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Tattoos For the Math and Science Geek?
An anonymous reader writes "I've been thinking of getting a sleeve of math and science tattoos for quite a while now. With the money saved up, the only question remaining is, what equations/ideas should I get? I know for certain that I'm going to include some of Maxwell's equations, and definitely Ohm's Law. So, if you were going to put a tribute to the great math and science minds on your body forever, which ones would you choose?"
Think twice. Do you *really* think this will be so important to you forever?
0=e^(i*pi)+1
the preceding post was not spell checked... suck it.
If you don't know what you want then just wait until you do. One of the worst things you can do for a tattoo is ask what other people think you should get. You'll end up with something that they want and it may be cool now but years down the road it won't mean anything to you.
Tattoo's are suppose to be for life. If it's something that you foresee down the road that you'll not be interested in and go "why did I ever do that, ugh that's so yesterday" it wasn't a very good idea.
-- Ed Bugg --You have freedom of choice, but not of consequences.--
The coolest math tattoo you could get would be nothing at all. Just hold up your arm and say "it's the empty set" and have them marvel at your coolness.
Seriously, tattoos are lame. Resist the urge. It's going to be an ugly green smear you will regrat.
Tattoos hurt, they endanger your health, they are expensive, and most of all they are superficial. AKA they are for looks only.
Gee... At one time only drunk sailors thought this was a good idea and now you want to show how geeky you are with them?
Might I suggest Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica the full text of course.
Bazinga!
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
Think of how dignified those tattoos will look when you age and your whole body looks like Reagan's neck. Do you really want to explain to your grandkids why you thought a math equation or Mighty Mouse or a kanji character that means "desk" was something that held enough meaning that it required you to permanently scar your body with it?
This applies to everyone who resolves to get a tattoo before deciding what it is of, btw.
But then again, I'm an old coot that never got the tattoo thing.
Are just a few ways that you could use that money to make a difference in science that will help others. When you die your tattoo will eventually rot away with the rest of your body. But if you sponsored something that helped science or math progress, people would know of you for some time.
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
Don't mod me for flamebait but I think that really looks bad. Tattoos rarely look good in their prime, and always end up faded and smudged. They don't make you look tough or interesting, just trashy.
dumbkopf! F=mA is obviously a knuckle tattoo!
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Ya know that saying? "People may believe your stupid, but there's no reason to open your mouth and prove it."? I think a modification of that appies here:
People may believe you're a nerd, but there's no reason to tattoo equations on your body and prove it. (Talk about making dating even more difficult!) Also consider the long term implications:
- My niece tattooed a rose on her ankle. It was cute on her young high school body.
Fast-forward 20 years and now it's expanded into a giant red splotch. (i.e. she gained weight)
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
Tattoos aren't in and of themselves lame.
It's a fad.
It's amazing how the dress and look of common trash becomes popular. Yes, tattoos and piercings make one look like trash. It's really hard to take some seriously when there's shit sticking out of their eyebrows, ear lobe things that make one look like a yuppie Bush tribesmen, and a tongue piercing.
yeah, yeah, yeah....don't judge someone by the way they look and I got a problem, blah blah blah blah.
People make snap judgments about others. Get over it. That's why you show up for an interview in a suit. That's why you show up for a date bathed and with your teeth brushed.
Sure, eventually you can win someone over when they get to know you but many folks won't give you the chance if you look like a fad chasing lemming that permanently disfigures themselves to follow a trend.
It makes you look stupid.
I tell you, years ago, I knew this plastic surgeon that was making mega bucks removing tattoos from bikers and I just see all those young folks getting their tattoos removed and his business increasing.
Career hint: Go to medical school and specialize in tattoo removal! Lots of business ahead.
There's a new fashion trend/fad forming. I see a lot of black kids dressing like the 60's brat pack: the hats, plaid shorts, the shoes are contemporary though, and the sun glasses - it's actually a good look. And since black culture drives fashion, music and everything else that's cool in this country, folk's tattoos are about to look REAL dated.
RIP America
July 4, 1776 - September 11, 2001
This questions was actually Slashdot-worthy? Ya know, unlike a certain other board, Slashdot actually was good at some point in the past... But to answer the last question I'll ever answer here: tattoos are meant to be personal. If you have to ask someone else if/what you should get permanenly marked on your skin, you should probably not be considering getting a tattoo at all. Operating under the assumption that you'll go ahead with it, are there mathematical formulas and/or symbols that actually mean something to you on an emotional level? Those are what you should get. Seriously, though, don't take any answers from here. If you do, you'll be just like every other tattooed hipster douchebag trying to be socially ironic: permanently stamped with FAIL.
