Daily conversation: What is the worst possible answer?

[bassoon1986]

other CrAIg cities

[Dirt Roads]

All you need to do is slow down and roll down your window.

"Please stand clear of the doors".

[Scott5114]

July 20:

Why do Interstate and US numbered routes use even numbers to denote east-west routes and odd numbers to denote north-south routes and not the other way around?

[jeffandnicole]

July 20:

Why do Interstate and US numbered routes use even numbers to denote east-west routes and odd numbers to denote north-south routes and not the other way around?

At the time the system was invented, there were more known odd numbers than even numbers. Since the country was wider left-right than up-down, they would need more numbers to fill in the numerous roads that would be built.

[jlam]

The average American is positively terrified of prime numbers. Sure, they can handle 15 minutes or so of driving on US 17 or I-89, but hours, or even days? Good heavens, no. Prime numbers are easily avoidable in the urban agglomerations to the east, but when road tripping west, there can often be no other choices. They can be heading down the same road for hours on end. Rather than risk motorists getting stuck on unsettling odd primes such as I-5 or US 67 whilst heading west, they made all E-W routes even. Now they can stick to good ol' I-10 or US 66.

Numbering the freeways heading north through California as I-5 and US 101 rather than nice round numbers like I-1 or I-9 and US 105 was a ruse by Big California to get people to take CA 1.

[1995hoo]

July 20:

Why do Interstate and US numbered routes use even numbers to denote east-west routes and odd numbers to denote north-south routes and not the other way around?

US history and Manifest Destiny involved westward expansion. So anyone who wanted to go north–south was "odd."

[vdeane]

The average American is positively terrified of prime numbers. Sure, they can handle 15 minutes or so of driving on US 17 or I-89, but hours, or even days? Good heavens, no. Prime numbers are easily avoidable in the urban agglomerations to the east, but when road tripping west, there can often be no other choices. They can be heading down the same road for hours on end. Rather than risk motorists getting stuck on unsettling odd primes such as I-5 or US 67 whilst heading west, they made all E-W routes even. Now they can stick to good ol' I-10 or US 66.

Numbering the freeways heading north through California as I-5 and US 101 rather than nice round numbers like I-1 or I-9 and US 105 was a ruse by Big California to get people to take CA 1.

Wouldn't the fact that the US is wider than it is tall incentivize the opposite by making it easier to avoid designating prime numbers period?  After all, there is no even 2di between I-44 and I-64.

[xonhulu]

Originally, AASHO planned to make all east-west routes be Seven, but their secretary made a spelling error.

[TheCatalyst31]

It was a Congressional mandate from Bud Shuster's grandfather.

[kurumi]

The original (1925) plan was to follow the unit circle, where east (0) and west (π) would be real numbers (positive and negative), and north and south would be imaginary. The system could then accommodate diagonal routes easily using complex numbers.

However, a boat crossing Lake Michigan with the related documents was sacked by pirates and sunk.

[Scott5114]

At the time the system was invented, there were more known odd numbers than even numbers. Since the country was wider left-right than up-down, they would need more numbers to fill in the numerous roads that would be built.

Were you channeling the dad from Calvin and Hobbes when you wrote this?

[formulanone]

The original (1925) plan was to follow the unit circle, where east (0) and west (π) would be real numbers (positive and negative), and north and south would be imaginary. The system could then accommodate diagonal routes easily using complex numbers.

However, a boat crossing Lake Michigan with the related documents was sacked by pirates and sunk.

Pastafarians were good to us like that, especially for those of us who forgot calculus rather quickly.

[Mav94]

I dunno if it's open to just anyone to ask a daily question, but if so, here's one for July 19:

Instead of a control city, it would make navigation easier if every guide sign had ________.

A list of state sports championships won by the local high schools.