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AIBU?

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Original poster

To not be able to agree on this 'simple' question

321 replies

pooopypants · 30/04/2020 13:07

Please help me answer, to DH, what has been an ongoing discussion for at least 4 weeks:

A shop closes at 12pm (midday) and reopens at 2pm the same day. 12pm on the dot, 2pm on the dot. How long is the shop closed for, in hours?

There's no riddle behind it, nothing to bend time, stop clocks etc etc

It's also not a trick question, we just can't agree and I can't find another way to explain this

OP posts:
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6
Drivingdownthe101 · 30/04/2020 13:25

How has he managed to get through life? So for example if at work his lunch break was 12-1, did he take two hours?

swarley · 30/04/2020 13:25

He's doing it on purpose, obviously bored and decided to entertain himself by winding you up.

vodkaredbullgirl · 30/04/2020 13:25

Sounds like he would argue black is white.

CuriousaboutSamphire · 30/04/2020 13:26

Elephants. You need to draw 3 elephants. Call them 12 and 1 and 2.

Shop closes at the tip of elephant 12s trunk ( the beginning of the 12 o clock hour), draw a vertical line down through that tip.

The shop opens at the tip of elephant 2s trunk ( the beginning of the 2pm hour), draw a vertical line down through that tip.

How many whole elephants ?

ThatsNotMyMeerkat · 30/04/2020 13:26

Screenshot this thread and send it to wherever he got his degree from.
He’s entitled to a refund.

HappyGoLuckyHippo · 30/04/2020 13:26

Love the stopwatch idea!

Or count it out for him starting at 12 saying that it's been closed for zero hours? 1 - one hour, 2 two hours?

Plexie · 30/04/2020 13:26

Is he trying to calculate to the nearest second or something? Eg 1 hour, 59 minutes and 59 seconds? A bit like discovering zero and wondering if it's countable or not.

What does he think the answer is?

BendingSpoons · 30/04/2020 13:26

Ask him what they will do when they decide they only need to close for one hour at lunch. Close 12-12? (If 12-2 is 3 hours, 12-1 must be 2 hours so 12-12 would be one hour Wink ) Don't think the staff would be too happy!

DobbinAlong · 30/04/2020 13:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Wewearpinkonwednesdays · 30/04/2020 13:27

He is obviously messing with you. No one could argue about something like that for so long.

Sparklfairy · 30/04/2020 13:27

So what does he think 14-12 is? 14 being 14:00

beautifulxdisasters · 30/04/2020 13:28

What does he think 12-1 is?

And what is 1-2?

Surely the answer to those can't be anything other than 1 hour? Or does he think that's 2 hours...?

In which case can you explain it like that? 12-1 is 1 hour and 1-2 is 1 hour so together they must be 2 hours? But given he tried to explain he was "right" using minutes (HOW?!) I don't hold out much hope for him understanding that.

HOW though has he got through life without understanding that 12-2 is 2 hours? If he had a meeting at work 12-2 would he think that was 3 hours?!

CatBatCat · 30/04/2020 13:28

Is he counting it on the day the clocks go back?

Sparklfairy · 30/04/2020 13:28

Or for that matter, 12 + 3 (his answer) equals 15, i.e. 15:00, not 14:00

managinged · 30/04/2020 13:28

Go find an old-fashioned clock face, you know, with a circular face, with two hands on it, the short hand moving to each hour and the long hand moving around the circle to mark each minute.

When we were children, primary school-age, we were taught how to tell time by seeing how the minute hand and the hour hand moved around to each minute and hour. Has your partner not learned this basic intellectual reasoning?! This is stuff that really young children learn.

His mistake is that he's including the two o'clock hour in his tally. The shop is closed up until the two o'clock hour not including the two o'clock hour. Can you explain it to him that way?

CuriousaboutSamphire · 30/04/2020 13:28

And yes, he is just amusing himsely... it's cute making you put that amount of effort into proving the obvious... and then he'll be immensely insulted that you truly believed he was that stupid!

FOJN · 30/04/2020 13:29

Does your husband have difficulty admitting he's made a mistake? He sounds very committed to being right here when he so obviously isn't. Does he think that there are 25 hours between midnight and midnight?

BendingSpoons · 30/04/2020 13:29

Ohio I wish I could like your post!

Justkeepswimmingdory · 30/04/2020 13:29

My 5 year old is learning to add two numbers together and starts counting at the wrong number for example if I say 16 + 5 he will sometimes start counting at 16 as the first number out of the 5 and I have to remind him to start at 17 as the first number. Your husband is obviously doing this with the 12 and ending up with 3

AmelieTaylor · 30/04/2020 13:30

You're going to need to find a way for him to back down from this without looking like a complete berk, or he will continue to argue the point to save face.

How the actual fuck you're going to do that I've NO idea.

NorthernLass75 · 30/04/2020 13:30

Ask him this-

If he takes his lunch hour at 12, what time does he go back to work?

If he takes his lunch hour at 1, what time does he go back to work?

Then, if he has an extra long break and has a two-hour lunch break starting at 12, what time does he go back to work?

(I actually don’t know how you can sleep with this man).

StripyHorse · 30/04/2020 13:30

Get him to watch this...
www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/clips/z3rkq6f

picklemewalnuts · 30/04/2020 13:30

I have trouble with this, with days in a week and years. It's not as obvious as it sounds to the vast majority of people.

To find out how old someone is when they were born in 1979, I have to say 'they were 1 in 1980, 2 in 81' etc.

It's about the spaces, not the numbers.

It's a genuine thing that has to be taught using a number line. Lots of reception, Y1 children need help with it.

Some of us still do!

MillicentMartha · 30/04/2020 13:31

Oh dear. Poor man really can’t do primary level maths.

CuriousaboutSamphire · 30/04/2020 13:32

Elephants!!!!

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