go have their own party at a bar someplace and leave you out of it.
      4. Do have food. It doesn't have to be fancy. You can get away with just pizza and pretzels and pop, although some good snacks (like popcorn with a peanut butter and honey and karo syrup mixture drizzled over it, or homemade cookies) won't go amiss. Even if you want to get fancy, still stick with foods that can be eaten conveniently without silverware, e.g., eggrolls. Sitting down to a formal meal is not fun.
      5. Don't over-organize. Have some prepared activities available, and make sure everybody knows they're available, but don't push an agenda. The ultimate fun exterminator is something along the lines of "Hey, it's 6:59, so we've got one minute to finish this up so we can start the next activity on time!" If people are enjoying themselves, let them keep doing so. If things come to a lull and people start looking bored, that's when you whip out a planned activity.
      6. You can decorate if you want, but it doesn't actually make the event more fun, so I wouldn't bother.

      --
      Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
  9. Gambling! by PotatoHead · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Set up a mini-casino and have some games running. Be creative with the prizes, and hand everybody their chips at the door.

    1. Re:Gambling! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      And you get bonus chips if the dealer catches you counting cards.

    2. Re:Gambling! by ahadock · · Score: 1

      A reasonable understanding of statistics takes all the fun out of gambling, unless you're hustling someone that is.

    3. Re:Gambling! by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      On that note, see if "21" is out on DVD yet.

    4. Re:Gambling! by node+3 · · Score: 1

      Technically, you get bonus chips regardless of whether the dealer catches you.

    5. Re:Gambling! by Plazmid · · Score: 1

      Don't forget to set up a black jack table for a card-counters vs. casino game.

    6. Re:Gambling! by BlackShirt · · Score: 1

      Actually this is quite a good idea. Interesting and original.

  10. Imaginary by mrbamboo · · Score: 5, Funny

    Imaginary party, you don't even have to show up!

    1. Re:Imaginary by i+kan+reed · · Score: 4, Funny

      Well, unless you're a square...

    2. Re:Imaginary by turkeyfish · · Score: 1

      You need not be a square, but you must be unitary.

    3. Re:Imaginary by Nethemas+the+Great · · Score: 1

      But then they'd be going negative and that sounds more like politics than math...

      --
      Two of my imaginary friends reproduced once ... with negative results.
    4. Re:Imaginary by zaphle · · Score: 1

      Well, unless you're a square... Score: -1
      --
      And what if there's nothing behind the door until it is being opened?
  11. Ugly Sweater Party by ListenToBlackSabbath · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Everyone comes to the party with the ugliest sweater that they own. At the end of the night, everyone votes for the person with the ugliest sweater at the party.

    1. Re:Ugly Sweater Party by Solder+Fumes · · Score: 1

      I see you've attended math-nerd parties before.

    2. Re:Ugly Sweater Party by glavenoid · · Score: 1

      I wonder if Wil Wheaton can still get a hold of the infamous Clown Sweater. If so, be sure to invite him.

      --
      I, for one, am looking forward to the inevitable /. beta rollout fallout.
  12. Ask at xkcd by jeti · · Score: 5, Insightful

    xkcd has some forums. Given the quality of the replies that I've read so far, you should better ask there.

    1. Re:Ask at xkcd by arbitraryaardvark · · Score: 1

      agree strongly.
      at the xkcd fest, 1000 nerds showed up at a park,
      made ironic signs for the park, made tshirts, acted out sundry xkcd episodes, red spiders, a trebuchet, padded sword fighting, some "wah" game, unicycle, ferret glider, wireless network, jungle gym climbing,tape measure battles, oh lots of things.
      - arbitrary aardvark, too lazy to sign in or look up the flickr site for that event.

    2. Re:Ask at xkcd by d34thm0nk3y · · Score: 3, Insightful

      xkcd has some forums. Given the quality of the replies that I've read so far, you should better ask there.

      Seriously! I don't know why this thread is so bitter. I actually would have though /.'ers would have some fun with this topic but damn.

      One guy sounds actually angry that anyone would dare try to come up with a party he would find fun since he is a math guy. The dating experts against throwing the party in the first place are idiots. Girls like fun/social/entertaining guys that can get things done, planning and executing a unique party is a good thing!

      I really have no relevant advice to the question asked other than ignore all the assholes and have fun.

  13. Are you kidding me? by brundlefly · · Score: 1

    So my question for the community is: What fun party ideas would appeal to a group of mostly math-major nerds?

    Just a guess: Ridiculously hot zombies who only want a few hours of grinding disease-free love without exchanging phone numbers.

    (Spoiler: This is not the party you want to throw for your girlfriend.)

    1. Re:Are you kidding me? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      (Spoiler: This is not the party you want to throw for your girlfriend.)

      I don't think that is gonna a problem.

      And how come people who like math can't have a regular party? What's wrong with a few drinks, some music and a drunken fumble?
    2. Re:Are you kidding me? by Hal_Porter · · Score: 1
      Have you noticed you raise your UID the power 6781192948219889129129191929199101019818823717661551514141819101011.. and then subtract 89001287481241121121345677885432312332435671291912818281717238191987..
      the result is prime.

      Hmmphh

      Filter error: That's an awful long string of letters there. The slashdot filter forced me to truncate these numbers, but you should be able to work out the missing digits.
      --
      echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
    3. Re:Are you kidding me? by gogodidi · · Score: 1

      you do realise you replied to an anonymous coward?

      --
      ugh...
    4. Re:Are you kidding me? by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      He's not anonymous, he just has an imaginary UID.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    5. Re:Are you kidding me? by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      Just a guess: Ridiculously hot zombies who only want a few hours of grinding disease-free love without exchanging phone numbers. BRRRAIIINNNSS!!! BBBBBRRRRAAAAIIIIINNNNSSSS!
    6. Re:Are you kidding me? by bladesjester · · Score: 1

      He's not anonymous, he just has an imaginary UID.

      Not true. The UID of Anonymous Coward is 666.

      I kid you not.

      --
      Everything I need to know I learned by killing smart people and eating their brains.
  14. Go futuristic! by Albert+Sandberg · · Score: 3, Interesting

    One of the funnier party themes I heard of (not one that I attended unfortually) was one where they had a futuristic theme. They dressed up in black and silver and stuff like that, call it "50 years from now" or something. A costume party with a theme!
    And with all you nerds, I think it'll be very creative too with smashed motherboards and diods :-)

    1. Re:Go futuristic! by menkhaura · · Score: 1

      I'm a little too drunk, or I read that as "dildos"... Whateva.

      --
      Stupidity is an equal opportunity striker.
      Fellow slashdotter Bill Dog
    2. Re:Go futuristic! by Ambiguous+Puzuma · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Along the same lines, we once had a Superhero party using a _very_ broad definition of "superhero". I remember one person came dressed as "Unit Vector Man"--basically he wore a shirt with a large i-hat symbol drawn on it, and a triangle-shaped hat so that he was shaped like an arrow pointing upward (when standing).

      Apart from the costumes it was like any other party: dancing, drinking, talking, etc. But the silly costumes were great conversation starters.

    3. Re:Go futuristic! by initialE · · Score: 1

      You could have a mystery men themed party, with such lovable characters as our very own Bad Analogy Guy, Captain Obvious, /B/, Anonymous, Twitter, and the like. Bonus points for creativity.

      --
      Starbucks, Harbuckle of Breath.
    4. Re:Go futuristic! by JustOK · · Score: 1

      And a couple of hours after the first party starts, there will be a dupe.

      --
      rewriting history since 2109
    5. Re:Go futuristic! by Mercuria · · Score: 1

      Reminds me of an annual party held by the 300+ people of my university's marching band (I was dating a member) -- Duct Tape. Most people would obtain an article of clothing from Goodwill and cover it (including whole suits) but others would construct skirts, tops, etc. entirely from duct tape.

      Another amusing band party was where the host wrote a noun on the back of every guest's left hand, and an adjective or verb on the right. It was sort of like mad libs or magnetic poetry. You could probably come up with a number-oriented way of doing this -- maybe an operator on one hand and a number on the other, see if people can make valid equations.

      the nerdiest Halloween party I went to was mad-scientist themed.

      Definitely serve the drinks out of klein bottles.

  15. Cookies by AceJohnny · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Bring fractal cookies.

    Also, try asking on the XKCD forums. They're slightly higher-brow than here, judging by the comments I see for now ;)

    --
    Misleading titles? Inflammatory blurbs? Keep in mind that Slashdot is a tabloid.
    1. Re:Cookies by kg4eyf · · Score: 3, Informative
    2. Re:Cookies by Devv · · Score: 1

      I was about to say that you were NOT allowed to link to XKCD in response to this article. It would be too obvious. I guess I'll just mod you down.

      oh wait..

      --
      +1 Agree -1 Disagree
    3. Re:Cookies by NewbieProgrammerMan · · Score: 1

      Bring fractal cookies. Wow, that's nice; thanks for the link. Definitely gonna have to make some of those for the next department party. :P
      --
      [b.belong('us') for b in bases if b.owner() == 'you']
    4. Re:Cookies by evilninjax · · Score: 1

      Bring fractal cookies.

      Shouldn't be too hard to make a Baker's Map cookie. Hey, count the puff pastry layers!

  16. Uh... a normal party? by Comatose51 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Just putting myself, a computer nerd/software engineer, in the place of the math nerds, I don't think I would want to go to a party that's math themed. Parties are like miniature breaks from what we do normally. I enjoy dinner parties with people from different backgrounds because the conversations are interesting and new. Better yet, parties where we don't mention work but things we did outside of work are great because we get to see a different side of each other. Plus, parties are meant for socialization, not sure if math is the optimal thing for that. I suggest stepping back and asking yourself what you really want out of the party. If fun is what you're looking for, then cast a wider net because there's a ton of ways to have fun.

    All else fails, just have an orgy. That has to be new and interesting to nerds. j/k

    --
    EvilCON - Made Famous by /.
    1. Re:Uh... a normal party? by RiotingPacifist · · Score: 1

      Combine with http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=535736&cid=23212080
      and just throw a normal party, drink, drugs, put for decorations use xkcd comics.

      --
      IranAir Flight 655 never forget!
    2. Re:Uh... a normal party? by Mjec · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Just putting myself, a computer nerd/software engineer, in the place of the math nerds, I don't think I would want to go to a party that's math themed. Parties are like miniature breaks from what we do normally.

      You see, when I read that it makes me think you're in the wrong field. Sure, I wouldn't go to a party to solve PDEs but I would love a maths themed party because I find it interesting. Little maths jokes, fractal cookies (suggested before), everyone in xkcd shirts... it'd be awesome!

      --
      "But everyone should know everything." -markab
    3. Re:Uh... a normal party? by smurgy · · Score: 1

      Do you know how nerdy polyamorous people are?

      A polyamorous maths party would consist of an orgy organised so that the precise value of attraction and/or fondness from each attendee towards each of the others are expressed in a comprehensively considered and defined matrix, taking into reciprocity wherever possible.

    4. Re:Uh... a normal party? by Delkster · · Score: 1

      You could also try solving the Stable Marriage Problem for all party-goers.

      I wouldn't recommend that you suggest having sex with a girl just because you two happen to be part of a stable pairing, though, particularly if it's a female-pessimal pairing.

    5. Re:Uh... a normal party? by Deadstick · · Score: 1

      Well, OK, so what kind of math-themed party should the guys from the shipping department have?

      rj

    6. Re:Uh... a normal party? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      You're essentially questioning his career choice because he likes living a balanced live. That's messed up.

    7. Re:Uh... a normal party? by greyhueofdoubt · · Score: 1

      >>Better yet, parties where we don't mention work but things we did outside of work are great because we get to see a different side of each other.

      For better or worse, some of us share the same personality between work and home. I cannot turn off "Work personality" when I leave work and turn on "Entertaining personal time" personality when I arrive home. The aspects of my personality that make me well-suited for my job are by far the most overarching and dominant out of my entire psyche. Ruthless attention to detail, literal-mindedness, thinking in terms of complex spatial relationships, rigid documentation, etc make me a good technician and a poor entertainer. Fortunately for me, I'm also probably borderline in some personality disorder or another and dislike the physical company of other people 99% of the time.

      Maybe I've had a rash of really unpleasant social interactions, but I've found 'parties' and 'conversation' to consist mainly of talking about:
      -Cats
      -What she did at work
      -People at work who have cats
      -People at work who I've never met
      -Unbelievably mundane minutiae about conversations they had with people I don't know about things that I don't care about
      -Stories about the _last_ time we all got together and did this, forming a regressive loop of such banal chit-chat that it makes me dizzy

      If I could get 15 or 20 exact copies of myself together in a room for a party, it would go like this: We'd all calculate how many beers we should each receive, we'd grab that many beers out of the fridge, and we'd all leave. The party would last as long as it would take an orderly queue of awkward nerds to retrieve beer from the fridge.

      For socially-inclined math nerds, here is my idea:
      A cooking party or pot luck where all the food is made with combinations of ingredients in mathematically interesting proportions. E.g., Golden Ratio casserole made with ingredients decreasing in a golden ratio, potatoes, cream of whatever soup, some other vegetable, etc, etc.

      Enjoy,
      -b

      --
      No offense, but I've stopped responding to AC's.
    8. Re:Uh... a normal party? by ari_j · · Score: 1

      My thought is this ... do the math-themed invitation card (require that invitees solve some kind of math problem to get the address of the party, for instance; or at least make them crack an affine cipher to read it), do the fractal cookies, and hand out pocket protectors at the door - but other than that, don't focus on math or on nerdiness. Just have a party.

    9. Re:Uh... a normal party? by jonadab · · Score: 1

      > Just putting myself, a computer nerd/software engineer, in the place of the math nerds, I don't think I
      > would want to go to a party that's math themed. Parties are like miniature breaks from what we do normally.

      Clearly you are not a math nerd.

      Yeah, math majors do take breaks from math. (I think those are usually called "gen ed classes".)

      But not to go to the kind of event that a non-math-major calls a "normal party". Math nerds *hate* normal parties. You start talking about beer and loud music, and we start making plans to be busy doing something else, so we really wouldn't have time to come, please accept our apologies. If somehow we fail to avoid getting dragged to a normal party, we make a study of finding the most unobtrusive place to sit (or stand) around and quietly wait for a chance to escape.

      This is not to say that math nerds don't have fun. We do. But it has to be at least a little bit intellectually challenging. Otherwise it's mind-numbingly boring.

