Randomness
From Maze
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By the time of the Commodore 64, random number generation was more sophisticated than the original BASIC. The random numbers generated by the RND function on the Commodore 64 repeat themselves every 58,078 cycles--certainly a large enough that the pseudo-randomness is undetectable to the average observer. Because the random numbers begin repeating themselves after 58,078 cycles, the slashes that comprise the walls of the 10 PRINT maze begin repeating themselves after 58,078 times. After approximately 40,000 screenfuls, then, 10 PRINT begins to repeat itself. | By the time of the Commodore 64, random number generation was more sophisticated than the original BASIC. The random numbers generated by the RND function on the Commodore 64 repeat themselves every 58,078 cycles--certainly a large enough that the pseudo-randomness is undetectable to the average observer. Because the random numbers begin repeating themselves after 58,078 cycles, the slashes that comprise the walls of the 10 PRINT maze begin repeating themselves after 58,078 times. After approximately 40,000 screenfuls, then, 10 PRINT begins to repeat itself. | ||
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| + | The C64 User's Guide introduces the concept of randomness using an example that sidesteps the origins of randomness in computing. There's no mention of nuclear fission or computer-generated literature. Randomness comes into play in the shape of a game, when it's necessary to, as the manual puts it, "simulate the throw of dice" (48)--an example that takes us back to pre-industrial notions of randomness. | ||
[NOTE: THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPHS OF THIS SECTION ARE NOT YET IN DRAFT TEXT FORM:] An important feature of computing is the opposite of randomness, regularity. Computer chips differ greatly from the outer world in their orderliness. Unlike our beaches or the bumpy landmasses with weather on which we build our houses, the world inside chips is meticulously fabricated, symmetrical, isolated and predictable. In fact, its basis is one massive crystal grown from purified silicon. It is so perfect that it is difficult to create unanticipated behavior. | [NOTE: THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPHS OF THIS SECTION ARE NOT YET IN DRAFT TEXT FORM:] An important feature of computing is the opposite of randomness, regularity. Computer chips differ greatly from the outer world in their orderliness. Unlike our beaches or the bumpy landmasses with weather on which we build our houses, the world inside chips is meticulously fabricated, symmetrical, isolated and predictable. In fact, its basis is one massive crystal grown from purified silicon. It is so perfect that it is difficult to create unanticipated behavior. | ||
