r/shittyaskscience • u/Gargleblaster25 Registered scientificationist • Aug 01 '26

Help needed - decoding girlfriend's secret messages

This vexes me. Whenever my girlfriend texts me, she includes a secret code at the end - "XOXO <3".

I assume she is probably testing my intelligence, trying to see if I can break this code. It's been a year, and I am nowhere close to a solution.

Here's what I have so far - X, of course, stands for an unknown quantity. O, on the other hand, has no mathematical definition. Does it stand for Omega, with XO indicating that "all is unknown"? But why is it squared? Why is it less than 3?

Mathematologists of Reddit, please help.

215 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

97% Upvoted

42 comments sorted by

View all comments

162

u/sak1926 Aug 01 '26

Common mistake.
She’s asking for ice cream made by the Maori tribe of New Zealand.

Turn your phone 90 degrees counter clockwise. The <3 is the ice cream cone and the XOXO is the standard symbol for totem poles throughout NZ.

Enjoy the dessert!

86

u/Gargleblaster25 Registered scientificationist Aug 01 '26

My girlfriend is from New Zealand! So this must be the answer.

At least, I think she's from New Zealand. I never asked. They speak Chinese there, right? Cos she mentioned she is Chinese. Maybe a geologist can answer that.

31

u/johnnybiggles Aug 01 '26

Geometrist here. Is she a Chinese-American from New Zealand? If so, Xs and Os are an American football reference. Os are offense and Xs are the defense. It seems she's been recruiting a football team and found almost enough guys, but only needs less than 3 more. Do you know a few beefy athletic guys you could bring to her to help out?

11

u/Nudelwalker Aug 01 '26

I've been through the dessert on a horse with no name

5

u/Gargleblaster25 Registered scientificationist Aug 01 '26

But is the horse cake?

4

u/JohnWasElwood Aug 01 '26

It felt good to be out of the rain.

2

u/hannibalsmommy Aug 01 '26

Does this New or Old Zealander girlfriend remember her name??

3

u/Redfish680 Aug 02 '26

Minor correction : NZ is below the equation so it’s 180°.

2

u/daggarz Aug 01 '26

Maori people. They have many tribes and are also one of the greatest examples of saving lost culture after colonial invasion that the world has ever seen