      Note that I'm talking here about pure/theoretical math majors, not math-ed majors, and *certainly* not most applied-math fields (e.g., accounting). Math-ed majors for the most part are basically education majors, with math as a sort of side interest. Accounting is basically business-department stuff, people who are more interested in making money than understanding group theory -- not math nerds, in other words.

      I'm not saying the party has to be math-themed. There are other possibilities. But if it's going to be fun for math majors, it definitely needs to be somewhat different from the kind of party you would plan for "normal" people.

      --
      Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
    10. Re:Uh... a normal party? by jonadab · · Score: 1

      > Fortunately for me, I'm also probably borderline in some personality disorder
      > or another and dislike the physical company of other people 99% of the time.

      I think I at least somewhat understand where you're coming from there, though 99% would be an exaggeration in my case. 80-85% would be closer.

      I work five hours a day, almost all of that surrounded by co-workers, and by the end of a workweek I feel like I've been laundered in my grandmother's wringer washer. I'm not tired of doing my job, really, at least not in terms of the actual stuff I get paid to accomplish -- in fact sometimes I do work-like stuff at home on the weekend and enjoy it -- I just get tired of being around people. Tired of hearing people talk. Tired of having my thoughts interrupted every five minutes for no good reason. Tired of hearing people chitchat about stuff that doesn't matter. Tired of seeing people, and being seen by people. Tired of not being able to think out loud without someone overhearing. Tired of being around people.

      But if you give me a few days to recover, I do actually get to the point where I'm ready to be around people again, for a little while. Like I said, I guess I like to be physically alone (preferably, the only person in the building) about 80-85% of the time, if I can get it.

      But 99%, that sounds really extreme. Are you sure that's not an exaggeration, brought on by your frustration with not getting the solitude you do need? Because, 99%, wow, that's, like, a hermit-grade need for solitude.

      --
      Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
    11. Re:Uh... a normal party? by geekoid · · Score: 1

      What if it's theme is to poke fun at what you do?

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  17. Game parties. by DeadDecoy · · Score: 4, Interesting

    As a self-admitted nerd, most of the fun parties I've been to were centered around games: Smash Bros, Halo, Guitar Hero, Chez Geek, Murder Mystery, Pictionary, Settlers, etc. Most of the mediocre parties I've been to involved becoming inebriated and listening to bad music. Good parties should foster social experiences that are fun. For me, games have filled that role more adequately than other things because they give me a common topic with which to start conversations and drift off into random socio-political-theoretical-conversations. Games also tend to be effective, over say an outing like hiking, because they have no physical requirements and appeal to a more general audience. But, then again, this all depends on what appeals to your friends. I've had friends, for whom playing games was childish and annoying (because they thought they sucked at it). Just try to find the appropriate something that gets people to open up to strangers.

    1. Re:Game parties. by lysse · · Score: 1

      > I've had friends, for whom playing games was childish and annoying (because they thought they sucked at it).

      That doesn't necessarily follow. I find playing games in company childish and annoying, because I loathe competition. People like you who turn around and say "that's only because you think you suck" (optionally skipping the "you think" part) are equally childish and annoying... hmm, perhaps it's the prospect of playing games with you that turns them off...?

    2. Re:Game parties. by DeadDecoy · · Score: 1

      I didn't mean I thought these people sucked. I seriously meant that these people where initially intimidated at playing because they never played it before. It's sorta like doing something in public for the first time may be awkward because you don't look as good as those who have done it a few times, such as dancing : /. The problem doesn't come in that people feel embarrassed, more so that their embarrassment prevents them from doing anything fun without heavy goading. As for the competition thing, not all games have to be competitive. Stuff like Pictionary or Charades can be generally fun, particularly if you don't keep score, because everyone looks silly and childish, making embarrassment less of an issue.

    3. Re:Game parties. by lysse · · Score: 1

      OK, sorry for being harsh with you. But remember, some people really can't bring themselves to be silly or childish in public, even if everyone else is doing it and they know they won't be judged adversely for it, simply because it requires a kind of relaxation around other people with which they just aren't comfortable. I can be thoroughly childish in the privacy of my own home, but I wouldn't be caught dead doing so elsewhere.

  18. Math nerds are humans .. by monschein · · Score: 1

    Just have a usual party with beer and music; see what happens... you don't need anything special.

  19. LAN PARTY!!!! by Khyber · · Score: 1, Funny

    Quite a few probably game. Throw a LAN.

    --
    Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
    1. Re:LAN PARTY!!!! by tverbeek · · Score: 1

      And the ones who don't "game" will be bored out of their skulls.

      --
      http://alternatives.rzero.com/
    2. Re:LAN PARTY!!!! by Khyber · · Score: 1

      depends on the game, really. I've done multiplayer chess at a LAN.

      --
      Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
  20. Well it won't be a surprise by Silentlaw · · Score: 1

    ...because all the math nerds I know lurk here daily. You should've asked around where the cool kids hang out online. I, of course, have no idea where that is.

    1. Re:Well it won't be a surprise by chuckymonkey · · Score: 1

      I can tell you, but you may not want to go there. Apparently it's this place called myspace, I really don't recommend going there. Your eyes will want to vomit.

      --
      "Some books contain the machinery required to create and sustain universes."-Tycho
  21. Refreshments idea by count_zero451 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Serve Pi instead of cake?

    1. Re:Refreshments idea by SQL+Error · · Score: 2, Funny

      Coffee and donuts for the topologists.

    2. Re:Refreshments idea by TerranFury · · Score: 1

      But they won't be able to tell the donuts and the coffee mugs apart!! :-)

    3. Re:Refreshments idea by Kuvter · · Score: 1

      Besides, the cake is a lie.

      --
      "To be is to do." --Socrates
      "To do is to be." -- Aristotle
      "Do-Be-Do-Be-Do..." --Sinatra
  22. Shapes by MrCrassic · · Score: 1

    Dressing up in different shapes? Best dressed goes to that who can design and wear a dodecahedron.

    1. Re:Shapes by Loibisch · · Score: 1

      Hell yeah, and I'll be particle man!

  23. They already have everything they need. by raehl · · Score: 5, Funny

    There's going to be a GIRL there. And she's not deflatable. It's going to be the best math nerd party EVER!

    1. Re:They already have everything they need. by iminplaya · · Score: 5, Funny

      And she's not deflatable.

      Well then how do you get her into the suitcase?

      --
      What?
    2. Re:They already have everything they need. by F34nor · · Score: 1

      Real Doll (not deflateable.)

    3. Re:They already have everything they need. by thegnu · · Score: 1

      The same way you got all those babies into the suitcase. Man, you've got to stop thinking so linearly...

      --
      Please stop stalking me, bro.
    4. Re:They already have everything they need. by Mikkeles · · Score: 4, Funny

      'Well then how do you get her into the suitcase?'

      Use the inverse of the Banach-Tarski theorem (iterate as needed).

      --
      Great minds think alike; fools seldom differ.
    5. Re:They already have everything they need. by turgid · · Score: 1

      There is still the issue of consent.

    6. Re:They already have everything they need. by btgreat · · Score: 2, Funny

      You'd better hope she's pro-choice.

    7. Re:They already have everything they need. by Kvasio · · Score: 1

      Doesn't matter.
      Just assume she's Schrödinger's type of babe.
      Anyone who opens the suitcase is a party spoiler.

  24. A drinking game called Buzz: here's how it works. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    You start at 1 and continue listing off numbers, however when you reach a number with a 7 in it (7, 17, etc..), a multiple of 7 (49, 24, etc..), or a double (11, 22, 33, etc..) then you must say "Buzz", and the direction you were going in reverses. If you screw up then you must drink, and once someone screws up you restart at 1. You can go in either direction from the start, however if both people on either side say 2, both drink.

    If you get into the higher numbers and reach a number that qualifies for more than one of the above rules (70: multiple of 7 and has a 7 in it), you must say "Bizz Buzz". If you reach 77 then since it qualifies for all 3 rules, you must say "Bizz Buzz Bazz".

    Protip: If you make it above a number that meets all 3 rules, start over because you have missed the point of a drinking game.

  25. Pin the tail on the Higgs-Boson! by Tumbleweed · · Score: 1

    Oh wait, that's physics nerds. MATH nerds, eh? I don't think they DO fun. Perhaps they could derive an approximation of it, though...just don't let them drink and derive.

    (sorry, someone had to do it...)

    1. Re:Pin the tail on the Higgs-Boson! by kramulous · · Score: 1

      No, No, no ... you've got it all wrong. Once it's over they evaluate the error of it all.

      --
      .
  26. Good Party by Plautius · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I was at a pretty good nerd party last weekend. It had three rooms and a porch. First room had a keg and a bar (pretty much a given). Second room had a Wii with rockband and a bunch of couches for overservers. Third room had a DJ playing loud rap music for some drunkin bump and grind. The porch was for the philosophy majors to smoke cigarettes and bitch about how boring the math majors were. YMMV. I had fun though

  27. um wow by falcon5768 · · Score: 1

    Just when I thought I should be offended by the stereotypical nature of shows like "Big Bang Theory" on the idea that nerds are not hip... this question shows up here...

    --

    "Slashdot, where telling the truth is overrated but lying is insightful."

    1. Re:um wow by geekoid · · Score: 1

      I saw that for the first time last night.
      Innitially I want to be offended, but then they went a did things me and my friends would do or say, with one MAJOR difference.

      We wouldn't ahve tolarated that bitch for a second.
      As soon as she went off, whe sould have gotten the finger and a 'Don't let the door hit you ni tha ass' dismissal.... and if we were being mean, some sort of practical joke.

      Yeah, we could be asses, OTOH we could also get dates and have sex. With other people, not each other.

      The whole premise of givinhg up are collectables is laughable. IN the show is was a set up to deliver the much overused line 'nerdvanna'

      On the plus side they had a time machine and made time machine jokes.
      I might give it another chance. I would like to see the inclyusing of a smart woman.

      I also enjoyed the fact that the neighbor bitch is a waitress. heh, she Needs an Mrs. degree to get anywhere.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  28. Pi Cake by hey · · Score: 1

    Can't beat a pi cake!

    1. Re:Pi Cake by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      The cake is a lie.

    2. Re:Pi Cake by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      Exactly. Get that printed on the cake, and force someone to prove the statement false mathematically (ie: without referencing the fact that they can see and touch a cake) before anyone can eat cake.

  29. Darts + CS games by Sarten-X · · Score: 2, Interesting

    A game I played in an archery class with a fellow computer science geek might be adapted to suit...

    First player launches a projectile toward a bulls-eye target. Be it a dart, arrow, bean bag, whatever. The second player does the same, and has to closely justify the result. Things like symmetry over a vertical line, rotation, translation, etc. are valid options for justification. Be creative!

    The first player goes again, and the second player follows, this time using the same operation. It's followed by a third round, again using the same round.

    After retrieving the darts/arrows/beanbags/whatever, the players switch places, and play again. See who's the best at justifying their shots.

    A CS variation: Shoot all three projectiles BEFORE declaring an operation. Then figure out the operation that gets the targets valid using the fewest machine instructions.

    That probably doesn't make much sense, but whaddya expect for 3 AM?

    --
    You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
  30. Pirates by j_sp_r · · Score: 1

    Pirates are cool!

  31. Math not needed, fun talk and opposite sex by mattr · · Score: 1

    Have some games

    Bring a lot of female friends / acquaintances

    Burn British Doctor Who television broadcasts etc. off bittorrent and play on TV.

    Don't use PCs so much, you want to provide stress free but communicative environments including the math geeks and members of opposite sex.

    Could also be stimulating if you invite people (guys/gals either is okay) who are not math geeks but do something else that's interesting. Not jocks, I mean artists, musicians, geologists, linguists, basically any field reall in science or fine arts would be fine the point is to have fun together. I don't think math-related things are needed or wanted actually.

    A positive number of girls and drinks will make it a lot more fun too.

    Also how about a barbecue and some reason to make it last long into twilight?

  32. The Usual: Live Nude Girls that speak Klingon. by Bob_Who · · Score: 1

    Beam me up Scotty!

  33. Okay, stop right there ... by IntelliTubbie · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I know this isn't an answer to your question -- but you say that this is a girl you "like," and you seem to really want to impress her by throwing her the greatest math birthday party ever. Have you told her that you like her, or asked her out yet? If you haven't, and you're hoping that planning this party will help her suddenly realize what a great friend you are, and how well you know her, and that you're the one for her -- well, it just doesn't work that way (except in the movies). Many a shy guy (myself included) has fallen into that trap way too many times, because friendly gestures are far easier than being direct and facing the possibility of rejection. So if I'm wrong, never mind ... but if I'm right, maybe you could redirect some of the party planning effort into gathering the courage to tell her how you feel?

    If that's way off base, at least here's a party idea: have everyone come dressed up as a liberal arts student. :)

    Cheers,
    IT

    --

    Power corrupts. PowerPoint corrupts absolutely.

    1. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by lisaparratt · · Score: 5, Funny

      If that's way off base, at least here's a party idea: have everyone come dressed up as a liberal arts student. :) But where would you find enough McDonalds uniforms at such short notice?
    2. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by backwardMechanic · · Score: 1

      Most of your advice is rubbish, but you redeem yourself completely with your final suggestion:

      If that's way off base, at least here's a party idea: have everyone come dressed up as a liberal arts student. :)

      Now that's a party I'd come to. For bonus points, stay in character while at the party for as long as possible...

    3. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by Chrisje · · Score: 1

      I think what IntelliTubbie is trying to say is a slight modification of the earlier post by Adambomb:

      - Skip the party and get the Girl alone.
      - Alcohol.
      - Barry White.
      - Intercourse.

      And please, don't drag Barton Fink into the mix until *after* said intercourse. If she's turned on by watching Barton Fink, dragons be there!

    4. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by Neon+Aardvark · · Score: 1

      The dude should be a bit more subtle than "telling the girl he likes her". That will turn off most women, I think.

      Organizing a party for her is a good idea if combined with some subtle but existent flirting.

      Best of all would be ensuring he's alone with her at some point when she's drunk.

      --
      Azural - instrumentals
    5. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by ListenToBlackSabbath · · Score: 2, Funny

      Many a shy guy (myself included) has fallen into that trap way too many times, because friendly gestures are far easier than being direct and facing the possibility of rejection. Strumming my pain with his keyboard,
      Typing my life with his words.
      Killing me softly with his post,
      Killing me softly...with his post.
    6. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by indiechild · · Score: 4, Informative

      You're swinging from one extreme to the other. You're right that doing favours for her is no good, but being direct with her is just as bad and will turn most women off instantly, and throw him into the "Let's Just Be Friends" zone.

