One of the most memorable episodes of the Big Bang Theory that I saw was the one with the Time Machine. After reading the actual referenced book by H.G. Wells, two things particularly amazed me:
- When I started reading the book, I wasn’t expecting a commentary on the negative consequences of social classes.This brought up a little known opinion (that I heard from my professor) that Alice in Wonderland might be a criticism on the state of mathematics in the 19th century.From the MAA website:
For a more focused example, take the chapter “Advice from a caterpillar.” Alice has fallen down the rabbit hole and eaten a cake that has shrunk her to a height of just 3 inches. The Caterpillar enters, smoking a hookah pipe, and shows Alice a mushroom that can restore her to her proper size. But one side of the mushroom stretches her neck, while another shrinks her torso, so she must eat exactly the right balance to regain her proper size and proportions. Bayley believes this expresses Dodgson’s view of the absurdity of symbolic algebra.
- While considered by Wikipedia to be a “Dying Earth” genre, a Google search suggestion pointed me towards a genre called “time travel romance.” This sheds a new light on time travelling. Instead of bringing back the cures to today’s diseases from tomorrow, imagine the endless possibilities for promiscuity time travel offers! If you’re into the multiple wives business, but your wife currently does not? Why not just switch the 4th dimension?