Conversations on the mathematics of belief

(or, The Gods Must Be Crazy)

Last night, aided by a great deal of coffee and a strange mood, hansandersen, jrpseudonym and I had a discussion about Pascal’s Wager and the mathematics of belief. The results were… well, somewhat strange, but some of you may find them amusing or interesting, so here’s a brief summary. It’s incomplete – guys, you want to add in some comments with your own notes and thoughts from last night? I know there’s plenty.

So, without further ado: Magic 8 ball, what should I believe?

Published in: on June 19, 2003 at 11:40  Comments (12)  
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whew…

I have now been officially indoctrinated. And now, I’m going to… bed.

Update: And now I’m much more awake, feeling strangely at peace. And realizing that it is a far, far better thing to be indoctrinated than inculcated. (I believe that’s what they do to proctologists)

Published in: on June 15, 2003 at 17:11  Comments (5)  
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Your disturbing quote for the day

From a NY Times article about Aeroflot’s attempt at a corporate makeover:

“To some outsiders, it may seem as if Brezhnev were donning lipstick and a blond wig for Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue cover.”

*twitch* *twitch*

Published in: on April 7, 2003 at 10:22  Comments (3)  
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Winner for the “bad article titles of the week” award: “Homeotic Supersymmetry,” by Barenboim and Lykken. I made it halfway through the abstract before I realized that I’d misread the title. (And that it wasn’t nearly as interesting as I’d first expected)

Published in: on April 1, 2003 at 17:22  Comments (4)  
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It’s the end of the world as we know it (And I feel hungry)

Just in case the news reports weren’t enough to convince you that something big is at hand, we now have icthyological theological backing.

Um… that doesn’t make much sense. Neither does the original story: From the NY Times

In other news, B-1 bombers associated with the 24th MEU in Jordan have begun heavy bombing of radar installations in western Iraq. Story & photos here.

Published in: on March 15, 2003 at 12:35  Comments (5)  
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status messages

What a lovely way for a game to end:

zunger-Arc-Hum-Mal-Neu died in The Dungeons of Doom on level 5. Killed by a little dog, while helpless.

I think it’s a sign that the game is trying to not just kill, but humiliate.

Published in: on February 27, 2003 at 23:41  Comments (6)  
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Can anyone interpret this?

I found this on the IBM jobs web page. Fairly standard job offer, apart from a slight oddity in the second paragraph.

I’m going to assume that this doesn’t mean what I think it means. Does this have some other sort of meaning in the computer industry, or in government contracting?

Published in: on February 13, 2003 at 14:53  Comments (11)  
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Sequence of headlines:

These showed up one above the other on the front page of the NY Times. Is this meant to be a disturbing sequence?

Masters of Suicide Bombing
Salad in Sealed Bags Isn’t So Simple, it Seems
Not Your Usual Vampires, But Scary Nonetheless
Study Finds Jump in Children Taking Psychiatric Drugs

Published in: on January 13, 2003 at 20:43  Comments (2)  
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Seeking answers to life’s persistent questions

What does your fortune program say to you?

Published in: on December 20, 2002 at 15:59  Comments (3)  
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Ill-chosen book titles

Our math library has a new book in stock: “Monte Carlo methods in finance.”

I’m just going to assume that this book is about numerical simulations, and not about taking the company till and running off to play blackjack…

Published in: on December 3, 2002 at 11:40  Comments (4)  
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