      "Telling her how you feel" is like saying to her "I like you and I want to fuck you!". In most cases it won't get you the favourable reaction you're looking for, unless you have high social value and status. It's just low-class and instantly outs the man as the clueless neanderthal that he is.

      Women just aren't blunt and direct creatures, and this is why most women won't ask a guy out. Most guys don't speak or understand the language of women, so they completely fail to communicate with them at an effective level.

      So what to do? What he should do is work on himself. Turn himself into a renaissance man. Be cultured and knowledgeable, experienced and worldly. He should be a real gentleman, but not a "gentle man". He should have fun and playful with his female friend, but he should never suck up to her or put himself lower than her in any way.

      He needs to be decisive and assured, so that when she looks to him for guidance, he's not some little lost puppy, or always asking her what she wants to do.

      He should challenge her regularly, and not always give her what she wants.

      And he should never ever beg to her or whine in any way. There is nothing more pathetic in the world than a man grovelling and begging for sex. In short, he shouldn't chase her -- he has to make himself attractive so that she ends up chasing him.

      There is a tonne of proven material out there that can explain this much better than I can. David DeAngelo is a good start. Elliott Katz's "Being The Strong Man A Woman Wants" is another good, more traditional source.

    7. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by Chemisor · · Score: 1

      > maybe you could redirect some of the party planning effort into gathering the courage to tell her how you feel?

      That's a lousy idea. He wants her to have a good time on her birthday. Having to dump a good friend of hers is nobody's idea of a good time. Be serious people, nobody wants to date nerds. If he has this little love fantasy going, good for him. Why set himself up for disillusionment? It will really get in the way of living happily ever after and dying a virgin.

    8. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by salveque · · Score: 1

      If she didn't already know... He might not have to tell her. He posted this on Slashdot. News for Nerds. I wouldn't be surprised if she finds it herself. How many people could it be...

    9. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by DeadChobi · · Score: 1

      Oh man, that's going in my list of awesome party ideas.

      --
      SRSLY.
    10. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by syousef · · Score: 1

      "Telling her how you feel" is like saying to her "I like you and I want to fuck you!".

      It's about technique - there's a whole spectrum between shy wuss that never lets on he's got feelings and sleazy prick that asks for a root.

      If you pull her aside, give her a thoughtful (but not overly expensive) gift for her birthday - perhaps one that required some effort and planning, and then said "Happy birthday. I just thought you should know I think you're one special girl" without actually asking for anything in return, that could work. (By the way don't run away instantly, but plan to be on your way to saying goodbye when you give the gift). It lets her know he's interested without putting pressure on her or suggesting that he's trying to buy his way into her pants.

      If you walk up and drool on her and tell her you think she's really special and really hot, yeah she might run a mile unless she's already thinking in those terms.

      Women just aren't blunt and direct creatures, and this is why most women won't ask a guy out.

      MOST women aren't as direct because they're likely to be labelled as sluts and because they've been taught to be embarassed about any sexual feelings they might have.

      Most guys don't speak or understand the language of women, so they completely fail to communicate with them at an effective level.

      It might be true that there are guys out there that aren't good at it, but there are others who are great at understanding, and still others that are great at manipulating even if they don't understand.

      So what to do? What he should do is work on himself. Turn himself into a renaissance man. Be cultured and knowledgeable, experienced and worldly. He should be a real gentleman, but not a "gentle man". He should have fun and playful with his female friend, but he should never suck up to her or put himself lower than her in any way.

      You don't need to suck up or lower yourself to do something nice for someone though. Chances are good that if this girl doesn't like him right at the minute, he'll have to move on to someone that does. You can't manufacture long term genuine attraction. If she's looking for someone that he's not, it won't matter how he behaves - he won't get her. If he's going to work on himself it should be with the aim of finding someone that'll want and appreciate that, not manufacturing that appreciation.

      He needs to be decisive and assured, so that when she looks to him for guidance, he's not some little lost puppy, or always asking her what she wants to do.

      Those are good things to be, but women aren't just looking for a guy that'll make all their decisions for them either. Some women don't get together with a bloke to "look to him for guidance". They aren't all looking for father figures. A woman generally does want to know she can count on her man though.

      He should challenge her regularly, and not always give her what she wants.

      That's really bad advice. It assumes your mate is your adversary and that's a very bad way to go. Life gets hard when you make an enemy of your partner. What he shouldn't do is be a doormat who puts her needs constantly above his own. Giving your partner what they want/need and even sacrificing to do so is only a bad thing when that partner is trying to use you. When it's a two way shared experience where both seek to give and take, it's great to do nice things for your partner.

      And he should never ever beg to her or whine in any way. There is nothing more pathetic in the world than a man grovelling and begging for sex.

      Agree to this one.

      In short, he shouldn't chase her -- he has to make himself attractive so that she ends up chasing him.

      Not likely to happen if she's not already attracted to him. Even if he changes, she'll still see the old person she's use to and think of him that way. If there's already some attraction there it'd work, but otherwise, move on.

      There is a tonne of proven material o

      --
      These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
    11. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by LiquidMind · · Score: 1

      He should be a real gentleman, but not a "gentle man" Straight from David D's Deep Inner Game... if it was unintentional then it's pretty damn coincidental.
      --
      This sig contains repetition and redundancy.
    12. Re:Okay, stop right there ... by LukeCrawford · · Score: 1

      in my experience, being 'direct' is associated with being confident. That aside, my experience has also been that directness works well in general with nerdier people, both male and female, in all contexts. we don't pick up on the subtle social cueues that the marketing types spend their life practicing.

  34. Create a strange loop by Chris+Shannon · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Challenge your friends to build this self supporting structure. Hofstadter would call it a strange loop. Think of how this loop in concept is similar to other concepts involving loops, such as logic or consciousness.

    Work out the Birthday problem for your group. Calculate the probability that some pair of the guests will have the same birthday, then determine if it's true.

    --
    "Follow me" the wise man said, but he walked behind.
  35. Oh God, it's finally happened... by FoolsGold · · Score: 1

    Slashdot has become a dating service.

    1. Re:Oh God, it's finally happened... by SL+Baur · · Score: 3, Funny

      Slashdot has become a dating service. Quick, someone tell Richard Stallman!
      http://www.templetons.com/brad/spamreact.html#msg
      (from http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/04/25/1421227 )
  36. Spivak Drinking game by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    take a math text you all like and appreciate, then have a game where you take turns flipping to a page with a theorem and proof, and if you fail to prove the theorem (or do so incorrectly) before half of the other participants do, you have to drink.

    if you have the right mix, it works, elsewise folks just wind up doodling and drinking

  37. paulcon by paulcon · · Score: 2, Interesting

    i am a graduate student in an applied math program. we typically get enough math during the day (and night before deadlines). when we party, it's usually just a regular party with food, alcohol, and music - like "everyone else". often the conversation turns to work, because that's common ground. however, i did through a party on my 10,000th day of life, because anniversaries of birth get boring. (for those of you who don't want to count, that's about twenty-seven and a half years.)

    1. Re:paulcon by aadvancedGIR · · Score: 1

      Personaly, I plan to party for my 1,000,000,000th second. What would be the point of celebrating something that is only half arbitrary?

  38. Maths Game as Present by fatp · · Score: 1

    Request every one bring a Maths game (playable by a large group) to be party as present (if you don't want non-math games). Hope someone will come up something interesting.

  39. -ism party by jessiek · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I had good luck with a very geeky crowd by hosting an -ism party. everyone had to figure out a costume idea and/or attitude to represent an -ism. some costumes that came were plagiarism, modernism, dudeism, chauvinism, feminism, egoism, sadism, and cartesianism.

  40. Re:A drinking game called Buzz: here's how it work by Chris+Shannon · · Score: 5, Funny

    a multiple of 7 (49, 24, etc..), then you must say "Buzz", Protip: If you make it above a number that meets all 3 rules, start over because you have missed the point of a drinking game. Something tells me that you wouldn't make it above 24.
    --
    "Follow me" the wise man said, but he walked behind.
  41. Strip Algebra by The+Famous+Druid · · Score: 1

    repeat:
          drink a shot of whisky
          try to solve an algebra problem in your head
          if you get it wrong, remove an item of clothing
    until everyone is naked

    --
    Quidquid Latine dictum sit, altum videtur (anything said in Latin sounds important)
  42. proof (with Gwyneth Paltrow) by cobbaut · · Score: 1

    There's a math nerd party in the movie (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000569/) where a rock band performs a song named i (the imaginary number).

    --
    European Linux user, living in Antwerp
  43. What?! by somegeekynick · · Score: 1

    Nerds attend parties???

  44. Wear a fence... by slig · · Score: 1

    and define yourself to be outside!

  45. Don't be daft! by Hobbex · · Score: 5, Insightful


    I've spent the last 11 years at various math institutions and conferences all over the world. I think I qualify as a "math nerd", and I have a PhD to prove it. I find the question dumb, and somewhat insulting.

    Firstly the whole idea that their is a single "math nerd" type is ridiculous. Very few mathematicians I know fit into the high pants and thick glasses type. A lot of people at my institution are musicians, several play in rock bands at night, some dance, some are training buffs, one guy I know is combining his PhD with playing professional sports and is on his way to Olympics. While most are still guys, a growing portion are girls: some are straight, some are gay, some are single, quite many are married. In fact the variety is probably the only defining feature I can find.

    And when it comes to partying, the only special way I can think of that mathematicians like to party is hard. I can remember from many times the surprise of "numerotypicals" after having partyed till dawn with a bunch of mathematicians. While there are certainly the "study and never leave the lab" types - most math nerds know are more like the opposite. The reason for this is probably that math is high stress occupation (try having as your job to push your mind to the very limit of its ability every day) which tends to lead to hard partying behavior. The stress is also the reason why many mathematicians are creatively worn out by 35-40.

    So, seriously, stop the silly patronizing and just organize a good party. With lots of booze.

    1. Re:Don't be daft! by owlstead · · Score: 1

      Sometimes it is fun to dig into the stereotype. I can remember a birth-day party of a fellow student which was at the same time that his sister finished her school. It was pretty much fun finding out that they hadn't understood a single word we said during the entire time of the party. We also did a bit of laser gaming, very nerdy sport that can be.

    2. Re:Don't be daft! by Maria+D · · Score: 1

      ^^ me, forgetting to log in.

    3. Re:Don't be daft! by ari_j · · Score: 1

      You sound like you don't have much of a sense of humor about it. Maybe a good party game idea for this kid is the "I've never ever" game - it would be fun, get everyone drunk eventually, and explore just how nerdy each attendee is.

    4. Re:Don't be daft! by pipingguy · · Score: 1

      math is high stress occupation (try having as your job to push your mind to the very limit of its ability every day)

      What, don't you have a calculator?

    5. Re:Don't be daft! by Xarin · · Score: 1

      And when it comes to partying, the only special way I can think of that mathematicians like to party is hard. I used to party with a bunch of Swiss Post-Doc chemists and they really partied. The weird thing is they all were named Andreas.
    6. Re:Don't be daft! by professorfalcon · · Score: 1
      The reason for this is probably that math is high stress occupation

      Stressful... like airplane pilots, air traffic controllers, soldiers, cops, and firefighters? Or stressful... like daycare workers, teachers, and charitable organizations?


    7. Re:Don't be daft! by SuiteSisterMary · · Score: 1

      Stressful... it's not a contest.

      --
      Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
  46. Scrap Barry White by jsimon12 · · Score: 2, Informative

    You are in college, drink booze and play drinking games. Me and my engineering buddies always preferred Asshole but my brother and his medical school buddies all prefer Beer pong.

    1. Re:Scrap Barry White by backwardMechanic · · Score: 4, Funny

      They're mostly maths nerds - have you any idea how complicated those drinking games are going to get?

    2. Re:Scrap Barry White by hostyle · · Score: 2, Funny

      Me and my engineering buddies always preferred Asshole Amen brother. Everyone knows engineers are gay people who just don't know it yet.
      --
      Caesar si viveret, ad remum dareris.
    3. Re:Scrap Barry White by nicolastheadept · · Score: 1
      --
      09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0
    4. Re:Scrap Barry White by juggler314 · · Score: 1

      This was our game of choice at school (engineering) http://www.webtender.com/handbook/games/whalestales.game we often threw in "mod" tails where you were allowed to say call 6 mod 4 instead of just saying 2. We'd also let in negative numbers. If you weren't lightning fast in deciphering the number you got called out. Pairing weird math for the numbers with "jet" tails (most of the annoying words gone, just calling out numbers) was always good for fun.

      This game, can be used to just destroy someone pretty damn fast. The newbie never knew what hit him...

      Sadly girls almost never played this game...not even the ones that liked math...

    5. Re:Scrap Barry White by caramelcarrot · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's not that hard, you just pick a card and drink half the sum of the prime factors in fingers. If you get it wrong, you have to stand on your head and recite pi backwards (as hard as it sounds.)

    6. Re:Scrap Barry White by peccary · · Score: 4, Funny

      Reciting pi backwards gets easier and easier as you go on, but getting started is a bitch.

    7. Re:Scrap Barry White by cyphercell · · Score: 2, Insightful
      Sadly girls almost never played this game...not even the ones that liked math...

      I put that in bold. Dude should go dressed as his favorite number. Bring some booze, a smile, and some jokes about math. Some of that "Study Girls" advice up there could be put to good use also, but seriously if this guy's going after a girl that's throwing the party she's (likely) going to fall for someone that makes her party more like a part and less like a damn study group. DO NOT alienate the girls friends that aren't good at math.

      --
      Under the influence of Post-Cyberpunk Gonzo Journalism
    8. Re:Scrap Barry White by erbbysam · · Score: 1

      Anybody for some Integrate or Drink?
      Can't wait until people forget there +c's :)

      ...wow +1 nerdyness

    9. Re:Scrap Barry White by pbhj · · Score: 1

      are you trying to be ironic? or are you a failed smart arse, an arbitrary numeric string can be found somewhere in a transcendental number ... or maybe i'm the fool?

    10. Re:Scrap Barry White by exultavit · · Score: 1

      an arbitrary numeric string can be found somewhere in a transcendental number ... or maybe i'm the fool? I don't know if you're the fool, but what you say is not true in general about transcendental numbers. For example, the first number proved to be transcendental, Liouville's number, has only '1' and '0' in its decimal expansion.
    11. Re:Scrap Barry White by rootpassbird · · Score: 1

      String theory applied to real strings used to dangle Wine glasses and bottles from a sring-network in place of the chandeliers?
      Dumb charades to guess specific theorems?
      You get the main dance with the babe if you recite Pierre de Fermat's theorems in alternate sequence.
      (and then their proofs in reverse order...)
      Calculate how many PI's in atomic mass units, would be needed to get the weight of the cake? Then take only as many slices as the numerological sum of the digits of that number.

