Fooled by Randomness?

[Guest]

It's just a coincidence!

Life can sometimes produce fascinating, extraordinary coincidences. Here are a few of the most amazing ones, gathered from around the world. In 1975, a man riding a moped in Bermuda was accidentally struck and killed by a taxi. One year later, the man's brother, riding the very same moped, was killed in the very same way by the very same taxi driven by the very same driver -- and carrying the very same passenger. Mark Twain was born on the day of the appearance of Halley's Comet in 1835, and died on the day of its next appearance in 1910. He himself predicted this in 1909, when he said: "I came in with Halley's Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it." Twin brothers Jim Lewis and Jim Springer were separated at birth and adopted by different families. Unknown to each other, both were named James, both owned a dog named Toy, both married women named Linda, both had a son they names James Alan, and both eventually divorced and got remarried to a woman named Betty. Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, and John Adams helped to edit and hone it. The Continental Congress approved the document on July 4, 1776. Both Jefferson and Adams died on July 4, 1826 -- exactly 50 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence. A British officer, Major Summerford, while fighting in the fields of Flanders in February 1918 was knocked off his horse by a flash of lightning and paralyzed from the waist down. Summerford retired and moved to Vancouver. One day in 1924, as he fished alongside a river, lightning hit the tree he was sitting under and paralyzed his right side. Two years later Summerford was sufficiently recovered that he was able to take walks in a local park. He was walking there one summer day in 1930 when a lightning bolt smashed into him, permanently paralyzing him. He died two years later. But lightning sought him out one last time. Four years later, during a storm, lightning struck a cemetery and destroyed a tombstone. The deceased buried here? Major Summerford. A German mother who photographed her infant son in 1914 left the film to be developed at a store in Strasbourg, but was unable to collect the film picture when World War I broke out. Two years later she bought a film plate in Frankfurt, over 100 miles away, and took a picture of her newborn daughter -- only to find, when developed, the picture of her daughter superimposed on the earlier picture of her son. The original film, never developed, had been mistakenly labeled as unused and resold. In 1858, Robert Fallon was shot dead by fellow poker players who accused him of cheating to win a $600 pot. None of the other players were willing to take the now unlucky $600, so they found a new player to take Fallon's place, who turned the $600 into $2,200 in winnings. At that point, the police arrived and demanded that the original $600 be given to Fallon's next of kin -- only to discover that the new player was Fallon's son, who had not seen his father in seven years. On the 26th November, 1911, three men were hanged at Greenberry Hill in London after being convicted of the murder of Sir Edmund Berry. Their names were Green, Berry and Hill. In 1930s Detroit, a man named Joseph Figlock was to become an amazing figure in a young (and, apparently, incredibly careless) mother's life. As Figlock was walking down the street, the mother's baby fell from a high window onto Figlock. The baby’s fall was broken and Figlock and the baby were unharmed. A year later, the same baby fell from the same window, again falling onto Mr. Figlock as he was passing beneath. Once again, both of them survived the event. In 1973, actor Anthony Hopkins agreed to appear in "The Girl From Petrovka", based on a novel by George Feifer. Unable to find a copy of the book anywhere in London, Hopkins was surprised to discover one lying on a bench in a train station. It turned out to be George Feifer's own annotated (personal) copy, which Feifer had lent to a friend, and which had been stolen from his friend's car.

[D-Mack]

Re: Fooled by Randomness?

It happens

Eerie Image Pulled From CD

The cover for the upcoming CD from a popular hip-hop group portrays an eerily familiar sight.

Against a backdrop of morning skies, the towers of the World Trade Center stand engulfed in flame from the impact of twin explosions. Clouds of smoke spew from the upper stories, all but obscuring the tip of what was once the epicenter of the New York City skyline.

If it weren't for the super-imposed images of the Oakland, California, hip-hop duo known as The Coup, the scene could pass for a remarkably precise replica of the horrific tragedy that befell New York City on Tuesday morning.

The cover design predates Tuesday's twin attacks on the World Trade Center by months.


And now that reality has in fact imitated art, The Coup's label, 75 Ark, is finding itself in a messy predicament.

"This was done long ago and never meant to be any literal interpretation of an event," said Toni Isabella, label manager for 75 Ark. Luckily, she said, the release date of the CD, entitled Party Music, got pushed back 2 months from early September to November.
...

http://www.wired.com/culture/lifesty.../2001/09/46771

http://www.biocrawler.com/w/images/1...CoverLarge.jpg

[Verrocchio]

Re: Fooled by Randomness?

Alluding to randomness, the laws of chance, probability, the scientific method, thesis-testing, or a random walk down Wall Street... what are you ranting and/or raving about, Luke? Are you alluding to the plight of man naked against the indifferent and seemingly chaotic forces of nature? Or, is this Ripley's Believe It or Not for Sunday afternoon entertainment?

