The 1964 Louisiana Literacy Test
Posted by The_Elusive_Dr_Wu@reddit | 4chan | View on Reddit | 170 comments
Posted by The_Elusive_Dr_Wu@reddit | 4chan | View on Reddit | 170 comments
3-to-20-chars@reddit
what the fuck does it mean "draw a line around"
a line is not a circle. circling the subject would not fulfill this criteria. but a line goes straight. a single line can't form "around" anything.
Estropolim@reddit
The equator is a straight line that goes around something
3-to-20-chars@reddit
it very much is not
Estropolim@reddit
It very much is. Here you go bro
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line_(geometry)#Projective_geometry
3-to-20-chars@reddit
it cannot be a straight line if it goes around something. straight means no curves. but to go around requires curvature. these are irreconcilable differences.
it could be a very very large shape that goes through the earth, like slicing an orange with a knife. but it cannot go around.
Estropolim@reddit
That just isn’t true. A straight line can rejoin itself without ever curving if the space it exists in is curved or even just periodic. I already posted a link for you that explained it in pretty simple terms.
3-to-20-chars@reddit
if the space something exists within is curved, then the thing must also be curved, unless it has its own exact opposite curve in which case it would return to being straight.
your link says "lines are represented by circles". it says represented by, not that they are. lines cant also be circles, and circles cant also be lines. if i walk in a "straight line" going around the earth, im walking in a circle, not a line.
Estropolim@reddit
You clearly don’t understand the underlying math concepts here.
You are assuming that spherical geometry must be embedded in 3D Euclidean space, and that the 3D Euclidean space is more “real”.
What if that 3D space is embedded in a 4D space and what if it is curved in the 4th dimension? Now all of your lines have curvature but you would have no way of knowing from within the 3D space.
So how can straight lines exist in our 3D world? Can you prove that of the infinite possible spacial dimensions we could be embedded in, that we have no curvature in any of them?
Or perhaps you are wrong and the curvature of space doesn’t impact our definition of what a line is in that space?
In which case a line can be a circle depending on your perspective, which is what I was saying.
3-to-20-chars@reddit
you'd have to prove the existence of such a 4D space for me to be willing to engage in that sort of discussion. we have to accept a baseline perception for this discussion or it's just going to go completely off the rails.
by my current understanding, there are three dimensions. if those three dimensions create a sphere, then any "line" on that sphere is actually curved. a geodesic is not a straight line, even though it is the shortest path from point to point on the sphere's surface. even if the line's own perspective insists that it's straight, it's not. therefore, the equator is a circle and thus not a straight line.
Estropolim@reddit
Its just mathematically true whether or not you choose to believe it. Your current understanding is wrong. I don't care if you are willing to discuss it or not, I was just pointing out a factual counterexample to disprove what you tried to claim.
Your only valid counter was to say that 3D Euclidean space was implied, not that you reject the validity of the entire field of topology lol
3-to-20-chars@reddit
you havent proven or disproven anything, though. we exist in three dimensional space. meanwhile, the shape of the equator can be proven just by looking at it. it's a path across a sphere that connects back to itself. the best literary match of this concept is a circle (or an oval i guess)
Estropolim@reddit
I really don't know what to tell you man. You don't have a good grasp on math.
There is a difference between physical space and mathematical space. Lines are mathematical constructs that live in mathematical spaces. All mathematical spaces are equally valid.
And from a physics standpoint, the idea that physical space fundamentally exists as 3D Euclidean space is very outdated.
Maybe an analogy will help you. Is the following equation true?
10 + 11 = 101
Its true in binary, but not true in decimal. So is it true or not? Is decimal more real than binary? Or perhaps are both frameworks mathematically valid, and the answer depends on said framework?
That equation can be true. And it also can be false. It depends on your perspective.
In the same way, a line can be straight, and it can also go around something. It depends on your perspective.
3-to-20-chars@reddit
a line exists in space. we're talking about physical, inhabitable space as it is perceived. not theoretical mathematics.
i think we've been miscommunicating then. cuz all i care about is physical space. not math theory. i only care about what i can see and hear and feel and sense. and if i look at the equator from the moon, it's nothing but a circle. and a straight line a circle is not. no matter how you look at it, it's a circle. a straight line cant go around because then it curves which means it isn't straight.
Estropolim@reddit
We aren't miscommunicating. You just can't grasp simple math. Geometry is inherently mathematic. When you describe a physical pattern as resembling a line or circle, you are describing them with math. Lines and circles don't exist outside of a mathematic space. That's like saying you want to use words but you don't want to use language. It doesn't make any sense and shows you have no idea what you're talking about or what is going on.