      The best one - Eat the cake in differentials!
      (of course using delta over pure calculus)

      Cake goes to the guy who best estimates number of CHON molecules in cake in shortest time.

      All possible Permutations and combinations of dates, people, sober-drinking-capacity, time of the day/night height, weight and specackles/lenses numbers.

      Pre-party: esimate the Probability of tucked out shirts and possible distribuion of length of shirt hanging out of belt - both before and after the party - verification under the influence of alcohol will lead to very interesting results ......
      math guys, stupid! ... results like statistics of pant sizes, nothing more! ( no place for perverts)

      --
      Hackers have long memories. It works both ways.
    12. Re:Scrap Barry White by rootpassbird · · Score: 1

      cake or babe - choice is yours - goes to the guy who writes a new math theory to enable fastest calculation of number of characters printed out on this entire thread, neatly sorted by users, mods, ACs, uppercase, lowercase, numeric, printable. Include slashdot ads for more challenging OCR-based system for banner-ads...

      --
      Hackers have long memories. It works both ways.
    13. Re:Scrap Barry White by pledibus · · Score: 1
      I recall a mathematician's version of a popular drinking song:

      Aleph-naught bottles of beer on the wall,
      Aleph-naught bottles of beer.
      Take one down, pass it around,
      Aleph-naught bottles of beer on the wall.
    14. Re:Scrap Barry White by gihan_ripper · · Score: 1

      Perhaps you're thinking of normal numbers, not transcendental numbers. In that case, your statement holds true, though it has not yet been proved that Pi is normal.

      --
      Phoenix, Boston, Little Rock, see a pattern?
  47. Re:A drinking game called Buzz: here's how it work by j_sp_r · · Score: 1

    You could say something else then buzz, like "what?" or just another number as well (like 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 8 9 10 11 12 13 what? 15 ) to make it extra difficult. Or add 5 tot the non-speakable numbers. Also, you can add a virtual player, a glass or something which does anything right.

  48. wait - Hide and Seek! by Tumbleweed · · Score: 1

    ...with Schrödinger's cat.

    Oh damn, that's another physics one.

    Plus it takes too long to play, and you never can tell if who's won.

  49. Like this: by CaptainPotato · · Score: 1

    This is my maths party from last night. As you can see, it got pretty rowdy.

    --
    I heard that your library burnt down and destroyed your only two books - and one was not even coloured in yet.
  50. Party fun for math nerds by Antique+Geekmeister · · Score: 1

    Tie-Dying classic nerd shirts, for example, would be good. And they could use their old shirts that have had ink leaks on them.

    Making your own slide rules could be fun, with a box of wood slats, a few clips, and some permanent markers.

    The biggest draw would probably be a bunch of bouncy friendly men and women from a beautician's college, doing scalp massages and stylish hair cuts, would be a big draw.

  51. BORED GAMES!!! by Goeland86 · · Score: 1

    I dunno about math nerds, but what my CS prof likes to throw is a party with chinese food and obscure (often German) board games (Lifeboats, No thanks, Starmada, Ricochet Robots, etc...), and that is usually VERY popular with students and other professors here alike.


    Make sure you have plenty of drinks, and a LOOOONG table. Of course, if you don't have the board games, then you're screwed. Starmada is produced by Majestic 12, and they have a demo of the rules on their website... It needs miniatures and a hexagonal map, but the miniatures you can buy anywhere, or printout on paper, and you can find a sample hexagonal map you can just duplicate and print a whole bunch...
    Just make sure people know it'll be a LONG night.

    --
    ---- I am certain of only one thing : I know nothing else.
  52. A few ideas by NoobixCube · · Score: 1

    First: Pirates and ninjas, the bitterest rivals on the internet. Have everyone come as either a pirate or a ninja, but don't bother evening the sides or anything, just let them choose. Second: Red Dwarf. Drink every time you hear the words "smeg", "git", or "gimboid". Plus any others you can think of. Third: Although it's not math-related, Take turns reading paragraphs of The Eye of Argon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eye_of_Argon. The one reading must not laugh.

    --
    Admit it. You post strawman arguments as AC so you get modded Insightful for refuting them, rather than Troll
  53. Twenty four! by Jeff85 · · Score: 1

    Play 24. But it's almost always a matter of working it to either 6*4 or 8*3.

    --
    Fetch Text URL - Firefox Extension
    1. Re:Twenty four! by Hal_Porter · · Score: 1

      That's not as fun as the '24' game we CIA intelligence analysts play. I ended up confessing to loads of stuff. Spent 6 months in psych evaluation afterwards too!

      --
      echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
  54. Re:A drinking game called Buzz: here's how it work by name*censored* · · Score: 1

    That's only part of a party game called "kings". You take a deck of cards, go around in a circle drawing the cards.

    A: Allocate one shot to somebody.
    2: Allocate two shots to one or two people.
    3: Allocate three shots to one, two or three people.
    4: Bathroom card (return it to the bottom of the pile if you want to take a break - the game continues without you).
    5: Guys take a shot.
    6: Girls take a shot.
    7: Everyone takes a shot.
    8: "Buzz".
    9: "Fountain" - you can't stop drinking until the person to your left stops. The first person who can stop is the person who pulled the card, the last is the one to their right.
    10:"Pick-A-Topic" - pick a topic (States, prime numbers, etc), go around the circle giving examples - whoever can't think of one takes a shot.
    J: "Nose Game" - without revealing your card, subtly put your finger on your nose. Last person in the group to put their fingers on their nose takes a shot.
    Q: Queen's English - shot for each swear word for the next 3 turns (if your group don't normally swear, make this "no saying people's names").
    K: Put a shot in the middle of the pile. Whoever puts the final king in has to take all 4 shots, and this ends the game.

    --
    Commodore64_love: I don't comprehend people who're so frightened of death that they'll bankrupt themselves to stay alive
  55. Ask Slashdot: How do I get laid? by StealthyRoid · · Score: 1

    Fantastic. Next week, I expect to see "Ask Slashdot: It still counts if she's drunk when she says yes, right?", followed by "Science: How to make rohypnol".

    1. Re:Ask Slashdot: How do I get laid? by MikeFM · · Score: 1

      Just remember, nerds can work out and learn social grace. Jocks and pretty faces can't get smarter.

      I think geeks should band together in a get-buff campaign. Go work out together, join toast masters together, etc. It's like American Pie for geeks - help each other in your effort to get laid. It's a lot less embarassing at the gym if everyone else isn't studly and mocking you.

      --
      At what price learning? At what cost wisdom? The price is a man's peace of mind, and the cost is his life.
  56. No math at the party! by suck_burners_rice · · Score: 1

    You don't need to have a math-themed party just because she is a math major. It's like when people who don't know me well, who know that I work with computers, but who know nothing about computers, try to strike up a conversation with me, but they have no idea what to talk to me about, so they try to talk computers, like, "Duh, I just bought a Dell. Is that good?" I'm like, "Uh, does it work for you?" They're all, "Duh, no, I don't know how to use it and it crashes all the time." I'm like, "Uh, yeah, you should have gotten a Mac dude." End of conversation. No good! If you're doing math all day long and then you want to go to a party and have some fun, who the heck is gonna want math at that party? How about just throwing a "normal" party? Booze, chips and salsa, a cake, some random movie playing in the background that nobody is paying any attention to, and just tell all your friends to come.

    --
    McCain/Palin '08. Now THAT's hope and change!
  57. Re:A drinking game called Buzz: here's how it work by joe+155 · · Score: 1

    Fibonacci is a better game; you start drinking at one and have one shot for each number in the sequence. First one to die or pass out losses!

    --
    *''I can't believe it's not a hyperlink.''
  58. Re:a geekout by SL+Baur · · Score: 1

    I always liked the stories of friends from Cal. Tech. of setting up a scavenger hunt where to find the next clue you have to solve some geo/spatial problem That sounds like ditch day. Yeah, those were fun.
  59. Solve the Equation by EdIII · · Score: 1
    Gee, I think we need to read in between the lines:

    A girl I like at my university......What fun party ideas would appeal to a group of mostly math-major nerds?
    EQUALS

    For the love of God this chick is hot and I want to nail her. Will all of ./ unite and help me score?

    Sure. Beer. It is one of the greatest agents in the world for reducing people's good judgment and eradicating their inhibition. Go for it! I for one will be rooting for you.
  60. One word: by Gnea · · Score: 1

    Monopoly. It's all about the numbers. ;) And you can find out if you really do like her or not if she does or doesn't shank Park Place away from ya.

    Well, I really have no idea how well you two know each other, but it's a sure good way to find out. You could always try to sell her a "Get Out of Jail Free" card on the street. ;)

  61. Halfway to the Haunt by Jack+Schitt · · Score: 4, Interesting

    A friend of mine averaged two Halloween parties a year. The date of the first one in any given year was usually about half way to Halloween, usually at the end of April. The invitations always called it "Halfway to the Haunt". The idea is that finding a decent costume for a Halloween party in October is easy. Doing so in April is, in fact, quite difficult. It's unexpected, it gets people interested, and it gives nerds an uncommon challenge. The conversation describing what you're doing that particular day is always a little interesting as well: "Sorry, I'm busy on Saturday. Going to a Halloween party." "Oh ok... wait, what?" Seems to fit the bill nicely.

    --
    This message brought to you by Jack Schitt's Previously Shat Shit
    1. Re:Halfway to the Haunt by dargaud · · Score: 1

      It's called Mardis Gras and next year it falls on Feb 24th.

      --
      Non-Linux Penguins ?
    2. Re:Halfway to the Haunt by VampireByte · · Score: 1
      A friend of mine averaged two Halloween parties a year.


      Did he end up with a mean party, or a median or mode?

      --

      Run and catch, run and catch, the lamb is caught in the blackberry patch.

    3. Re:Halfway to the Haunt by Jack+Schitt · · Score: 1

      Guess I have to make to Slashdot-friendly...

      In any given 365.25 day period (a day period is measured as the approximate time it takes the planet Earth in the system Sol to make one full revolution on its axis) there is a statistical probability of ~0.95 ± 0.05 that my friend will have two parties similar to the one described above.

      Said parties will be spaced apart by ~182.75 days ± 30 days with every second party being held on either October 31st if it's a Friday or Saturday, or the arbitrarily picked Friday or Saturday immediately prior.

      BTW, I'm not sure if this is Slashdot's fault or mine but ± should be a tolerance symbol.

      --
      This message brought to you by Jack Schitt's Previously Shat Shit
  62. Role-play as your favorite mathematician by jackchance · · Score: 1

    Each person picks their favorite mathematician and has to get people to figure out who they are without being obvious... Discuss period issues, personal life, major theorums..... but mostly just get high and have a good time. Put on some tunes and groove.

    --
    1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 89 144 233 377 610 987 1597 2584 4181 6765
  63. John Nash by initialE · · Score: 1

    once attended a fancy dress party dressed only in a diaper. Of course, this was almost immediately preceding a long term case of mental illness. Still, math nerds might appreciate a diaper party.

    --
    Starbucks, Harbuckle of Breath.
  64. Party Ideas For Math Nerds? by HighPerformanceCoder · · Score: 2, Interesting

    A popular one at Physics parties was making ice cream from liquid nitrogen.

  65. Beer voting by jeti · · Score: 4, Informative

    When a math student I knew threw parties, there always were a lot of different sorts of beer. He pinned some sheets to the wall so that everyone could vote for their favorite kind.

    If the party is not going so well, voting mechanisms are an interesting enough topic. If the party is going well, everybody is just happy that there's plenty of beer.

    1. Re:Beer voting by turkeyfish · · Score: 1

      A party at which I attended had samples of beer made by various mathematicians.

  66. Original idea for ya by sw155kn1f3 · · Score: 1

    Dress all as The Flash and line up so it appears like you're 1 man indeed, but moving very very fast.. Should be pretty original and cool

    --
    - Arwen, I'm your father, Agent Smith.
    - Well, you're just Smith, but my father is Aerosmith!
  67. Videogames by joeflies · · Score: 1

    no, not single player games, but party games. A couple of Microphones, a ps2, and Karaoke Revolution will go a long ways to getting shy people to let loose.

  68. Long but hopefully useful by BaronVW · · Score: 5, Interesting


    This is my first post on Slashdot. Normally I don't have anything useful to say (smarter faster posters seem abundant), but I think here I can step up.

    Comatose51 (687974) got very close.

      Aside from having thrown a lot of very successful parties in my life (even making the news papers), I formed www.HIKEtheGEEK.com a few years ago. Most of the hikers are indeed mathematicians, physicists, and other technically minded people...we also have an amazing geek-girl to geek-guy ratio, which is very cool.

    Let's ignore that they are mathematicians, and just recognize they are smart. Smart people are not impressed by shinny objects and noise makers.

    Here are some ideas:

    - Play music that people will get a kick out of, like the movie soundtrack to a well known or fun movie. Forrest Gump has a very cool sound track for example. It often surprised people when they realize how much music was in that movie. But camp movies can work also.

    - Fondue - It involves very hot liquids, and experimentation. The more pots the better. Some can be wine based, others chocolate, etc. It ain't just for the 70s any more.

    - Speaking of wine, don't bring beer. Beer is boring...ask people to bring something small, tasty, and interesting. Most geeks don't drink, but if the do, they tend to want to experience something original.

    - Invite non-geeks, and invite as many women as you can... Women are naturally social, it is simply wonderful how a well balanced party will just flow.

    - Ask everyone to dress nicely. This is rarely done now-a-days. But it is really cool to see your friends at their best, or at the very least, a great chance for black-mail material for later.

    - Ask everyone to bring a fav game. Cheap Ass Games is a good example. But don't start games until later. Apples to Apples is another great party game for smart people.

    - Show a movie later in the evening, something fun most people would not have seen. Either really old, or really new. (I'm planning on Surfwise next for example).

    - Get the invites out early, invite all people in person (on the phone is fine). Do not invite people just by email.
    - Hire someone, or get some friends to agree before hand to help clean up.

