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At a talk today, someone used Seuss's "The Zax" as a way to help explain special relativity and scalar invariance under coordinate transformation. While I found the explanation a bit iffy, it did get me thinking about the Zax and the world they exist in.
Story summary: A northbound Zax and a southbound Zax run into one another in the Prairie of Prax. Neither will step aside, and they argue priority and try to convince the other to move, but to no avail. Years pass, and a highway overpass is built over them while they continue to argue.
Now, this short story is really just meant as a warning against taking too stubborn a stand, I doubt Dr. Seuss worried too much about the sociology or biology of the Zax. Similarly, I expect others have worried about both before me, but I never let that sort of thing stop me.
( My speculations under the cut. )
Story summary: A northbound Zax and a southbound Zax run into one another in the Prairie of Prax. Neither will step aside, and they argue priority and try to convince the other to move, but to no avail. Years pass, and a highway overpass is built over them while they continue to argue.
Now, this short story is really just meant as a warning against taking too stubborn a stand, I doubt Dr. Seuss worried too much about the sociology or biology of the Zax. Similarly, I expect others have worried about both before me, but I never let that sort of thing stop me.
( My speculations under the cut. )