3-to-20-chars@reddit
in that case i think it's rather pretentious to tell someone looking at a blatant circle that "oh that's not a circle you just cant grasp what it actually is"
it's just a geodesic which is just a curved path on a spherical surface. sort of. depends on if you count looping around to the same point or if there has to be more than one. there's no room for saying a circle isnt a circle when all commonly experienced perception points to it being a circle. there's nothing to not practically understand there. a cube could actually be a tesseract in theory but there's no proving that with physical evidence right now since we dont perceive the dimension in which it would exist as a tesseract so it doesn't matter.
"a curved path isnt a straight line" isnt a difficult sentiment to understand and is not some fundamental failure of basic understanding, so i'd appreciate if you dispensed with the personal assumptions. youve been saying "actually it's not like that" and talking about theoretical math without providing any tangible proof that a geodesic is somehow a straight line, which is the point of this conversation. meanwhile you can just look at the earth with your eyes and see the equator making a circle around the earth's surface. if i went to the moon right now i would just see it plain as day. and you would too.
Estropolim@reddit
Sure I can keep dispensing personal assumptions if you really want. I assume that you didn't get very good grades in school because you aren't very good at understanding systems that have been even slightly abstracted. I also assume that you don't like to think very deeply or question things that you have immediately supposed to be true. No offense! I just really don't understand how you are still so lost.
Dark_Pestilence@reddit
Maybe a half circle, its still a line just kot a straight one
miggleb@reddit
Wiggly lines are lines
3-to-20-chars@reddit
no, those would be waves.
miggleb@reddit
Dude had me googling "can lines bend"
Straight lines are a category
suburban_homepwner@reddit
Don't do what donny don't does.
RoastMostToast@reddit
The people who want tests for voters are ironically the people who’s party would suffer the most from tests for voters
See: education/voter statistics
LooseButtPlug@reddit
...then let them have their test.
Obviously the reason the opposition doesn't want that is because it's not true.
baran132@reddit
Certain demographics of Democrats would certainly do the worst, but overall the average Democrat would do better than the average Republican.
Educational-Plant981@reddit
For some reason all these studies that consistently show which party has the highest educated voters avoid looking into which party has the most illiterate voters. We can take a guess though, by looking at which way the counties with most illiterate people overwhelmingly vote. Excepting the Texas border towns where the statistics are wrecked by spanish speaking immigrants, the top places for illiteracy are Miami, East LA, Newark, St Louis.... Anybody care to guess which way those places overwhelmingly vote?
The Republicans are the party of the Middle class. The Democrats are the party of Elites maintaining power by tossing scraps to the least educated.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
Cope.
TheOGFireman@reddit
Red states consistently rank at the bottom on education. That's why in 2016 magats wholly dependent on obamacare voted for trump, who wanted to repeal it, they're fucking downies.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
Then let them have their intelligence test.
AlphaInsaiyan@reddit
They aren't fighting for an actual intelligence test though is the thing lol
VirtueSignalLost@reddit
You don't need education to pass this test, you just need to not be r3tarded.
eventualwarlord@reddit
Which areas of the red states?
StartledMilk@reddit
Republican areas consistently have lower education levels than democrat areas… and democrats are on average more educated than republicans. I don’t know what you’re trying to say here lol
distructron@reddit
I passed my LIGMA test!
th3xile@reddit
Or maybe because puffing barriers in front of people's right to vote is against the party's values.
Even outside of that statistics have shown, generally, the higher the percentage of voter turnout the better democrats do.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
"They're too altruistic. They don't believe in holding one person back so someone else can succeed."
DEI has entered the chat.
But in all seriousness anyone who has ever called themselves smart are always the dumbest in the room.
th3xile@reddit
Hence the second reason I listed. It's statistically beneficial.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
Education ≠ intelligence
AuxiliarySimian@reddit
Are you illiterate? Can you draw a line around the sentence that claimed this?
dulockwood@reddit
Or because they don't agree with the idea in principle? Not everyone lives and breathes cynicism
LooseButtPlug@reddit
...and they are the stupid ones.
dulockwood@reddit
You're a weird guy
LooseButtPlug@reddit
You're the one that started this whole interaction with me?
Like... how did you think this was going to go?
