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Re: Y2k-problems

At 12:20 PM -0800 11/19/98, jeff marx wrote:
I am curious to have list members' input on facts about theY2k bug. And,
to bring the discussion back towards the realm of physics education, I
would be interested to hear some ideas of how this issue, and other issues
like it, fit into the bigger picture of trying to improve the citizenship
of our students.

Thanks,
Jeff Marx

Our local Animal Control people were recently bitten by the Y2K bug. Like
much of the South Eastern US of A, we are in the midst of a fairly serious
outbreak of rabid animals. They began an intensive innoculation effort for
domestic animals and were rather discouraged to find that their computer
generated statistics kept getting WORSE as more dogs and cats were
vaccinated. The recent vaccinations were good for two years but the program
only knew about dates beginning with 19xx so each new vaccination had
lapsed, 98 years ago!!!!

They were generating EXPIRED records with each injection!

I've GOTTA beleive that more serious instances will surface when the Digit
Changes. (Yes, we'll be celebrating the 'Changing of the Digit' and then
celebrating the changing of the millennium a year later.)


-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-
\ / \ / \ N / \ C / \ S / \ S / \ M / \ / \ /
`-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-'
Chuck Britton "Macintosh -- we might not get
britton@odie.ncssm.edu everything right,
North Carolina School of Science & Math but at least we knew the
(919) 286-3366 x224 century was going to end."
- Douglas Adams