    - Lastly, host the party. This is worth a thousand words on its own, but to be brief, a host is an active job, make sure people meet each other. Introduce people by name, and by someone that others might think is interesting. Even if you don't know someone, you can still make a statement, for example "Terry, meet Pat, Pat meet Terry. Terry wears white vans to parties, while Pat knows how to make the colour red *work*"

    1. Re:Long but hopefully useful by pablodiazgutierrez · · Score: 1

      Unrelated, but do you have any idea how many prime factors your ID has?

    2. Re:Long but hopefully useful by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      "Speaking of wine, don't bring beer. Beer is boring..."

      I'm a beer geek. If beer is boring, then maybe it is time to try some new beer. I highly recommend beeradvocate.com for reviews of a large number of beers.

    3. Re:Long but hopefully useful by BaronVW · · Score: 1

      uh...151x59x5(2)x2(2) Now you have to teach me something. I seem to have to use the "old layout" to post. The new layout does not give me a [Submit] button...I'm on FF version recent.enough. What am I missing?

    4. Re:Long but hopefully useful by Merc248 · · Score: 1

      Please... please. Stop it.

      The best way to hold parties is to get rid of this "smart people only party with wine" business. I find that "smart people" are fine with partying with beer and with all sorts of other "low brow" activities to keep them occupied in said party.

      Throw a good party by being a good host and by organizing it well, but for godsake, if it's a casual party, keep it casual, but don't change the decor just because it's "smart people" partying!

      --
      "Hegelians, who love a synthesis, will probably conclude that he wears a wig." - Bertrand Russell
    5. Re:Long but hopefully useful by plsander · · Score: 1

      Speaking of wine, don't bring beer. Beer is boring...ask people to bring something small, tasty, and interesting. Most geeks don't drink, but if the do, they tend to want to experience something original.

      Try widening your beer selection to include anything from Belgium. Lambics, Quads, Meads, Cyser, Pymets.

    6. Re:Long but hopefully useful by pablodiazgutierrez · · Score: 1

      Wow, I expected many more low factors. Anyway... If you have JavaScript enabled, clicking "preview" loads up your message and shows you how it will look. Then it enables a "submit" button.

    7. Re:Long but hopefully useful by BaronVW · · Score: 1

      Thank you. I get it now. Annoying to be FORCED to preview first, but OK.

  69. Oblig TBBT post by vikstar · · Score: 1

    Go dressed as the Doppler effect.

    --
    The question of whether a computer can think is no more interesting than the question of whether a submarine can swim.
    1. Re:Oblig TBBT post by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Go dressed as the Doppler effect.

      You get rejected faster if you are moving towards her than away.

  70. Not a party idea, but probably a good gift by Dracil · · Score: 1

    http://www.cafepress.com/triplenine.2445706 It's by the Triple Nine Society hence the clock theme. For party idea, look up abstract strategy games on boardgamegeek.com and try those.

    1. Re:Not a party idea, but probably a good gift by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 1

      Probably they're linux entuhsiasts too, buy some t-shirts with Tux on 'em. My faves are "born to frag" and "I am root"

  71. Just make sure.... by phagstrom · · Score: 1

    ...there is pie ;-)

  72. Toga by George+Tirebuyer · · Score: 1

    toga

  73. That's easy. by CCFreak2K · · Score: 1

    Birthday Paradox: The home game!

    --
    "Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master."
  74. Complete the equation by ccmay · · Score: 1
    Create name badges with equations, e.g. e^(pi*i) = -1, or integ(0,1,sqrt(x)*dx)=2/3. Cut them in half. Give the formulas to the chicks and the solutions to the guys. Allow everyone to find and pair up with their partner. In addition to being a great icebreaker, it will provide the guys an excuse for intently staring at the girls' titties.

    -ccm

    --
    Too much Law; not enough Order.
  75. Theory and Practice by msgmonkey · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Like any discipline you have to put the theory into practice. Since we like car analogies here on /. you would n't expect to read a manual on driving and then jump into a car and ride off into the sunset.

    Guys who are awkward around women summon up the courage to make an approach, get shot down and then beat them selves up and dwell on the bad experience. If you read the material available you'ill realise why you got shot down and what makes a woman tick.

    You should read all the material you can get your hands on and improve yourself and start to feel good about yourself as women can spot low self esteem a mile off. Read DeAngelo, Mystery, etc, put the effort in, find out what works for you formulate your own style and get rid of your bad habits.

    It's not difficult but it DOES require effort, people who are lazy and then feel sorry for themselves should not expect any sympathy.

    1. Re:Theory and Practice by n9hmg · · Score: 1

      No, but now that you mention it, I wouldn't mind jumping onto my wife and riding her off into the sunset (It's currently 0630 here... that'd be a good day).

      Seriously - there's no "good party" math-based theme. As soon as people start to really sink into thought, the party grinds to a halt. A small part of the crowd with some interesting insights can lead discussions, give presentations, etc. for some small good effect, but that's not likely to make a good general party theme - more for small pockets of one guy impressing others.

      I picture a physics-themed party, with everybody in go-carts on ice, throttles stuck wide open, no brakes, all trying to get to the bar in the middle.

    2. Re:Theory and Practice by SarekOfVulcan · · Score: 1

      Is anyone else having Real Genius flashbacks at this point?

  76. factoring game by sternmath · · Score: 1

    One of my favorite xkcd cartoons would make a great game at a math nerd party. Get a clock with digital display. Set it to 24 hour format. (Better still, one with seconds display!) See who can find the prime factorization of the time display quickest.

  77. Another counting game by warp_kez · · Score: 1

    Could always count taxi cabs. 1729.

  78. girl + slashdot by elentiras · · Score: 1

    Submitting an 'ask Slashdot' and the first words are 'a girl'. This has to be a hoax; no one in right mind would expect a straight answer.

  79. Friend Zone by msgmonkey · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Over doing nice things for someone you want to get romantically envolved with is a sure fire way to get stuck in the "Friend Zone". She will be like, "OMG You're just the best friend ever!" and with that sentance it will be game over.

    I'm not saying be an asshole, but women expect different things from a lover and a friend.

    1. Re:Friend Zone by ari_j · · Score: 1

      You can do both. Throw the party, go to it, and hit on other girls while you're there. Of course, this assumes that you can throw a math nerd party that more than one girl will attend.

  80. Listen to your female friend by houghi · · Score: 1

    She wanted to trow such a party and decided against it, because it wouldn't work. To have a party, you need party-people, not just people. Ask people who like to party what they like. They will anser with the words of the famout Frank Zappa: 'Titties and beer'.

    Perhaps what you want is not so much a party but a gathering (perhaps with alcohol). Not entirely the same thing.

    I know I would not be interested in any themed party. Even the toga parties I went to in my time I only went because of the girls and the alcohol, not because of the theme. Take away the theme and you still have a party. Take away the party and you have a bunch of idiots.

    So drop the theme, have a party, socialize and keep the 'wouldn't it be great if we would have a party where everybody dresses like ...' to a nice thought of 5 minutes during that socializing, because if you realy think about it, it is nice to see in a movie, but crap in reality, just as your friend already figured out.

    --
    Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
  81. a PARTY! by Thu+Anon+Coward · · Score: 1

    oh wow! And this one time at math camp, we all made these fizzy drinks and then we told jokes and we were laughing so hard we squirted it out our noses and they started burning!

    And then this other time at math camp, we tried to do reverse regression analysis while playing strip poker. Boy, did we ever beat those girls at that game! We got all our clothes off first!

    And then another time at math camp.....

    --



    I'm good with numbers - .45, 7.62, 9.....
  82. Re:Throw a LAN by TheScienceKid · · Score: 1

    Somehow, the first image that came to mind after reading that involved physically throwing a comms rack. I suspect this may not be what you meant :P.

    I guess our definitions of "a LAN" vary :P.

  83. Fancy dress by seanellis · · Score: 1

    Just to see how many come dressed as the Doppler Effect.

    Mmmmeeeoooowwwwwww...

    1. Re:Fancy dress by greyhueofdoubt · · Score: 1

      >>Just to see how many come dressed as the Doppler Effect.

      Indeed, my experience with women has shown that they almost always dress up in a peculiar style of redshift.

      -b

      --
      No offense, but I've stopped responding to AC's.
  84. A variant on that. by jd · · Score: 1
    Calculate the number of people likely to turn up. Add half that number again. This is the number of branches and areas of mathematics you want to think of. These needn't be "textbook" areas, just areas geeks might be interested in. The obvious ones would be differential calculus, linear algebra, galois fields, group theory, set theory, euclidian geometry, chaos theory, the prize-winning unproven conjectures, games theory, signals theory, 1-way and 2-way encryption, information theory, fractal geometry, cellular automata, data compression, data error correction, and so on.

    Put that list somewhere where people can anonymously select an area. This is important. It has to be anonymous. That person must then produce something themed on that area. It can be a costume, a game, food, doesn't matter. But it must be categorically about that area, it can't be something generic and it can't be something too ordinary. However, not everything brought needs to be themed. In fact, some things must not, though there must be some sort of clue as to which is which.

    The party would then be on multiple levels. You have the top level of the party itself, you have the next level of a massive detective game, hunting for clues to find out what is red herring and what is theme, then further detection to determine what the theme is. Finally, you've the showdown between the master detectives (those who guessed the most themes correctly) and the master mathematicians (those who represented their theme the best in the eyes of those at the party). Those nominally on both teams have to pick. I don't know what the final shootout game would be, but pick something suitable.

    How would that sound?

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  85. Essentials for the Geek Party by spectecjr · · Score: 1

    Bring lots of alcohol. And pot. Heck, LSD even. Depends on the crowd though. Either way, bring stuff to loosen people up.
    Bring party games. These should include:
    * Fluxx (card game where the rules continuously change)
    * XBOX 360 or similar; preferably party games such as Guitar Hero, Rock Band, SceneIt, etc.
    * Wii if someone's got it (great for parties)

    As for the whole mingling (getting commutative? :D) aspect...

    Consider games like truth or dare. Drinking games. Etc.
    Consider making it a rule that every 30 minutes, someone has to go around and introduce themselves to everyone at the party.

    Get everyone to bring something random to the party, that has a story behind it. Then get everyone to tell the story.

    And here's a good other rule:
    Keep the party smallish. Stops cliques from forming, keeps the group dynamic manageable for people who might have issues with it otherwise.

    Eh... it's just like any other party. But bring Fluxx. It's great ;-)

    --
    Coming soon - pyrogyra
    1. Re:Essentials for the Geek Party by dcam · · Score: 1

      Is Fluxx the game I know as Bartok or Mao?

      Mao is like Bartok on speed. Bartok has two basic rules, you cannot create rules that impact future rules and you can't create rules specific to players. It plays like uno with a normal deck, but each time you win a round you get to make up a new rule. The starting rules are, questions are penalised, pointing is penalised and slow play is penalised.

      Mao is like bartok but you cannot speak (except where permitted by the rules) and the rules are *not stated* at the end of each round.

      Suggested rules:
      - switch direction on a certain card
      - penalty cards to the person on the left/right on a certain card
      - Require thank you for every penantly (better for Mao, add one extra thank you and get another penalty)
      - increment cards (eg clubs) when a particular suite is played. This makes things interesting because if people are waiting for a 3 of clubs, they are now waiting for a 4, no a 5 of clubs. Add variation (eg fibonacci series).
      - penalty cards, two cards after a specific card is played. This one is *especially* nasty in Mao, hard to work out what the rule is.

      --
      meh
    2. Re:Essentials for the Geek Party by AigariusDebian · · Score: 1

      Mao is a great game for any bunch of intellectual people. However, be sure to exaust all other fun activities and be sure to make all participants of the party play the game. Otherwise people tend to become bored within a few short hours and distract others with drinks and striptease.

  86. A must-have idea for the birthday cake by schnitzi · · Score: 1

    Here's an idea I posted to halfbakery.com a while back that I think will fit in nicely with your plans:

    http://www.halfbakery.com/idea/Binary_20birthday_20candles#1031936400

    --



    I object to that article, and to the next reply.
  87. just make a normal party by inferied · · Score: 1

    Booze and people make everything. :) Of course, game ideas, place, music and food are recommended.

  88. Simple by vic-traill · · Score: 1

    Tell people you're having a party, serve lots of booze ...

    And the rest follows by induction!

    --
    [17] Leary, T., White, C., Wood, P. R., Bhabha, W. D., and Wirth, N. Lambda calculus considered harmful. In Proceedings
  89. Rubik's Cube Party!!! by Chees0rz · · Score: 1

    Show up wearing all the colors of the cube (one color per article)... go home 'solved'....

  90. Math party gags... by LaminatorX · · Score: 1

    Make a Golden Rectangle shaped cake and use the icing to inscribe the Fibonacci sequence in smaller GR's. Cut party-hats into wearable conic-sections.

  91. GoH by frisket · · Score: 1

    Invite Don Knuth?

  92. How to keep them occupied by rmav · · Score: 2, Funny

    To keep the math majors occupied, you could give them a pie (round of course), and ask them to square it. Roberto

  93. Get spatial by GaryOlson · · Score: 1
    Create buttons/t-shirts/socks/boxer shorts with

    ..different vectors and have a contest to see who can make the best orthogonal space.

    ..different geometrical figures and see which combination makes the most stable structure.

    ..with different symbols and the goal is to make best use of your digits.

    --
    Every mans' island needs an ocean; choose your ocean carefully.
  94. Harold and Kumar On the Reiman Sphere by goombah99 · · Score: 1

    Hole a "Bottomless" party and see the poles and zeros in the lower half plane.

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    1. Re:Harold and Kumar On the Reiman Sphere by Keebler71 · · Score: 1

      Shouldn't that be "left-half plane"?

      --
      "It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance." - Thomas Sowell
  95. Nintendo Wii by prxp · · Score: 1

    "Wii would like to partE!"
    -prxp

  96. The other one by Chemisor · · Score: 1

    > Beer. It is one of the greatest agents in the world for reducing people's good judgment

    Here's the other one: www.fastseduction.com

  97. Mod parent up! by Yosho · · Score: 1

    I see a lot of posts here that amount to "get everybody drunk," which makes for a lame party, because everybody can get drunk on their own if they really feel like it. Nobody is going to remember a party like that.

    - Speaking of wine, don't bring beer. Beer is boring...ask people to bring something small, tasty, and interesting. Most geeks don't drink, but if the do, they tend to want to experience something original.

    As a geek who doesn't drink, I wouldn't say that most geeks don't drink, but there is a significant number who don't. I've been to a few parties where they were obviously just an excuse for everybody to get drunk, and I immediately left. That's no fun at all. So, make sure you get a good selection of non-alcoholic drinks, too.