Did you think your whole ,well thought out, argument of "BuT THeY'Re stUPid!" Was really going to blow someone's mind into a completely different way of thinking? Or did you just want to virtue signal to a bunch of losers online, not realizing that the only losers are both of us for continuing this charade?
We should just blow each other...?
dulockwood@reddit
Honestly it's your usage of ellipses. It's just dated and and odd. Stop it.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
"dated and odd"
Just like my penises.
dulockwood@reddit
You weren't supposed to wear the insult as a badge of honor my guy. You were supposed to be shamed into reevaluating your behavior to better socially integrate.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
That's right, penises... plural.
dulockwood@reddit
Big floppy donkey dicks
LooseButtPlug@reddit
You're a weird guy.
dulockwood@reddit
Let's make out already
LooseButtPlug@reddit
👁️🫦👁️
LooseButtPlug@reddit
You're a weird guy.
RoastMostToast@reddit
Because changing the rules of the game because you’re losing is not only unfair, but sets a bad precedent for future opponents.
LooseButtPlug@reddit
...wait, who do you think we're talking about here?
Oda_Krell@reddit
Ah yes, that old chestnut, "rIgHtwInGeRs are dUmB aNd unDeReDucAteD".
There is some weak correlation between education level and political leanings, true, but it heavily depends on the geographic distribution (i.e. "the right" in urban areas =/= "the right" in rural areas).
It's about as "true" or relevant as thinking that non-white voters generally prefer "the left" parties, plenty of counter examples in recent history to that one as well.
Limgrave@reddit
*whose ☝️🤓
PresentContest1634@reddit
Time to take away his vote!
Spuckler_Cletus@reddit
Then why does the other side fight so hard against qualifying voters?
johnny_effing_utah@reddit
lol wrong.
SkibididdyOhio@reddit
1964 version of trying to explain "per capita" to a sassy chocolate single mom
Repost_Hypocrite@reddit
Don’t be racist
SkibididdyOhio@reddit
TechnicoloMonochrome@reddit
ObscureAnimeFan@reddit
But I did eat breakfast today?
PrrrromotionGiven1@reddit
For the millionth time the questions are deliberately phrased poorly so that the examiner can fail you no matter what you do
E.g. what is the difference between "draw a line around" and "draw a circle around", you're probably going to do the same thing in either case, but that can be considered an error by a sufficiently racist marker.
pretty_smart_feller@reddit
I thought the whole point was literacy rates were super low for black people, so even if the questions were read out loud they couldn’t answer them
InspiringMilk@reddit
Then you appeal it like you would appeal any other test?
BloodDancer@reddit
To whom? The people who did your testing? The ones who rely on these questions being vague so they could deny you at will?
InspiringMilk@reddit
An independent, higher up comission? Like I said, exactly like any other modern test.
YinuS_WinneR@reddit
And have your appeal ignored like poorly graded tests?
InspiringMilk@reddit
Ideally not
23_Serial_Killers@reddit
The problem is that you’re relying on “ideally”.
Reesetopher@reddit
Just like wealthy people will "ideally" redistribute wealth to the middle class after receiving a tax cut. 😂
YinuS_WinneR@reddit
Wealth people redistribute wealth to middle class in their vicinity. Thats how nobles oblige worked. Nobles uplifted presents not because they wanted to improved lives of the lower class but because they didn't want to have bunch of homeless people doing opium in their yard.
Most of the class war could be solved by forcing upper class out of their gated community and making them live in regular suburbs. They can build mansions in there (fuck hoe), keep their private security etc. only thing that matter here is that they see regular humans after existing their home
RoastMostToast@reddit
Oh duh, why didn’t people just think of that!
ConductorBeluga@reddit
Literally everybody old enough to have passed 4th grade knows this
bigdaddypoppin@reddit
A false. Very false.
ConductorBeluga@reddit
First of all, soy.
Second of all, I wasn't. I was saying everyone has heard of this literacy test shit because we all went to 4th grade.
StartledMilk@reddit
You don’t draw a line “AROUND” anything, a line is straight and goes under or above something on a line of text. The fact that you can’t recognize this means you’d fail this test.
1THRILLHOUSE@reddit
Honestly I couldn’t tell you the difference in requests there. Unless draw a line around requires it to not connect and form a circle?
