Talk:Fermi problem

message: Is it worthwhile to list links to any such problems that already have wikipedia articles?  I figure the Drake equation is one, but I dunno if there are any others famous enough to get their own articles. -- Finlay McWalter 17:18, 18 Dec 2003 (UTC)
thread_title: Fermi Category

message: Hi: for the record, the Yellow Pages gives 31 piano-tuning businesses in Chicago, and 4 per business is a reasonable estimate. Nice check.
Also, Stein's example as linked isn't at all related to Fermi problems... maybe it's another Stein and another example? -[User:acthomas], 13 Feb 2008  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 140.247.243.189 (talk) 22:32, 13 February 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: there are 3miilion in Chicaog not 9 million! Juror1 (talk) 23:32, 5 August 2017 (UTC)
thread_title: Piano

message: A famous example of a Fermi-problem-like estimate is the Drake equation, which seeks to estimate the number of intelligent civilizations in the galaxy.
I have to dispute this. The Drake equation contains seven terms, only two of which are even possible to intelligently guess about. The other five are utterly impossible to evaluate, approximate, or scry with magic, but could be known only through omniscience. That means that it is not a Fermi-like problem, but rather a meaningless-like problem.--70.131.115.43 (talk) 22:18, 20 February 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: Why do you assume a Fermi problem is always deducable like you claim? Plus, the Drake equation is closely linked to the Fermi paradox, so there's a context link too. Ingolfson (talk) 09:57, 24 January 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Uh, no. 

message: I notice related topics have been discussed before here, but sourcing
The actual number of piano tuners in Chicago is about 290.[3]
using a Wolfram Alpha answer is somewhat dubious. NotYourFathersOldsmobile (talk) 08:03, 2 February 2016 (UTC)
thread_title:  Sourcing for number of piano tuners 

message: Hello fellow Wikipedians,
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Cheers.—cyberbot IITalk to my owner:Online 09:15, 28 February 2016 (UTC)
thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Hi all, question as in title. I believe the correct title of this page is Order—of—magnitude approximation, as that is what it is called, in my experience. Even if some people do call them Fermi problems, order of magnitude approximation or a synonym is manifestly more common, as it will be mentioned at least as many times as Fermi problem. Sometimes an older professor will talk about Fermi, but it is rarely called a Fermi problem. I heard this term used in a popular article and had to look it up right away (the article tried to use the term to predict the outcome of the presidential election... apparently the literature available to lay persons is not adequate to explain the concept). Thanks! Footlessmouse (talk) 20:11, 29 October 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Physicists and engineers: Does anyone actually call these Fermi problems?