this post was submitted on 01 Jun 2024
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Microblog Memes

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[–] [email protected] 93 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (37 children)

But Hamlet was written with intention.

The point in the expression is to underline how critical coincidences are, and how correlation is not causation. It's not that Hamlet is long and nigh impossible to "randomly" generate, but that at scale, seemingly impossible coincidences do actually happen.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 months ago (11 children)

I don't quite understand what you're saying. You say "Hamlet was written with intention", which in the case of that it was written by humans I agree with. But what about in the case of the monkeys?

We know Hamlet can be written with intention, but do the monkeys with typewriters imply that it needs to be or not to be? That is my question.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (7 children)

The case of the monkeys is a hypothetical to highlight that seemingly impossible things, like a fully cogent and understandable stage play, resulting from effective chaos is not actually impossible despite any human concept of impossible.

The monkeys with type writers are allegory for random. Adding intention makes it a decision, not a random event. The expression is not saying anything about decisions, but "form" rising from chaos.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago (1 children)

In what way, shape, or form have we proven ourselves to be otherwise than agents of chaos?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I organized my manga collection alphabetically. Does that count?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago

Singlehandedly, you have brought us back from the very brink of destruction!

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