[Guest]

Re: Fooled by Randomness?

Well ... Not sure if you are kidding around or if you are steamed about something. Are you steamed up about something maybe? If so, I can't "read between the lines" here to understand what you are trying to get across guy. Plain English works fine for me, so if you have an itch you are yearning to scratch somewhere, by all means go ahead and have at it. Or if it was meant in some way to be tongue in cheek, I'm not sure what the jest was - the comment seems opaque, or confusing.

Alluding to randomness, the laws of chance, probability, the scientific method, thesis-testing, or a random walk down Wall Street... what are you ranting and/or raving about, Luke? Are you alluding to the plight of man naked against the indifferent and seemingly chaotic forces of nature? Or, is this Ripley's Believe It or Not for Sunday afternoon entertainment?

[metalman]

Re: Fooled by Randomness?

It's just a coincidence!

hmmmph! metalman has his own explanations...

Life can sometimes produce fascinating, extraordinary coincidences. Here are a few of the most amazing ones, gathered from around the world. In 1975, a man riding a moped in Bermuda was accidentally struck and killed by a taxi. One year later, the man's brother, riding the very same moped, was killed in the very same way by the very same taxi driven by the very same driver -- and carrying the very same passenger. two friends had a beef with a guy and his brother and ran them both over with a cab. Mark Twain was born on the day of the appearance of Halley's Comet in 1835, and died on the day of its next appearance in 1910. He himself predicted this in 1909, when he said: "I came in with Halley's Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it." he was sick and old and held out until the day he promised everyone he'd die. stubborn bastard. Twin brothers Jim Lewis and Jim Springer were separated at birth and adopted by different families. Unknown to each other, both were named James, both owned a dog named Toy, both married women named Linda, both had a son they names James Alan, and both eventually divorced and got remarried to a woman named Betty. they lied. they'd been in touch all of their lives. makes a good story, tho. Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, and John Adams helped to edit and hone it. The Continental Congress approved the document on July 4, 1776. Both Jefferson and Adams died on July 4, 1826 -- exactly 50 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence. see mark twain example, above. A British officer, Major Summerford, while fighting in the fields of Flanders in February 1918 was knocked off his horse by a flash of lightning and paralyzed from the waist down. Summerford retired and moved to Vancouver. One day in 1924, as he fished alongside a river, lightning hit the tree he was sitting under and paralyzed his right side. Two years later Summerford was sufficiently recovered that he was able to take walks in a local park. He was walking there one summer day in 1930 when a lightning bolt smashed into him, permanently paralyzing him. He died two years later. But lightning sought him out one last time. Four years later, during a storm, lightning struck a cemetery and destroyed a tombstone. The deceased buried here? Major Summerford. great tale, there's no evidence it ever happened. A German mother who photographed her infant son in 1914 left the film to be developed at a store in Strasbourg, but was unable to collect the film picture when World War I broke out. Two years later she bought a film plate in Frankfurt, over 100 miles away, and took a picture of her newborn daughter -- only to find, when developed, the picture of her daughter superimposed on the earlier picture of her son. The original film, never developed, had been mistakenly labeled as unused and resold. impossible. ever take film in and out of an old camera? they didn't have film cartridges in those days. In 1858, Robert Fallon was shot dead by fellow poker players who accused him of cheating to win a $600 pot. None of the other players were willing to take the now unlucky $600, so they found a new player to take Fallon's place, who turned the $600 into $2,200 in winnings. At that point, the police arrived and demanded that the original $600 be given to Fallon's next of kin -- only to discover that the new player was Fallon's son, who had not seen his father in seven years. at least this one is both possible and not unlikely. On the 26th November, 1911, three men were hanged at Greenberry Hill in London after being convicted of the murder of Sir Edmund Berry. Their names were Green, Berry and Hill. funny! In 1930s Detroit, a man named Joseph Figlock was to become an amazing figure in a young (and, apparently, incredibly careless) mother's life. As Figlock was walking down the street, the mother's baby fell from a high window onto Figlock. The baby’s fall was broken and Figlock and the baby were unharmed. A year later, the same baby fell from the same window, again falling onto Mr. Figlock as he was passing beneath. Once again, both of them survived the event. throwing babies out the window was common in those days... no food. during the depression in the slums it practically rained babies. figlock got lucky and his mum frustrated. In 1973, actor Anthony Hopkins agreed to appear in "The Girl From Petrovka", based on a novel by George Feifer. Unable to find a copy of the book anywhere in London, Hopkins was surprised to discover one lying on a bench in a train station. It turned out to be George Feifer's own annotated (personal) copy, which Feifer had lent to a friend, and which had been stolen from his friend's car. a truly believable coincidence.

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[*T*]

Re: Fooled by Randomness?

Or, is this Ripley's Believe It or Not for Sunday afternoon entertainment?

I think that is the spirit in which it was meant.