Skip to Content

Assume a spherical cow

Recommendations

Fermi Questions

Assume a spherical cow

Recommendations

Fermi Questions

Recommendations

Fermi Questions

Recommendations

Two women sitting on a couch in an office, using laptops and engaging in conversation, with indoor plants and books around.

Essays and Articles

Close-up of a digital circuit board with an illuminated icon of an envelope, indicating email or messaging.

Person holding an open paperback book, sitting with legs crossed on a blanket with a geometric pattern, in an indoor setting.

An audience seated in a dark theater with red chairs, watching a presentation or performance.

Movies and TV shows

Person holding a TV remote control pointing towards a television screen that displays app icons.

Assume a spherical cow…

Milk production at a dairy farm was at an all-time low, so the farmer decided to call on the local university for help. A team of the institutions' top scientists was assembled to work on the problem. The team of scientists visited the farm and took extensive data carefully examining every step of the production process. The leader of the team, a theoretical physicist, offered to write the report. A week later the physicist returned to the farm, saying to the farmer, "I have found a solution for your problem. First, let’s assume a spherical cow…"