"You know you're narcissistic when you quote yourself in your sigs." -- PRoPAiN!
Don't get any tattoos. I can only name 2 people that I know that don't have something...
The older I get, the older that the "hip" crowd gets, and it just looks plain pathetic to be 30+ and have all these tattoos... Just think how bad the population is going to look 20 years from now - you'll have all these 40 yr olds that have way too much "ink" and you'll have none. I can't wait to be one of the very very few people who can say "I didn't get a tattoo because I wanted to be unique" at my 20 yr high school reunion.
It really depends on the tattoo, and how it was intended to look. Other factors include how the person takes care of themselves. A lot of people don't consider, "how will this look in 30 years." The same goes for body piercings. How will it all look when you're collecting your kids from school, when your grandkids are born, or when you're 90+ years old in a nursing home. Likewise, a sleeve (like the article asks) it may seem like a great idea, until you get a job somewhere in the Southern US, at a company with a strict policy about visible tattoos.
I've known folks who had needed to wear long sleeves year round, because they loved the idea of getting a tattoo that everyone would see and appreciate, a decade before. It's all fun and games until it's 110+ degrees outside, and you wish you could toss off the shirt before getting into the oven previously known as "your car", except the office "no visible tattoo" policy extends to everywhere "office" including the parking lot and anywhere visible from the parking lot.
That's not to say don't get one. Just consider what the future results could be. Folks do all kinds of crazy things to themselves. There are a whole bunch of body modifications that can be (and are) done. Is a face tattoo, or even math equations from your ears to your fingertips really the best way to express yourself?
Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
The "no visible tattoo" policy is the antithesis of the 1st Amendment. Stop giving corporations more power than the government has.
Or the "no visible tattoo" policy is the heart of the 1st Amendment. Stop giving the government more power than it should have. I think the only people that could win a "no visible tatto" lawsuit would be survivors of the holocaust.
The "no visible tattoo" policy is the antithesis of the 1st Amendment.
Please people, read the first amendment and try to understand it.
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
It starts - and pay attention - "Congress shall make no law".
Do you see anywhere that Congress has made a law that says visible tattoos are bad?
This is a corporate policy. If you are hired, they are welcoming you in the door onto their property - on their terms. If they say you have to wear purple underwear to work here, guess what? YOU DO.
Employment is optional. Nobody has to give you a job. If they don't like your tattoos they don't have to hire you. It is really as simple as that. You have to do what the boss says - it's a job. It is not a right.
So back OT, to the guy who wants a sleeve of math equations, my advice would be DON'T. It's fun, it's nerdy, I can see the appeal. But you are limiting your options.
Weaselmancer
rediculous.
has anyone said yet "hay tattoos r bad and you shouldn't get 1 cuz they look bad later in life?" just wanna b sure this guy knos lololololol.
Seriously people, how many variations of "don't get a tattoo" do we need to post? Your "i'm more intelligent than you because I didn't get ink on my body" pose isn't fooling anyone - you aren't going to "laugh at people later in life" because they got a tattoo, you are going to be the same quiet, nonconfrontational nerd you are today and you won't say a goddamned thing. Except maybe online.
That's why you are posting comments like this on a message board in the first place - if you really thought it was "stupid" you would just frown and ignore it like the rest of the world instead of feeling the need to post your superior opinions on the internet.
And this is coming from someone who has no tattoos whatsoever. GET OVER YOURSELVES.
Here is my rule for tattoos: Select the exact design and location you want to have. If you still want that exact design and location in ten years, then get it. Otherwise, or if you change the tattoo or its location even in some minute point within those ten years, the clock starts over.
They don't make you look tough or interesting, just trashy.
To you.
I actually think it looks pretty nice. An abstract, pleasant-looking pattern, without going all stereotypically tribal.
As an aside, they aren't supposed to make you "look tough or interesting". They're supposed to be an outward expression of personal values through art. If you don't like that, I suggest staying away from music, books, and other artforms, as apparently that's not your thing.
Being discharged from a company for being a bigot is a consequence of your speech.
Having to wear long sleeves at work is elimination of your right to speak, no matter what you have to say.
Being discharged from a company for [saying something] is a consequence of your speech.
Being discharged from a company for [displaying something] is a consequence of your "speech".
Having to wear long sleeves at work is good sense if displaying tattoos get you discharged.