MENDoombunny@reddit
Millions of americans today do not understand this.
jjjosiah@reddit
Millions more pretend not to understand it because it's fun to piss off the serious people by pretending not to understand it, ala this post
pai_mei_sensei@reddit
Literally every registered voter in the 4th grade knows this
marco_reus_is_best@reddit
And there you have: why society is crumbling from the pressures of social media
Superspookyghost@reddit
you've just described trolling to zoomers, please delete this, don't let them see behind the curtain
Iwubinvesting@reddit
So basically the entire American populous.
Tommysrx@reddit
If given the test today most people would say
“Bruh , like deadass wtf is literacy. No🧢fr fr”
MENDoombunny@reddit
haha jokes on you im just pretending to be retarded
Grabbioli@reddit
God I wish you were anywhere close to right about that
Unknown_User_66@reddit
You mean like you?
PassionateCucumber43@reddit
Yeah you could be perfectly literate and answer every question based on one of the reasonable interpretations and the examiner could just say one of the other interpretations was correct
InfiniteRaccoons@reddit
If anyone thinks that they are "smart enough" to answer these correctly then you are just too stupid to see the internal contradictions in each question.
InfusionOfYellow@reddit
For the millionth time, this particular "test" that gets spread around has no historical sourcing, and is dramatically unlike the genuine article, which often asked for extremely specific political trivia, but were not these malformed brain teasers.
aghastamok@reddit
It's literally familyGuySkinColorChart.jpg
InfusionOfYellow@reddit
The civil rights movement resources website has records of historical documents related to literacy tests; their entry for this one, no largely removed, comments that
They have a pdf with genuine questions used, which could certainly veer into the uncomfortably open-ended, like "who conducts registration," but were not stupid brain teasers like this.
Dark_Pestilence@reddit
Isn't backwards, forwards just : backwards
Oppopity@reddit
Err wrong. You were clearly supposed to spell the word "forwards" backwards.
FuzzyGolf291773@reddit
And that test is still stupid as hell and 99% of people wouldn’t pass a similar version for their state. Like “The name the people of the state registration board and their titles”? Guarantee basically no one knows off the top of their heads without looking it up.
UnoriginalUse@reddit
Which is pretty good if you're looking at filtering out the people who aren't sufficiently interested in or knowledgeable about politics, isn't it?
IHateThisDamnWebsite@reddit
Except this text was only given to certain people, minorities. White folks were exempt from
InfusionOfYellow@reddit
Yes. But it's good to have an accurate idea of the actul nature of the tests
ethtamosAkey@reddit
But this fake example is endemic of systemic racism according to all the turbo redditors in this thread. I don't know who to believe!
PresentContest1634@reddit
They love to excuse their own bad behavior
tjdans7236@reddit
This is the type of fact-checking we need to have more of in this world.
eventualwarlord@reddit
Wow so its not even verified, interesting how Dems always use it as there example
InfusionOfYellow@reddit
Well, it's used because people are invariably drawn to repeating the dramatic, extreme, and outrageous, and willl cheerfully neglect "fact-checking" in order to do so. Neither left nor right can claim any innocence in this behavior.
Dangerous_Strain4036@reddit
i didnt really get the first one because i didnt think that the 1. was part of the sentence. this is some troll quiz bullshit.
Medical_Officer@reddit
This is fake.
Here's an actual test from Georgia:
https://www.crmvet.org/info/gavr_training.pdf
Safar1Man@reddit
Draw a line around "the number or letter of the sentence" ???
Imagine writing that as a question lmao
Rhythmusk0rb@reddit
Any idea what that is supposed to mean?
XavandSo@reddit
You circle the letter A.
As A is not a word snd the only bare letter of the setence. Line around is literally circling something.
visforvienetta@reddit
A is a word? It's a determiner, it has a dictionary entry, and meets the definition of a word - a meaningful element of speech/writing (because changing the determiner from I want a chocolate bar to I want the chocolate bar changes the sentence).
A is a word and the question is stupid nonsense.
ZarHakkar@reddit
Then why did they not just say draw a fucking circle like later down in the test
XavandSo@reddit
Its an IQ test.
theggyolk@reddit
There was probably another version with abcde instead of 12345 was my guess
suggests_gonewild@reddit
That you're not allowed to vote.
Manealendil@reddit
85% of Maga would fail these
Dark_Pestilence@reddit
Yeah... 85%...
eventualwarlord@reddit
Yet Dems are the ones foaming at the mouth whenever you suggest it lmao
IHateThisDamnWebsite@reddit
Do you honestly want stuff like this back?
johnny_effing_utah@reddit
False because MAGA grades their own
fradddd@reddit
took this in high school, was the only one in class to get 100% somehow
FistFuckYourAss@reddit
I'm not sure that's a flex unless your a minority.
fradddd@reddit
im half mexican does that count
i just thought it was funny
Richard7666@reddit
With question 6, can't expect people in Louisiana to have understood what concentric means.
