What do you call a rigorous demonstration that a statement is true? If “proof,” then you’re a mathematician If “experiment,” then you’re a physicist If you have no word for this concept, then you’re an economist

What do you call a slow, painful, computationally intense method of solving a problem? If “engineering,” then you’re a mathematician If “mathematics,” then you’re an engineer

What do you call a person who is in their first job after a PhD? If “postdoc,” then you’re a mathematician or physicist If “assistant professor,” then you’re an economist If “wealthy,” then you’re a computer scientist If you have no word for a job after a PhD, then you’re in the humanities, and you have our condolences

What do you call a calculator with graphing capabilities? If “an antique,” then you’re a computer scientist If “my precious,” then you’re an engineer If “the poor man’s Wolfram Alpha,” then you’re a mathematician If “kinda hard to use,” then you’re an honest mathematician



How do you pronounce “Pythagorean”? If you pronounce it “pithAGorEan,” then you’re a mathematician If you pronounce it “PITHaGORean,” then you’re a physicist If you just mumble the word and hope no one notices, then you’re a TA

What name do you use for the person who invented calculus? If “Leibniz,” then you’re a mathematician If “Newton,” then you’re a physicist If “magical wizard,” then you’re probably not ready for grad school

What do you say after successfully proving your point beyond all doubt? If “QED,” then you’re a mathematician If “the prosecution rests,” then you’re a mathematician with a flair for drama If you do not believe proof beyond all doubt is possible, then you’re a scientist

What do you call a simplified representation of reality, such as imagining a physical system with no friction or air resistance? If “a model,” then you’re a computer scientist If “an approximation,” then you’re an engineer If you call this “reality,” then you’re an economist

How do you refer to a piece of work that suffers from one small but visible mistake? If “rough,” then you’re an engineer If “as good as it’s going to get,” then you’re a computer scientist If “worthless,” then you’re a mathematician

What do you call a formal gathering of professionals from your field? If “a conference,” then you’re a physicist If “a start-up,” then you’re a computer scientist If “an advisory panel to the president,” then you’re an economist If “a game of D&D,” then you’re a mathematician

Thanks for reading! If you prefer bad gifs to bad drawings, you might also check out The Math Aficionado’s Guide to High Fives.

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