    --
    Karma: Terrifying (mostly affected by atrocities you've committed)
    1. Re:Mod parent up! by BaronVW · · Score: 1

      Please don't interpret my reply to you as a argument, but rather a friendly debate, I'm more testing out Slashdot and my email settings...but I did want to understand something... "I wouldn't say that most geeks don't drink, but there is a significant number who don't." So...on a scale of 1 - 10, where would you place 'most' and where would you place 'significant', and...how do you correlate this relationally? Meaning, did you take it to mean I was saying most geeks don't drink - relative to other geeks? Or relative to other people in general? And, of the statement 'most don't' does it mean we "never do" or have "never done"? [I for example, have never had a sip of alcohol in my life, neither beer, nor anything else. Nor, have I have had coffee, smokes, or recreational drugs, ever. Although it is important to note I hope for all to enjoy what ever they indulge in, and since our audience here are for the 'most' part smart, I leave it to them to do so smartly.] I shall stand by my use of 'most' in all the cases though, since for me I tend to assign 'most' to mean 2/3rds. Otherwise I would say 'over half' or some such more exacting yet social term. However, I do so with empirical data, and somewhat formal data as well (where somewhat might be the inverse of 'most' of course. In fact, to the degree of polling hundreds of people over dozens of years, and hundreds of parties.

    2. Re:Mod parent up! by TerranFury · · Score: 1

      I have much the same perception as Yosho. I am under the impression that most 'geeks' do drink, like most anybody else (I have heard plenty of stories from Caltech!) Yet I also think, again agreeing with Yosho, that non-drinkers are more common among more intelligent people, and the decision not to drink is more respected.

      It's not an issue I have investigated scientifically.

      I'd be careful with "poll results" though. I've known at least one guy who would say things like "I don't really drink" when talking to a certain set of people, and then go get alcohol poisoning with another set of people. I think that many people try to present themselves -- perhaps unconsciously -- as more like the person they're talking to than they really are, and they use equivocating terms like "not really" to avoid feeling dishonest when they do. So I'd be careful in interpreting your numbers, if you've been counting, because the simple fact is that all the people you talked to were talking to you, and this affects their responses.

      I think most people just follow the crowd. I drink hardly at all -- I had two drinks over my entire four years of college, have had fewer than a dozen drinks in my life, and have never been drunk -- and when I have dated girls who used to drink in line with their college peers (i.e., heavily), they adopted habits much more like mine, even though I didn't make a big deal about it. People just follow example. So if somebody is talking to you, there's an extent to which they'll attempt to mirror you, and follow yours.

    3. Re:Mod parent up! by Yosho · · Score: 1

      Well, I would generally define most as "a majority", and so I was assuming that you were saying that a majority of the people who would consider themselves "geeks" don't drink (not that they never have -- just that they don't now). I don't have any empirical data, just the observations I've made in college and, after graduating, at my job.

      Based on what I've seen in college and among my non-geek friends, pretty much everybody who's not a geek drinks, and telling them that I don't is met by "What? Why not?" On the other hand, among the geeks I know (and virtually all of my coworkers are computer scientists or electrical engineers), I'd say that between 10 to 20 percent of them don't drink. I haven't gone around polling them, but we sometimes have things like end-of-project parties that have 40 or 50 people invited, and it's pretty easy to observe who drinks and who doesn't. Furthermore, telling them that I don't drink alcohol is usually met with something more like, "Oh, ok, want a root beer?"

      --
      Karma: Terrifying (mostly affected by atrocities you've committed)
    4. Re:Mod parent up! by BaronVW · · Score: 1

      "not that they never have -- just that they don't now" Ah, OK, so "willing to drink" is a murky area for me. For example, if I throw a party, and there is no alcohol, and no one mentions anything, these to me are not drinkers. This may simply be our difference in usage. Given I have parties often bi-weekly (esp. during the summer), and leave out alcohol, (and good stuff too), only to find it all or mostly unopened, is interesting. As a result, I have amassed a huge collection of gift spirits. My two day parties however will often result in more being consumed, since often people will simply stay over, sometimes a dozen or two. This may also be a west coast vs. east coast type of thing, hard to tell without more data.

  98. Wii + Smarty Pants == Funy Student Party by LKM · · Score: 1

    Rock Band for the Wii isn't out yet; I guess you played Guitar Hero. I agree, this is great fun at parties.

    Smarty Pants is a Wii game somewhat similar to the TV show "Who wants to be a millionaire." It has a ton of questions about technology and science, and it's always a success at parties with comp sci, biology or math students.

  99. If you prick us, do we not bleed? by hey! · · Score: 1

    I'd arrive in regular clothing, with no props or anything.

    If anybody asks, I'd reply, "We're just like anybody else, really. Only smarter."

    --
    Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
  100. Well said. I just have one point to add... by Quinn_Inuit · · Score: 3, Insightful

    If she's truly nerdy, she may already know. There's certainly enough info in the post to ID her (assuming you know her already), and given the /. readership it's quite likely that she and/or one or more of her friends have read this.

    --

    Stop learning! Only you can prevent esoterrorism.
  101. Re: Reimmannian folding conjunction Kuhns patches by turkeyfish · · Score: 3, Funny

    Yes, Gauss's Fundamental Theorem of Algebra does appear to be relevant, its just that the complex analysis required at the inflection points near the of roots positional integrands that define the bounded Reimannian surface produce a computationally expensive solution given the short duration of the party.

  102. Math Twister by Sorcha+Payne · · Score: 1

    As there was a large number of math majors in our group of friends, we used to play Math Twister. A friend of mine came up with the idea for my birthday. What you do is, take a normal Twister mat, and number it from 1 to 24. Number it such that consecutive numbers have different colors.

    Then instead of using a wheel to call the colors, someone makes the calls by making statements like: "Left hand on a number that is prime and greater than 15" or "Right foot on a blue circle that is odd" etc.

    This game can be much harder than regular Twister, depending on how it is called.. but it gets "messy" quick.

    1. Re:Math Twister by greyhueofdoubt · · Score: 1

      The poor physics majors, while calculating the precise positioning of their hands at the expense of knowing how fast their hands are moving, would be caught in a Zeno's paradox and have to be carried, limp and sweating, away from the twister board before they expired from the debilitating incompatible logics of beer and euclidean geometry.

      -b

      --
      No offense, but I've stopped responding to AC's.
    2. Re:Math Twister by yuna49 · · Score: 1

      Twister was the first game to come to my mind because of the potential for topological analysis after the game ends.

      Another topological contest is to pair people up (hopefully with members of the opposite sex, or the same sex if appropriate). Have them compete at the task of removing their partners' undergarments as quickly as possible while leaving their outer garments in place. Lots of topological problems there.

    3. Re: Math Twister by Sorcha+Payne · · Score: 1

      Yes, the task should be (for the people not on the twister mat): Calculate the 1st homotopy group (with a fixed base point on the mat) of the object formed by the mat and the players after each turn. (mind you, as I am not a topologist, this sounds quite difficult for me...)

  103. Math majors + blow = interesting possibility... by BUL2294 · · Score: 1

    Get an 8-ball and see what happens... (I'd pay to be a fly on the wall in that situation!)

    --
    Windows 3.1x calc: 3.11 - 3.10 = 0.00
  104. Dres up? by Pig+Hogger · · Score: 1

    most of her friends are math nerds and wouldn't even have to dress up!
    What? You mean to say that math nerds go naked all the time? Darn! I know I shouldn't have studied in CS!!!
  105. Re:I think you're screwed by bhtooefr · · Score: 1

    Not screwed, you mean.

  106. How do you get past 7? by Valdrax · · Score: 1

    You start at 1 and continue listing off numbers, however when you reach a number with a 7 in it (7, 17, etc..), a multiple of 7 (49, 24, etc..), or a double (11, 22, 33, etc..) then you must say "Buzz", and the direction you were going in reverses. How do you ever get past 7? Wouldn't it be:
    "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, *Buzz!*, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...."
    "Huh? I guess that's game over."

    Doesn't the game just always get stuck between two numbers no matter where you start?
    --
    If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
    1. Re:How do you get past 7? by HoldenCaulfield · · Score: 1

      The direction you're going around the circle reverses, not the indexing of the numbers . . .

  107. Re:A drinking game called Buzz: here's how it work by R2.0 · · Score: 1

    Best one I ever played was called "Criss-Cross" sit/stand/lounge in a circle, and a person takes 2 empty cups and hold them in any one of a number of configurations, and announces "Crossed" or "Uncrossed". Then those who know the rules determine if the person is correct or incorrect, and if they are incorrect, they drink. The object of the game is to determine the rules for whether one should announce "Crossed" or "Uncrossed".

    Hints:
    1) It's not obvious.
    2) Those who know the criteria will try to mislead those who don't.
    3) Some folks will never pick up on it.

    --
    "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly." A. Carlson
  108. Krypto by Gre7g · · Score: 1

    Look for an ancient card game called "Krypto". It's fun, nerdy, and math oriented.

  109. Higher functions by waltlaw · · Score: 1

    We like to start by rolling a number.

  110. Pi & Runge-Kutta by codewritinfool · · Score: 1

    All of the women could have a "best pi" contest. There would also be performances of Runge-Kutta on the winners.

  111. Two words... by valecs · · Score: 1

    LIQUID NITROGEN!

  112. Statistical Drinking Pin the Tail on the Donkey by ukemike · · Score: 1

    Everyone takes their turn pinning the tail on the donkey, then a distribution of how far from the donkey's butt is generated. Drink volumes are allocated according to the number of standard deviations.

    --
    -- QED
  113. Booger's answer by vmalloc_ · · Score: 1

    "Hey guys... WONDER JOINTS!"

  114. An Idea for the study of probability by wellingj · · Score: 1

    Massive game of old school table top BattleTech.
    Or a Networked game of BattleTech

  115. Risky, but ballsy by apankrat · · Score: 1

    Pi in a coffee certain takes Kopi Luwak to another level. :)

    --
    3.243F6A8885A308D313
  116. Mod up. by TerranFury · · Score: 1

    Parent is the best post in this thread.

  117. Re: Reimmannian folding conjunction Kuhns patches by kurthr · · Score: 1

    Hey baby!
    Let me contour integrate your hot throbbing singularity :PP

  118. best idea ever by ILuvRamen · · Score: 1

    You definitely have to get her a pie and carve out the pi symbol in it :D

    --
    Google's Super Secret Search Algorithm: SELECT @search_results FROM internet WHERE @search_results = 'good'
  119. Jocks + Cheerleaders by plunderphonic · · Score: 1

    Obviously, do the exact opposite. Jocks and Cheerleaders.

  120. Re: 2 pi or not 2 pi by llauren · · Score: 1

    Unless you want to serve a semicircular pi, make it round and call it what it is, a 2 pi.

  121. College geeks do drink by witherstaff · · Score: 1

    I went to an engineering school - GMI. I can assure you that almost all geeks there drank. Then again, it was an engineering school, 90% greek, based in the armpit of a city Flint, and had a 20 to 1 male/female student body ratio. If those factors don't drive someone to drink, I don't know what would!

    As for the parent, some very useful tips. Avoid the overly cliche party or geeky sort of things.

    For example, just because you're surrounded by geeks, or perhaps automotive engineers, it is not a good party idea to dissassemble someone's car and reassemble it in the middle of the dining room.

  122. Oh. by Valdrax · · Score: 1

    The direction you're going around the circle reverses, not the indexing of the numbers . . . Well, that makes a lot more sense.
    --
    If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
  123. Experience by Fuzzy+Eric · · Score: 1
    I'm a math (and physics/computer science/hardware/network administration/security, and therefore wildly defocused) geek who successfully throws parties for geeks. So clearly my experiences will be entirely incompatible for the group you're thinking of hosting.

    Things that have worked:

    • * Memorial/Labor Day parties, at the lake, one or two weeks before or after Memorial/Labor Day. Everyone has an easy time getting to the lake/beach, the places aren't nearly so crowded, and there's a sense of (George Carlin, Iceboxman-esque), "feel[ing] really intelligent."
    • * Game night, as suggested above a few times, preferably with games that can be played by more than two or four people, and preferably ones that are not logical/deductive (e.g. Clue). Winners have been Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, RoboRally (breaking the advice I just gave), Taboo, Quelf, Dilbert Corporate Shuffle (q.v. The Great Dalmuti http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Dalmuti and President http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_(game) ), Primordial Soup, Trivial Pursuit (various editions), and I'm sure there are others that aren't popping off the top of my head. Other less formal games are Botticelli http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botticelli_(game) and variants where instead of people, the subject matter is movies, bands, albums, television shows, and/or quotes from any of the above.
    • * Sports (shock!) although the difference between vaguely active games (like Quelf) and sedate sports can be a bit tricky -- typically a little quirky, like bowling, archery, curling, bocce, horseshoes, lawn bowls, croquet, lawn darts, et al.
    • * Music night -- bring an instrument, jam with/annoy the others. For a slightly less musical crowd, might have an instance or two of Rock Band http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Band_(video_game) set up.
    • * Movie night -- preferably on several screens in several rooms, with a mix of "good geeky movies" (e.g. Lord of the Rings, Sneakers, Flash Gordon) and "bad geeky movies" (e.g. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter, Flash Gordon).
    • * Obscure alcohol night -- bring something odd you found or something you made. Expect to provide craploads of small (probably paper) cups for tasting.
    • * Coffee House Takeover -- if you have a large group, plan to take over a coffee house, and chat/game/whatever. For ideas with a smaller group, start here: http://improveverywhere.com/2003/03/22/the-moebius/

    That's not an exhaustive list, and even the items are incomplete, but it's not a bad leaping off point to go in whatever direction you like.

  124. Random costumes by vail130 · · Score: 1

    I threw this party in a matter of 5 hours once. Invited a ton of people from facebook and said to come dressed in crazy costumes. It worked perfectly, because everyone can do whatever they want, and it's a great way to start conversations.

  125. Re:MOD PARENT DOWN by doktor-hladnjak · · Score: 4, Insightful

    There's some truth in what both of you have to say really. Being yourself and getting the girl are just not going to happen if your life mainly consists of sitting in your basement playing video games.

    That said, searching for dates is really only good for finding one thing--dates. You may get laid or meet the girl of your dreams, but you're mostly going to spend money on dinners, drinks and movies for somebody's company for a few hours. If you just enjoy dating for the sake of dating (and many people do), all that is fine. A lot of the advice out there on the internet is targeted towards guys who want to date more and get laid more.