FistFuckYourAss@reddit
Draw a giant penis on the test, vote dong.
SDcowboy82@reddit
Typical 4channer: “This is super easy!”
Typical 4channer after failing question 1 for drawing a circle instead of “a line around”: “What the hell does that even mean?”
Tester: “See? Told you them 4chans is illiterate”
Unknown_User_66@reddit
This looks kind of fun actually. A little brain puzzle to prove your mentally all there 😂
Are you guys really saying that these are meant to be misleading? It took me a second or two, but I fully understand what each one is telling you to do, and I'm dumb as hell.
AvatarADEL@reddit
Unironically there should be a test required to vote but it's based on civics. How many branches of government are there? What does each branch do? Considering you are hiring people to be in government, should have a little knowledge about what the government is and what it can do.
eventualwarlord@reddit
DAS WAYCIST
eventualwarlord@reddit
I’m cool with voting tests to weed out the retards but this test in particular is terrible.
bigwilly39@reddit
I'd say something like picking 5 states at random on a map and having to name them or other basic US knowledge like that.
eventualwarlord@reddit
Yeah something to just prove you aren’t a total knuckle dragging moron.
“Name 5 presidents. What is NATO? Who fought in the Civil War? How many states are there? Name the continents.”
Whoa1Whoa1@reddit
Whoosh...
These gen Z redditors today are clueless.
Impressive-Hat-4045@reddit
OK unc, tell us about riding the T rex tomorrow
eventualwarlord@reddit
All Redditors are clueless
mischling2543@reddit
Go back to bed grandpa
ProblemEfficient6502@reddit
Almost as if it was specifically designed to be terrible
eventualwarlord@reddit
We know.
bellymeat@reddit
then why would you point it out if we already know lol
eventualwarlord@reddit
I’m not the one you should be asking that
alexis_1031@reddit
Literally designed to do so
BarrelStrawberry@reddit
I'd imagine democrats are actually looking at this... they have shifted their base towards wealthy college educated white people pretty dramatically.
fabri2343@reddit
Reminder that most black people couldn't read and one time a bunch of white guy from the north went down to missipi to teach them and the KKK burned them down alive.
Ancient0wl@reddit
I’m wondering if bottom Anon is baiting people or just an idiot.
Open_Shallot_7388@reddit
Why does it say "first" twice in 5 ?
back_reggin@reddit
Nice try Shaneequa.
Limgrave@reddit
The first (ocurrence of the) first letter, A.
centurio_v2@reddit
Sure but theres only one a
TheMightyDab@reddit
Spell alphabet for us please :(
centurio_v2@reddit
αbet
TheMightyDab@reddit
Touché
jeeblemeyer4@reddit
that'thatsthepoint.jpeg
Limgrave@reddit
Bro...
UnoriginalUse@reddit
How would you feel if you didn't have breakfast this morning?
doodwtfomglol@reddit
Because its means to filter regards like you
Tommysrx@reddit
TheWalrusPirate@reddit
So the tester can decide which first you got wrong
hunterwillian@reddit
You failed the test
magnament@reddit
FOUND ONE
midnooid@reddit
Circle the first time the first letter of the alphabet is used in this sentence.
chummypuddle08@reddit
You circle the first A, not all the As
HRApprovedUsername@reddit
Because it was made my the people of Louisiana.
Nutaholic@reddit
Idk about these tests but it's definitely funny when Democrats today talk about voter ID laws being discriminatory when they're implemented basically everywhere else and you've probably never actually met a single black person who doesn't have their driver's license.
Double-Regular31@reddit
OP was reallt onto something with the land owning males part.
Reasonable_Bunch_458@reddit
No; that's the point. Didn't they pay attention in school?
Brussel_Rand@reddit
School in the current year is not about paying attention, it's just about getting a good grade by any means necessary. No employer is looking to see what you learned in your courses and how you can apply them. Instead, they're just looking at if you have the piece of paper or not and maybe your GPA if then even care
NotJayKayPeeness@reddit
Bring this shit back.
Astolfo-Best-Girl@reddit
Recaptchas are basically this but for AI
Becaus789@reddit
Who let all the boomers in?
midnooid@reddit
Circle the first time the first letter of the alphabet is used in this sentence.