THE ISSUE - IT COMES DOWN TO GCSE MATHS!

The shape on the right in Fig A is not a regular rectangle, it is a distorted diamond shape instead as we are viewing it at an angle. The bottom edge meets the right hand edge at about 70 degrees.


When I asked my doctor to measure the width of the diamond shape on the right (drawn in Fig B) he intuitively placed the ruler parallel to the bottom edge (see Fig C) and got a certain number that way. But because the shape is not a regular rectangle the ruler was not perpendicular to the right hand edge.

In a later appointment I asked my doctor to pivot the ruler at the "pivot-point" on the left and to rotate the ruler until it was perpendicular to the right hand edge (see Fig D). He got a slightly smaller number when the ruler was in that position. But this is what is suppoed to happen - it comes down to the fact that the perpendicular is the shortest distance from a point to a line!

The reason I asked my doctor to measure the perpendicular is because not even this shorter distance is anywhere near half the width of the reference rectangle.



THE GROUP'S REACTION


I explained to them (on social media) why my doctor was getting these two different numbers but it went right over the top of their heads. Person A, who is a very low ability person at maths, came up to my room, he couldn't stop smiling. 

They thought it represented a mistake (it's doesn't). Person A said a number of times that my doctor is "all over the place". My br, who has no O-levels and is an extremely low ability person at maths, said my explanation is "beyond stupid". 



MY DOCTOR UNDERSTOOD

My doctor quickly came to understand why he was getting two different numbers by putting the ruler in these two different positions, and that it does not represent a mistake! He also confirmed that it is because of basic facts from GCSE maths!


The group just ignored him because this is how arrogant they are (becasue of he Dunning Kruger effect? Because I am out numbered by ignorant, low maths ability people? Because they are groupthinking?).
 


THE VERY SHORTEST DISTANCE FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER STILL NOWHERE NEAR HALF AS MUCH

The bottom end of the rectangle at an angle (shape on the right in Fig A) is more narrow because that end of the rectangle is further away from the camera. My doctor measured the perpendicular to the right hand side down at the bottom end (see Fig E). This correspond to the absolutely smallest distance from the left hand side to the right hand side, and even this absolutely smallest distance was still miles away from half the width of the reference rectangle!!!!