Red Rocket Science

How hard is it to understand things?

I ask this because lots of people don't understand things. For example, quantum physics is hard to understand. Things can be true and false in quantum physics, and until you look at them you don't know which it will be. But before you look it is BOTH true AND false. Weird.

Today I had a run in with a Red Rocket Scientist. He was doing a quantum physics experiment on a streetcar. He was trying to be both in and out of the streetcar at the same time. Because the temperature outside was near absolute zero, the streetcar was very crowded. But this guy felt there was still room for him on the streetcar anyway. So he was standing on the step.

The driver yelled back to tell people to get off the steps or the doors won't close, and if the doors don't close the streetcar doesn't move. This guy just stood there. People started telling him he had to get off the step. Still standing there. Even the guy driving the truck, who was not even on the streetcar, but was stopped behind the open doors, was yelling at this guy to move. Nope, still standing there. I think we wasted two traffic lights before this guy finally was able to lift himself off the steps and let the doors close.

His problem, I guess, is a poor understanding of regular physics. If someone is standing somewhere, you can not also stand there. Humans take up space (some take up a lot), and there were a lot of humans* already on the streetcar. His other problem was having a total disregard for a packed streetcar full of people and all the traffic on King Street. Anyone who wasn't a completely inconsiderate jerk would have taken the next streetcar. When I got to my destination (about 3 stops after this guy's) there was another streetcar right behind mine. This jerk's cluelessness wasted many people's time but only saved him about 45 seconds.

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* Some of the people on the streetcar may not have been human. But aliens take up space too.