• theunknownmuncher@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    32
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    edit-2
    3 days ago

    You looked down at the math book on your desk that showed the X-Y graph on the page, and the Y axis extended forward, away from you. Z was “up”.

    • dormedas@lemmy.dormedas.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      23
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      3 days ago

      I always thought about it like this. Put your fancy page with X-Y coordinates on the ground. Add a new dimension perpendicular to the ground. This is the Z-axis, it goes up.

      • Grey Cat@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        2 days ago

        But in those cases, isn’t positive Z going “away” from you ? I.e. Into the ground ?

        And in math classes this has always been described to me as adding “depth”.

        • dormedas@lemmy.dormedas.com
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          1 day ago

          I could see that being totally valid after thinking about it for a second!

          I imagine it as a new dimension growing “up” out of the X/Y plane (as burrowing into the ground would be going into “occupied” space, it’s forbidden). But “depth” does make that make more sense.