    If you're looking for that serious, long term relationship though, well, you shouldn't actually be looking for it. People who are looking hard for relationships tend to be the last ones who should be in a relationship as they're often needy, insecure and desperate. The best relationships are the ones that you sort of stumble across while doing something else. Obviously, playing video games at home all day is unlikely to provide an environment where this can happen.

    Beyond changing significant, alterable aspects of yourself (like not bathing or generally being disgusting), the key is not to stop being yourself, but rather to improve yourself such that other people can find you "being yourself" more interesting. One easy way to do that is to undertake some new hobbies or activities where there will be the kind of people you'd like to end up in a relationship with around. For some people, dating more (and making themselves more datable) is such a hobby. For others, it might be taking an art class or learning to ballroom dance or working on a politician's campaign.

  126. Board Games Party; Math Graffiti Party by billstewart · · Score: 1
    (Hi, A.A.!)


    Many years ago, my wife decided to have a board games party for her birthday. Most of our friends are various kinds of techies, including the crypto geek crowd I was hanging out with, and that worked reasonably well. For the invitation, she got a bunch of blank jigsaw puzzles and some plastic silk-screening templates, and silk-screened the invitation onto the puzzles. So the invitations were physically encrypted (:-), and you had to assemble them to get details.


    Another memorable techie party was one that my friend Eric threw at Doug's new apartment. Doug had just arrived in town, and most of his furniture hadn't yet. Eric put large rolls of paper on the walls, and started tossing magic markers around for people to write things with. Much entertaining presentation happened, but then there was a Japanese TV crew at the party pointing cameras at people. And the quiet old guy lighting a cigarette on the stove was Timothy Leary (Tim wasn't in great shape by then, but he was still getting around.)

    --

    Bill Stewart
    New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
  127. I know someone probably already said this.. by JustShootMe · · Score: 1

    But have a pi-throwing contest.

    After that, try to calculate the minimum volume of water required to make a woman's shirt see-through, and then test it empirically.

    After that, try to calculate the coefficient of friction on a strippers pole, and see how much grease will lower that amount. Also test this empirically. Do not forget to increase the coefficient of money to make up for this. You do not want an angry stripper.

    There are going to be ladies there too, so you have to do something for them. Have a "guess the schlong length" contest - down to the nearest millimeter. Let them measure. Be sure to provide them with a very attractive male. These are math geeks, you'll probably have to hire one.

    Now an interesting problem would be to guess the average number of hairs on a woman that are not on the head, then have a contest to find out who is closest, but you're reaching the realm now of "I don't care about the results, but the experiment itself is the end", at which case you've exhausted all scientific possibility, and may as well just have an orgy.

    Glad I can help.

    --
    For linux tips: http://www.linuxtipsblog.com
  128. Precisely by pjt33 · · Score: 1

    You've hit the nail on the head. Great fun for everyone else to watch!

  129. The problem with women by shanen · · Score: 1

    Slashdot as a dating service? Well, if there are many female readers, they are certainly doing a good job of hiding themselves.

    However, my speculation on the general topic is that most women are holding out for Mr Wonderful, whereas most men are only Mr Adequate. Many of the women hold out too long and wind up as old maids, even though they'd be happier married, even to Mr Adequate. Why do they make the mistake? Because the women are making false inferences about the availability of Mr Wonderful. Many women base their sampling on movies and television, where the large majority of 'featured' men are Mr Wonderful. How much camera time does Mr Adequate get?

    Based on my real world sampling, I would say that there are very few men who actually qualify as Mr Wonderful, and they are all married at a young age. There is a much larger group of men who are skilled at pretending to be Mr Wonderful. Some of them are serial polygamists and the others are just pure cads.

    If I'm so smart about these things, why didn't I ever get married? Simple. I'm just Mr Adequate and stupidly honest about it. Or as Popeye put it, "I yam what I yam, and that's all what I yam."

    Oh yes, I should note that there's a statistical distortion working against me, too. The fake Mr Wonderfuls "use up" a lot of women. I don't blame them for being once bitten, twice shy--but it makes me think we'd have a very different and less frustrating world if the gender ratio was heavily in favor of the women...

    --
    Freedom = (Meaningful - Coerced) Choice != (Speech | Beer^2), and sad sock puppets' bad mods avail them naught.
  130. Engine blowing party. by HornWumpus · · Score: 1

    Get an old junker about to go to the junkyard but with a running motor. Value is typically by the pound at that point anyhow.

    Drink much beer (other festive activities optional).

    At the appointed hour put the junker in Neutral, put a brick on the gas peddle.

    Drink more beer...in my case have the time to be truly amazed by the durability of an old dodge 383. I'd guess it turned well over seven grand for at least ten minutes before seizing hard. I'm grinning again just thinking about it. There was an oil fire...then the radiator hose blew...put out the fire...in the end it wound down from seven grand or so to seized in short fraction of a second.

    One bit of advice I'd give is to position a five gallon bucket full of water near the intake (remove air filter etc) and attach a string so you can dump the water down the intake and make the motor hydro-lock on queue.

    Also make sure you've got plenty of clay kitty litter to clean up fluids.

    Heck with a group of guys collecting junkers you could create a symphony of blowing motors and post it on youtube.

    Even geek girls like an exploding motor. So long as they had plenty of notice and their car isn't parked next to the junker.

    --
    John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
  131. Costume Party by geoskd · · Score: 1

    Three suggestions, although I doubt this post will ever see the light of day...

    1) Costume Parties always go over well. With a group of above average intelligence, you can get some really wild and creative costumes.

    2) A formal party. tuxedos, evening gowns and dancing (old school, none of this white guy two step shit that seems so popular these days) make for a damn good party, but you may have trouble finding people who know *how* to dance.

    3) A shindig at a local amusement park can often be had for much less than you might expect if you can a large enough group together.

    -=Geoskd

    --
    I wish I had a good sig, but all the good ones are copyrighted
  132. Remove item of clothing rules? by HornWumpus · · Score: 1

    Any rule against making a rule saying all participants must remove items of clothing?

    I once convinced a couple of very drunk freshgirls that strip quarters was just how we did things in college.

    --
    John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
  133. Meaningless by raides · · Score: 1

    Please take your meaningless dribble back to crappy digg. Thanks.

    1. Re:Meaningless by raides · · Score: 1

      *dribble = drivel

  134. party for math nerds. by porky_pig_jr · · Score: 1

    Bourbaki ribs with aleph-1 sauce tastefully served in Klein's bottle.

    Abelian-grape and Zorn-lemon pi.

  135. My Math/Stats Student Assoc.... by Secret+Rabbit · · Score: 1

    ... always just went to a Pub (note I did NOT say bar) played pool and chatted (basements work too). There was also Math drinking games.

    2-Player "21":

    Deal out 1/2 deck each
    both players take 2 cards place face down on table
    flip cards over at the same time
    using basic arithmetic on the 4 number, first person to calculate 21 from them wins/gets the point/ the other person has to drink/whatever (we used slapping the table as a "buzz in")
    repeat

  136. Well by tlann75 · · Score: 1

    The girls should dress up as football players and the guys should dress up as cheerleaders. So you think this is a gay idea? Well so is this news item. No there is nothing wrong with being homosexual. Get used to it.

  137. Play Risk by kris.montpetit · · Score: 1

    or you could always lure a jock into the party with promises of beer bongs and buttsex and then trap him and beat him with foam bats?

  138. Re: Reimmannian folding conjunction Kuhns patches by Garridan · · Score: 2, Insightful

    You realize that the power of the contour integral lies in the fact that you inegrate along a curve which encloses an area containing a singularity, allowing one to completely avoid the otherwise difficult to deal with singularity? So what you just said, is "Hey baby! Can I get awkwardly close to, but not quite touch your dirty bits?"

    Yeah. That'll win 'er over.

  139. Re:MOD PARENT DOWN by Xarin · · Score: 1

    ...Being yourself and getting the girl are just not going to happen if your life mainly consists of sitting in your basement playing video games.



    That's whey I spend all my time memorizing train schedules.
  140. Why is the question being asked? by sbb · · Score: 1

    Let's keep our eyes on the ball here, people. Can you patent something that you didn't invent?
    If you can invent it, you can patent it.
    If you can patent it, you can profit from it
    ... and you can prevent others from competing with you in the market.

  141. set, card game by zojas · · Score: 1

    www.setgame.com an awesome card game. play the game before the beer comes out though.

  142. Dress like your favorite jocks. by MikeFM · · Score: 1

    I'd suggest the most outrageous efforts to dress like your favorite jocks. Dumb looks, oversized muscles, barf down your front, etc.

    --
    At what price learning? At what cost wisdom? The price is a man's peace of mind, and the cost is his life.
  143. One thing. by cadu · · Score: 1

    "Married 7.5 years, 4 kids."

    dude, they need advice from people with experience in dating/flirting, you already got rusty :"( /me hides in the corner (married long time too...) :P

    1. Re:One thing. by syousef · · Score: 1

      dude, they need advice from people with experience in dating/flirting, you already got rusty

      A 50 year old ex-champion athelete may be an excellent coach or adviser, even if he can no longer qualify for his event.

      --
      These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
  144. Re:sigh. by syousef · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Hey at least the married person can claim to have been very successful at least once, whereas the single bloke hasn't gotten as far. Do YOU have a piece of paper signed by your partner that says they're willing to spend the rest of their life with you?

    --
    These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
  145. Re:MOD PARENT DOWN by geoskd · · Score: 1

    Building a long term relationship is not really a difficult thing to do. The trick is to treat it the way you would approach any large scale project. First, acquire a subject, who is attainable. This is probably the hardest part. You need to know where to look. I would recommend that you determine the attributes of the type of person you want and use this as the basis for your search. If you want a semi-alcoholic bubble headed twit, for example, you would look in a bar. Otherwise, you might not want to look in a bar...

    Once you have a subject acquired, you need a plan. Your plan should adhere to the I.M.P.R.E.S.S. principle, and to the K.I.S.S. principle. For those who are unaware of these two acronyms, the first stands for:

    I) Immediate. Your plan should be something that you can begin immediately.

    M) Measurable. Your plan should have measurable results (or lack thereof)

    P) Personal. Your plan should be something that is controlled by you, and no one else. Don't leave your destiny in someone else's hands...

    R) Repeatable. Your plan should be repeatable. Even the best plans can have flaws in execution, so you should be prepared to have to repeat the project a few times. This is ussually involved more at the subject selection phase.

    E) Executable. Your plan should be something that you can execute yourself. It should not require the help or co-operation of anyone other than yourself and your subject.

    S) Simple. A complex plan is usually doomed to failure. keep it as simple as realistically possible. A good understanding of basic psychology is very helpful in this regard.

    S) Situational. Your plan should be somewhat fluid and allow you to react to changing circumstances and predictable events.

    The second acronym stands for Keep It Simple Stupid, and this re-iterates the importance of simplicity in planning. Complexity is inversely proportional to the probability of success.

    -=Geoskd

    --
    I wish I had a good sig, but all the good ones are copyrighted
  146. follow the classic... by Rev+Snow · · Score: 1
  147. Two words by uvajed_ekil · · Score: 1

    Ice cream.

    --
    This is a hacked account, for which the owner can not be held responsible.
  148. Re: Be a BETTER self instead of just YOUR self. by jbatista · · Score: 2, Insightful

    He needs to be himself, and when the right woman finds him, it'll click. [...] You don't find a woman when you're looking for one. At least I didn't.
    The problem with the "just be yourself" advice is often toxic to chronic introverts is that it gives the clueless guys (and I hope Stachybotris is not assuming I'm calling him clueless, I'm not because first and foremost I don't really know him) the wrong impression that continuing their present behavior is correct. And it exhempts them from wishing to have some degree of control over their actions. And I personally don't see anything wrong with a guy admitting that he's (actively) looking for a gal. (And what to say of women's magazines with catchy titles like "How to catch the man of your dreams" etc.?...) I understand it may make you look like a creep if you admit it openly, so please don't advertise it/say it openly unless someone asks directly. And keep it non-challant. After all, what's wrong with one wanting a good life partner except others wanting him/her to be/look/feel bad about it? As for party ideas... IMHO, I'm sure you'll agree that the idea of a party is to get people to interact, not just sit around in a corner. The hosts/hostesses are supposed to have a minimum social knowledge about the guests, so I'd suggest arranging some sort of "hunt" which would encourage people to interact at a social and not intellectual level (something I dare say might be challenging in this environment...) instead of just be wallflowers. Dumb examples that come to mind: Having people talk to each other to try to find out whether a three-algarism sequence they have matches with the algarism sequence of Pi or some other known number; or giving each one a sliver of paper (before attending the party) with the name of famous mathematicians and their birth years/natal cities. Distribute the little pieces of paper beforehand, and through different groups, to try to break people away from their usual small group of friends. Be roudy. Use a Twister game where the spots are supposed to be multiples of 2, 3 or 5. It only takes a couple of more "daring" people to start it; although it may cause the more introverts to lock up and/or women to shy away from possible physical contact. A smart host should be sensible to "feeling the vibe" and be prepared to make prehemptive changes.
    --
    My sig is better than your sig.
  149. Math-querade parties, math-cookies, & puzzle-g by Paul+Komarek · · Score: 1

    Back when I was an undergrad in the math department...we had great math parties that were a lot of fun. You don't have to do much to carry a math-ish theme, and math folks tend to carry conversations well-enough that you don't have to babysit them (unlike so many CS parties I've been to).

    We used to have Math-querade parties, just to make use of a good pun. Costumes were optional, but plenty of us dressed up anyway.

    Sometimes we'd mak math-shaped sugar-cookies -- just make a batch of sugar-cookie dough and cut it in the shape of various operators and greek letters (then have fun decorating with icing). It's a fair amount of work, but you could even turn it into a party-community activity (have the dough ready ahead of time, then get everyone to roll out a bit of dough and start cutting out math shapes).

    It was always good to have games around. Encourage people to bring their own -- they're likely to have many. If you know any math profs well, see if they'll loan you their games, or suggest some (about 1/3 of math profs I know *loved* puzzle-games). Any game with deduction is usually a sure-fire hit, including various card games or round-the-table games like "Mafia", e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mafia_(game) [yes, those parens are part of the url, it seems).

    Alcohol is fine, but recognize that not all geeks like drinking, and that is fine. I'd suggest accommodating moderate drinking, but skip the hard alcohol.

    Unless the math students/geeks you know are assholes, any effort you make with the intention of having fun will be warmly-received.

  150. Everything they need. by briester · · Score: 1

    It's just a question of limits, don't root around the issue. If (Woman) -> |Party| > 0.

