A Well Of Brotherly Knowledge
I’m working at the checkout, and I spot two boys coming into the store. One of them is maybe twelve or in his early teens, and the other is likely half his age (and size). It’s a quiet moment, so I am able to overhear a decent chunk of their conversation as they enter and stop for a moment to decide which aisle they’re going to.
Older Brother: “…and so, because of the direction the Earth rotates, if you fly west at the same speed as the rotation of the Earth, the sun will look like it’s stopped in the sky.”
Younger Brother: “So… time stops?”
Older Brother: “Haha, no, but the day would last forever if you didn’t run out of fuel.”
Younger Brother: “So… if I just keep flying west, it’ll be my birthday forever?”
Older Brother: “Haha, nice try, but let me teach you about the International Date Line…”
Off they go into the store, and I smile at the cute interaction.
About twenty minutes later, they’re back and in my line. The older brother is buying the younger brother a toy. It seems they have not stopped talking this entire time.
Younger Brother: “So… a qubit is just something that can be both on and off at the same time to get more results?”
Older Brother: “Yes, that’s how quantum computers work.”
Younger Brother: “I don’t understand.”
Older Brother: “Neither do the quantum scientists!”
Younger Brother: “Can they use it to turn me into Ant-Man?”
Older Brother: “I thought you wanted to be Spider-Man?”
Younger Brother: “Yeah… but I’m trying to be realistic…”
They paid and off they went, and I was smiling the entire rest of the day about the interaction between the brothers, the topics they were discussing, and how the little guy’s curiosity was being answered.