Quote by Kurt Vonnegut

Do you think Arabs are dumb? They gave us our numbers. Try doing long division with Roman numerals.

Do you think Arabs are dumb? They gave us our numbers. Try d

Summary

This quote highlights the significance of Arab contributions to the field of mathematics. It implies that labeling Arabs as "dumb" overlooks their crucial invention of numerical systems that significantly enhance mathematical calculations. The quote humorously juxtaposes Arab numerals with the complexity of Roman numerals, emphasizing the practicality and efficiency of the former. Ultimately, it serves as a reminder to appreciate the cultural and intellectual contributions of different societies, challenging stereotypes and acknowledging the wide-ranging impacts various civilizations have had on human progress.

Topics

By Kurt Vonnegut

Liked the quote? Share it with your friends.

Random Quotations

Of present fame think little, and of future less; the praise

Of present fame think little, and of future less; the praises that we receive after we are buried, like the flowers that are strewed over our grave, may be gratifying to the living, but they are nothing to the dead.

Charles Caleb Colton

I have no problems with private schools. I graduated from on

I have no problems with private schools. I graduated from one and so did my mother. Private schools are useful and we often use public funds to pay for their infrastructures and other common needs.

And my heart bled within me; for you can only be free when e

And my heart bled within me; for you can only be free when even the desire of seeking freedom becomes a harness to you, and when you cease to speak of freedom as a goal and a fullfilment. you should be free indeed when your days are not without care nor your nights without a word and a grief, but rather when these things girdle your life and yet you rise above them naked unbound.

Freedom Strength Grief

I don't like nostalgia unless it's mine.

I don't like nostalgia unless it's mine.

To win this war, we need a commander in chief, not a profess

To win this war, we need a commander in chief, not a professor of law standing at the lectern.

Everything in life has a price on it - there ain't a damn th

Everything in life has a price on it - there ain't a damn thing free in America, and football has got a price on it.

I am often mad, but I would hate to be nothing but mad: and

I am often mad, but I would hate to be nothing but mad: and I think I would lose what little value I may have as a writer if I were to refuse, as a matter of principle, to accept the warming rays of the sun, and to report them, whenever, and if ever, they

E.B. (Elwyn Brooks) White

I never got the opportunity to be romantic or feel romantic

I never got the opportunity to be romantic or feel romantic with anyone.

Clothes make the poor invisible. America has the best-dresse

Clothes make the poor invisible. America has the best-dressed poverty the world has ever known.

Michael Harrington

So I walked back to my room and collapsed on the bottom bunk

So I walked back to my room and collapsed on the bottom bunk, thinking that if people were rain, I was drizzle and she was a hurricane.

Johngreen Lookingforalaska

Until the great mass of the people shall be filled with the

Until the great mass of the people shall be filled with the sense of responsibility for each other's welfare, social justice can never be attained.

Right now, I'm as single as a slice of American cheese.

Right now, I'm as single as a slice of American cheese.