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Saying “I'm having trouble understanding” is not the same thing as “this is trivial”.

• Dylan16807 13d ago
  "I'm having trouble understanding why this is so complicated" could be interpreted in a non-dismissive way but it defaults to dismissive. And when it comes with a supposed solution attached, and that solution is really simple, that reinforces it sounding dismissive.
  • webstrand 13d ago
    I didn't read it as dismissive. I think the "Why doesn't this work?" at the end is key, implying they know they're probably wrong, but don't know why. It's pretty common to form and present hypothesis like this, hoping that anyone who knows the actual theory can easily provide a counterexample showing why it's wrong. It's not at all intended to be dismissive.
  • margalabargala 13d ago
    That wasn't my intention. I by no means was suggesting that the trivial solution I, a non-mathematician, thought up in 20 seconds was somehow out of reach to a math professor who spent years on the problem. I knew I was wrong. I didn't see why until I actually went through the solutions by hand.
    • Petersipoi 13d ago
      Only the people who can't make eye contact with others interpreted your comment as hostile. Unfortunately, that describes a high number of people on this site.
      • deleted 13d ago
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  • whycome 13d ago
    Why does that default to dismissive for you? It absolutely did not come off that way for me and I’m wondering if it’s because of experience or culture or something else.
• deleted 13d ago
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