The Random Crap Thread 2: It Hits the Fan.

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Staff member
From The Straight Dope:

Even more intriguing to a computer programmer such as myself is the future of RPS. For the past two years, a tech-head associated with the University of Alberta, Department of Computing Science, has put on a "roshambot" contest, where computer programs vie for the most roshambo wins against other bots. At first, it seems trivial: write a program that picks one of three choices randomly. But the winners are far more sophisticated than that, keeping track of opponents' previous throws, and anticipating future throws. The winner of the 1999 competition, named "Iocaine Powder" (rent The Princess Bride if the term doesn't ring a bell), used an algorithm based on the concept of "Sicilian Reasoning" (The Princess Bride will make that term clear as well), which explores six levels of meta-reasoning for any particular prediction method. The winning bots have incredible levels of success. I don't know if there are any more competitions planned, but I'll be on the lookout.
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Sicilian Reasoning! Awesome.
 
Officer_Charon

Officer_Charon

I had to put down a deer earlier that had been hit by a car and was sick/malnourished and dying in someone's backyard.

On my way back out from the outskirts of the county area where I put the body, a deer ran out in front of my police vehicle and smashed in the front end.

I am now stuck out here, pending an investigation from my Sgt and another officer. I can hear the hooves in the trees, man.....
 
Cheesy1

Cheesy1

Oh crap, O_C! You pissed off the forest god from Princess Mononoke:



If you see a giant glob monster in a little bit, you may want to start running.
 
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Staff member
It does, actually. It's just been mutated over the years. You can see the change if you think about it. Something that was really impressive (in a good or bad way) could inspire terror, or be terrific. Eventually, people only use it for impressive things that are good. You can find "terrific" used in the sense of "terrible" in older writing.

Here's more.
http://www.word-detective.com/2007/03/01/terribleterrifyterrific/
 
Chad Sexington

Chad Sexington

Awful used to be an event that filled you with awe and I'm told there are old documents using it in a positive sense, like we use awesome today. I guess they just saw a lot of awe-inspiringly bad things.
 
HCGLNS

HCGLNS

My wife and I lived all alone,
In a little log hut we called our own;
She loved gin and I loved rum,
I tell you what, we'd had lots offun.

Ha,Ha,Ha, you and me,
"Little brown jug" Don't I love thee.
Ha,Ha, Ha, you and me, little brown jug
don't I love thee.

If I'd a cow that gave such milk,
I'd clothe her in the finest silk;
I'd feed her on the choicest hay,
And milk her forty times a day.

Ha,Ha,Ha, you and me,
"Little brown jug" Don't I love thee.
Ha,Ha, Ha, you and me, little brown jug
don't I love thee.

The roses are red, my nose is, too,
The violet is blue, and so are you,
And yet I guess before I stop,
We'd better take another drop.

Ha,Ha,Ha, you and me,
"Little brown jug" Don't I love thee.
Ha,Ha, Ha, you and me, little brown jug
don't I love thee.
 
Terrik

Terrik

I had a dream I became a vampire last night. In fact I forgot about the dream until I read the words "Psychic vampire" in Tinwhistler's post in the Norris thread. It was a weird dream. I remember willing becoming one, through a bite in the neck (of course). I remember asking if it was going to be painful and the vampire woman said just a little. After that I remember wanting to figure out what my new powers were, including how far I could fall without incurring damage. I also remember having a "Oh crap" moment when I realized why exactly I needed to drink blood--because drinking blood kept the poison in my own blood from killing me, something I remember reading in the Heroes of Might and Magic games.

Weird.
 
Gusto

Gusto

I just proposed to my boss via email a REALLY simple solution to a REALLY complex problem.

It seemed so simple that I thought I must be wrong. And I might be!

My concern is that it's such a simple proposition that by the time my boss gets the email and responds to me, he'll either think I'm a problem-solving genius or a goddamned simpleton.

This day could go either way.
 
GasBandit

GasBandit

Staff member
IT department trouble ticket/work log:
10:30 am wednesday 9/21/11
Issue: Wasp in studio
Notes: Despite my assurances that the insect in question was, in fact, a mud dauber and not aggressive so long as you leave it alone, air talent was extremely agitated and insisted on necessity of removal. For lack of flyswatter (and not wanting to stink up the studio with wasp spray), improvised deadly object consisting of one PC top case panel. Insect killed, remains removed.
 
GasBandit

GasBandit

Staff member
Mr. Seahorse... I can see your braaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiinnnn....

(actually, looking closer, that's probably just gill filament)
 
Krisken

Krisken

GasBandit said:
IT department trouble ticket/work log:
10:30 am wednesday 9/21/11
Issue: Wasp in studio
Notes: Despite my assurances that the insect in question was, in fact, a mud dauber and not aggressive so long as you leave it alone, air talent was extremely agitated and insisted on necessity of removal. For lack of flyswatter (and not wanting to stink up the studio with wasp spray), improvised deadly object consisting of one PC top case panel. Insect killed, remains removed.
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You forgot to add:
"Suggest depussification of on air talent."
 
checkeredhat

checkeredhat

This is a shop in a large mall next to a newly opened college campus and a major transit terminal. I find it hard to believe that they don't get enough new traffic to sell the books. They didn't carry much in the way of board games either though. Definitely more of a comicbook store than the place I used to go to in Oakville, which had a smaller comic selection but waaaay more in the way of board games and table-top gaming. Oh well.
 
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