Two mathematicians were having dinner in a restaurant, The older and more cynical one was thinking about taking and early retirement because the American public simply didn’t care about math anymore.
The more optimistic mathematician protested, and claimed that it wasn’t true.
“I’ll tell you what,” said the cynic, “ask that waitress a simple math question. If she gets it right, I’ll keep teaching and pick up dinner. If not, I’m out and you can pay for tonight’s meal.” He then excused himself to visit the men’s room.
While his colleague was away, the other mathematician called the waitress over. “When my friend comes back,” he told her, “I’m going to ask you a question, and I want you to respond ‘one third x cubed.’ There’s twenty bucks in it for you.”
She agreed, and when the cynic returned from the bathroom, the younger optimist called the waitress back over again. “We are ready for the check now,” the mathematician started. “Incidentally, do you know what the integral of x squared is?”
The waitress looked pensive; almost pained. She looked around the room, at her feet, made a groaning noise, and finally said, “Um, one third x cubed?”
Satisfied with the answer, the cynic paid the check, but as the waitress began to walk away, she looked back at the two men, and added, “…plus a constant.”