  151. math major here by NumenMaster · · Score: 1

    As a math major myself, I'd make sure there's a Wii with plenty of games, plenty of alcohol, and loads of pizza. Also, wireless so everyone bringing their portables can hit the net and all.

    --
    Where's my sock? There it is...
  152. Come as your favorite abstraction by CurtMonash · · Score: 1

    I haven't been a graduate student in mathematics since the 1970s. That said:

    For a costume party, I'd suggest "Come as your favorite abstraction". That would also be accessible to any non-mathematicians attending.

    Kind of like med students' "Come as your favorite syndrome," but not as sick.

    --
    To err is human. To forgive is good system design.
  153. XKCD Themed by setien · · Score: 1

    An XKCD themed party :) People can be more or less creative with their interpretation of the theme, and the least creative can just wear a black hat and be mean.

    --
    Give me liberty or give me kill -s 9
  154. Great idea! A nerd party by Buchenskjoll · · Score: 1

    I hope no bad people show up.

    --
    -- Make America hate again!
  155. At my engineering school... by klecu · · Score: 1

    We love to play Mafia. It's a great social game that for some reason appeals to nerdy/geeky types.

    --
    Wisdom, knowledge, and truth - found only in one Place.
  156. Re:MOD PARENT DOWN by mcvos · · Score: 1

    There's some truth in what both of you have to say really. Being yourself and getting the girl are just not going to happen if your life mainly consists of sitting in your basement playing video games.

    It's important to know the difference between being yourself and doing what you always do. It's important to be yourself in the sense that putting up an act or pretending to be something you're not is never going to work. But if you always sit in a basement playing games, then yes, you should try to get out more. You're not going to meet girls by not meeting girls. And the chances of that one new girl you meet per month being Ms. Right are pretty small.

    That said, searching for dates is really only good for finding one thing--dates. You may get laid or meet the girl of your dreams, but you're mostly going to spend money on dinners, drinks and movies for somebody's company for a few hours.

    Not true. Dates can lead to relationships, and many relationships started with dating. But you're right that not everybody who is interested in dating is also interested in a relationship. Don't waste your time on dating someone who isn't interested in relationships. But how do you discover if he/she is interested in something more? Sometimes it's obvious (it's an explicit option on many online dating services), but you can also ask how he/she sees his/her life in 5 or 10 years. If the answer includes a relationship, marriage or kids, the option of a serious relationship is clearly present. If you are a serious option, well, that's another question.

    If you're looking for that serious, long term relationship though, well, you shouldn't actually be looking for it. People who are looking hard for relationships tend to be the last ones who should be in a relationship as they're often needy, insecure and desperate.

    Again, not true. Yes, many people who are desperate for a relationship are not ready for it, and should really be working to get their own life in order, but there are also a lot of people who are comfortable and secure in their own life, and not at all desperate for a relationship, but still very much interested and indeed actively looking. Especially if they're over 30 and do hope to have kids in this lifetime.

    Beyond changing significant, alterable aspects of yourself (like not bathing or generally being disgusting), the key is not to stop being yourself, but rather to improve yourself such that other people can find you "being yourself" more interesting.

    Exactly! Be yourself, but improve who you are. Be clean, polite and charming, but be your own kind of clean, polite and charming. Be your best, be be you.

    One easy way to do that is to undertake some new hobbies or activities where there will be the kind of people you'd like to end up in a relationship with around.

    Again excellent advice! Meeting new people is a surprisingly effective way to meet new people.
  157. sorry no help for you by hesaigo999ca · · Score: 1

    I hate to say this but being a math nerd myself, i would say most probably guitar hero, or some form of highly involved community game on the lan unreal tournament etc....that is what most geeks would rather do on their own, with their friends, going to a party to mingle with friends AND maybe those they don't like, you are back in high school...think along the lines of pictionnary etc...CSI board game is ok too, seeing as they use a bit of smarts, but not enough to think they are working.

  158. Try Nerds from Other Majors by NotNormal · · Score: 1

    Think of it... Literary nerds, Music nerds, etc... Just need a tweed coat and haughty, self-satisfied air of smugness for the former...

    --
    ~ Normality is merely the achievement of the mediocre...
  159. Moebius strip by Muchsake · · Score: 1

    Get them all to dress as if they are going to do a moebius strip. example at http://www.yankodesign.com/index.php/2007/06/19/mobius-dress-inside-outside-garment-by-my-studio/ Get the winner (or loser) to do one. Follow up with a game of spin the Klein bottle.

  160. Oh geez... by tomzyk · · Score: 1

    Let's see how well you integrate after a couple

    The guy who starts flinging puns around like this is probably the same guy who uses that horrible pick-up line: "Hey, lets add a bed, subtract our clothes, divide your legs and multiply."
    This should be the guy you actually throw out of the party... like immediately after these words are uttered. It'll give everyone else a story to talk about later ("yeah, our party rocked. we even had to throw this one guy out!") plus it'll make the one female you have at the party feel less nervous.
    --
    Karma: NaN
  161. Re: Be a BETTER self instead of just YOUR self. by Stachybotris · · Score: 1

    The problem with the "just be yourself" advice is often toxic to chronic introverts is that it gives the clueless guys (and I hope Stachybotris is not assuming I'm calling him clueless, I'm not because first and foremost I don't really know him) the wrong impression that continuing their present behavior is correct.

    You're quite right - I probably didn't word that in the best way possible. What I meant by saying 'be yourself' isn't to continue on in whatever patterns of behavior the person has without regard to anything else, but rather to not try and be something that they aren't. Nonchalant is definitely the right word.

    If the person isn't a suave, 'hip' individual, they shouldn't try to act like one. While the effort isn't certain to be doomed to failure, it doesn't stand much chance of success and will probably lead to much awkwardness later on. It might work in the movies (as does the whole ugly duckling routine), but this is real life.
  162. Re:sigh. by mckwant · · Score: 1

    Yup. 10 years in July, thanks very much. 12, if you count living together without the paperwork. All I'm saying is that "dating" and "staying married" are VERRRRY different skillsets.

    I wouldn't give dating advice to ANYBODY at this point. Basic game's the same, but rules have changed too much (AIDS becoming an afterthought is particularly weird and annoying to me).

    Whatever. Just saying.

    --
    ceci n'est pas un sig.
  163. Re:Don Juan Boot Camp by Slashdot+Parent · · Score: 1

    Download it from here: http://www.jbspencer.com/djb/ I have to say, I am really not interesting in any dating advice from DJB
    --
    They don't grade fathers, but if your daughter's a stripper, you fucked up. --Chris Rock
  164. Mr. Nice Guy by Slashdot+Parent · · Score: 1

    You're swinging from one extreme to the other. You're right that doing favours for her is no good, but being direct with her is just as bad and will turn most women off instantly, and throw him into the "Let's Just Be Friends" zone. I'm with you here, but beyond this statement, I disagree with everything you say.

    "Telling her how you feel" is like saying to her "I like you and I want to fuck you!". In most cases it won't get you the favourable reaction you're looking for, unless you have high social value and status. It's just low-class and instantly outs the man as the clueless neanderthal that he is. This is ridiculous. What you are looking for is sex or rejection, and quick. Your suggestion below of becoming some type of Renaissance man won't get him an answer for months or years, and by then she's long-since written him off. "I like you and I want to fuck you" is 10X preferable to becoming "cultured and knowledgeable, experienced and worldly."

    A buddy of mine once went up to a girl in a bar who was wearing a button and said, "Nice button. Wanna fuck?" Her response: "Can we dance for a while first?" He had a great night that night.

    The worst she could have said was, "No," which is every bit as successful an answer as the one he got. He would have wasted no further time on her.

    Admittedly your odds are going to improve somewhat if you can be a little smoother than my friend, but the idea is still the same: How long does it take you to be pretty sure whether you have any interest whatsoever in a particular girl? 10 seconds? How long does it take to know for sure? 2 minutes? What makes you so sure she isn't sizing you up the exact same way?

    In my experience, the best dating techniques tease out her 10 second or 2 minute assessment of you as quickly as possible. What good is it to you to talk to some chick for an evening, buying her drinks the whole time, only to realize that she had written you off after just 10 seconds and now just wants free alcohol from her new "friend"?

    That seems to be the premise of all the "gurus" out there that everyone here is linking to. I've never actually listened to one, but listen to their names. "Cocky and Funny." Yeah, if she's into you, she'll think it's endearing, but if she's not, she'll tell you to "stick it in your ear." That's exactly what you want! You want a Yea or Nay, and you want it quickly so you can either keep workin' it or move on. Do not put serious effort into a chick before you have her 10 second or 2 minute assessment.
    --
    They don't grade fathers, but if your daughter's a stripper, you fucked up. --Chris Rock
  165. Could that have been the intent? by TimTucker · · Score: 1

    If she's truly nerdy, she may already know. There's certainly enough info in the post to ID her (assuming you know her already), and given the /. readership it's quite likely that she and/or one or more of her friends have read this. Assuming that he realized this when he submitted his question, it might actually be a pretty creative way of asking someone out. Even though enough information is in there to make an educated guess, there's definitely an element of plausible deniability.
  166. bowling, base 5 by morningstar8 · · Score: 1

    I used to go bowling with fellow geeks, and I always liked to score the game in different bases. Base 5 works out well, with scores over 1000 (125 base 10) indicating a decent geek's game. Similarly, base 11 (100 base 11 = 121 base 10) or 12 (100 base 12 = 144 base 10) work well, with base 11 not being quite as much fun as base 12 because the frequency of "unusual" digits is reduced. Hexadecimal was fun, too, because there were lots of "unusual" digits.

    Of course, you can only do this with a paper scoresheet. Given the proliferation of automatic scoring machines, you'll probably have to bring your own.

  167. Only Hunt the Diseased and Get Rotten Meat by Shihar · · Score: 1

    Bah, the advice is everyone babbles about is "don't be nice!" This is crap advice.

    Look, it is true that certain behaviors will absolutely score you more women faster. Yes, being a smug over confident ass hole will likely score you some ass faster than trying to be everyone's friend. There are two things that this strategy misses:

    1) This confuses getting some with dating another human whose company you actually enjoy. These are entirely different things. You can get laid without having any interest in the person you are screwing. You can be interested in a person and not want to screw them. Finally, you can be interested in someone and enjoy bumping uglies. Most the fucked up dating advice goes along the lines of âoebe a dick and you will get some!â fails to realize that these three states are different things.

    2) The dating advice that revolves around "be a dick" relies pretty much exclusively on finding women with low self esteem who are emotionally unstable. It is like advising a hunter to just walk behind a herd of antelope until you find one instead of wasting time setting up an ambush that might fail. Yeah, you will find one if you keep walking, but the one you find will always be half dead and diseased. All of the "be a dick" dating advice also revolves around getting rejected often. The reason for the often repeated rejection is because the women that reject you are the desirable functional females, while the ones who fail the test go home with you. Again, great for getting laid, but counter productive for finding something more exciting than a glorified sex toy.

    My advice? If you just want to get laid, follow the âoehunt the too wounded and diseased to run strategyâ (i.e. use tactics that specifically target screwed up women). You will find the human herdâ(TM)s equivalent of diseased and half dead whom you can take at will (rank as they might be).

    If you have screwed around enough to realize that the occasional lay isnâ(TM)t worth the misery of dealing with a screwed up woman with no self esteem, stop trying. Seriously, give it a rest. I am not saying donâ(TM)t date. Date often in fact. Some times you have to kiss a few frogs. Just give up on the lame tactics. In fact, I would say give up on all the lame tactics. Donâ(TM)t castrate yourself to impress or try and be a dick, just be casual, be yourself, donâ(TM)t get worked up, and eventually you will find a female that is interesting, vaguely sane, and doesnâ(TM)t mind jumping the sack with you.

  168. Strippers and alcohol. by geekoid · · Score: 1

    for both genders.

    Also, 'Rub the nipples' is a good game. I have no idea what it would be, or how it would work, just that any game called 'Rub the nipples' has great potential.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  169. Re:Math-querade parties, math-cookies, & puzzl by Improv · · Score: 1

    Mmm... Pi day celebrations...

    --
    For every problem, there is at least one solution that is simple, neat, and wrong.
  170. Calculator games by qoncept · · Score: 1

    My old neighbor had a picture of her one-time boyfriend at a (real) party playing games on his TI-85. Hard to top that.

    --
    Whale
  171. The "lets just be friends" zone by LukeCrawford · · Score: 1
    generally speaking, getting put into the 'let's just be friends' zone because you are not 'exciting' enough means that you dodged a bullet, especially if you actually care about the person. Speaking as someone who has been both the 'outlaw biker' and the 'pathetic nice guy' well, there are women who prefer both. The women who prefer the exciting 'outlaw biker' are generally incapable of having long-term relationships at this point in their life. (like men, women go through different mental phases as they mature) For this reason, women who prefer assholes are single much more often than women who prefer men who are more considerate. As they are overrepresented in the dating pool, many people believe that all women prefer assholes, but that's simply not true.

    Which isn't to say that you shouldn't try out the 'outlaw biker' role if you are single and carefree. Use protection, and don't take it too far- you will probably learn something about yourself and human nature, but it probably won't lead to meeting someone who you will marry. If you do this, you should look at it as a phase, something you will grow out of as you age, I think.

    But really, being the 'nice guy' is far more likely to land you a stable, long-term relationship- you just have to remember that statistically speaking, there are fewer of those. You might spend less time single, but the contigious block of time you spend single will likely be longer.

  172. David DeAngelo, fast seduction, etc... by LukeCrawford · · Score: 1
    all of these are training programs to teach you how to be a manipulative asshole. They also include 'magic' - NLP and other bullshit. I guess if you believe in that bullshit it might make you seem more confident, which will help you snag extroverts, but there is no actual substance to NLP, beyond the confidence boost.

    Playing the asshole role is easy (and it works on most extroverts, male or female, in many different roles) It doesn't require any magic.

    First, decide what you want. sex, the sale, the job, whatever.

    Now, identify people who can give that to you. try to talk them into it. Leave the moment it becomes clear that you wont' get what you want from this person. repeat this until someone gives you what you want.

    It is suggested that you pretend that you don't care what anyone else thinks, and more importantly, that you interperit any signal that may be a sign that they like you as a sign that they like you. The idea being that if you think someone makes a sign that they are receptive to you and you are wrong, oh well, move on. the whole idea is predicated on failure being cheap. But if you are right, you are in.

    I find that the confidence act really only works on extroverts. Introverts mostly look at you like the clown you are.