I think Nick was complaining about how they assumed he could hack because “all internet nerds/gamers can hack” and, while he CAN, he doesn’t like the stereotype.
This, on the other hand, seems like more of a “This is Real Life, not the Movies! Hacking doesn’t Work like that!” complaint. Except that since they’re both geniuses with like four digit IQs, they can handle this anyway.
Were I in this position, first thing I’d try is seeing if there’s a Project Skin Horse website. Second place I’d check is weird news sites. Even with the brain glaze in place there’s gotta be some conspiracy sites out there. Hopefully this would get them to Grillo Parlante and from there to some contact info.
I mean, Skin Horse doesn’t have a bunch of geniuses working there. Tip probably still has the same phone number.
Sure, but with enough Charisma, and a permissive enough DM, you can magically make everyone else inexplicably ignore the fact that you dump statted both Int and Wis. Just look at Tip!
I was thinking similarly. Even if Skin Horse is hard to hack, that doesn’t mean it must be hard to contact them if they actually want to be contacted.
Maybe they don’t want to allow any unsolicited contact at all though, to avoid infection by ASCII coded wetware trojans. Maybe they fear that a device could be designed incorporating Second Gate technology to send a randomized text such as $ across vast numbers of alternate worlds and programmed to phone home only if the target responds by sporting a mullet (mugil cephalis) on their head.
The problem is that protecting against such attacks would require not only screening personal communications, but outside communication as a whole — avoiding the newspaper, television, and billboards.
As Alan Turing discovered while investigating Godel’s Theorem, for any sufficiently expressive algorithm A and any output sentence S, there exists an input sentence T that causes A to produce output S and terminate. You won’t find the Turing Corollary in the literature because Turing died before he could publish. Many believe some unknown entity intercepted Turing’s article submission, extended his existence proof into a constructive proof, and then administered the proper sentence T to cause Turing to output the empty string.
Not the only thing. A couple of strips ago, Sergio was saying “This reality blindness situation is weird.” Nick said that back in “Unsinkable,” though he used a different word for “situation.”
It’s nice that Artie is now in that “Here’s a problem I can solve” state, as opposed to being a gerbil rolling across the keyboard as he stares up at his most beloved partner ever.
Y’know, when they do find Skin Horse, they had better make sure it’s the Skin Horse in Annex One, and not the one in the Maragda Building. ‘Cause the latter is the one that sent Echo Bravo and Alfa Alfa to kill Artie.
“Skin Horse has been rebooted. Do you want our help or not? Very well. Stay at the library and we’ll dispatch you – I mean dispatch a team – immediately!”
This goes back to what Helen said about mad scientists (and those involved in mad science) always measuring things in terms of plausibility, rather than possibility.
Pushing on the Envelope of Plausibility with a Sledge Hammer is how Possibility becomes expanded. Submarines? Aircraft? Electrical Generation? Cell phones?
Didn’t Nick complain about that very assumption?
I think Nick was complaining about how they assumed he could hack because “all internet nerds/gamers can hack” and, while he CAN, he doesn’t like the stereotype.
This, on the other hand, seems like more of a “This is Real Life, not the Movies! Hacking doesn’t Work like that!” complaint. Except that since they’re both geniuses with like four digit IQs, they can handle this anyway.
Were I in this position, first thing I’d try is seeing if there’s a Project Skin Horse website. Second place I’d check is weird news sites. Even with the brain glaze in place there’s gotta be some conspiracy sites out there. Hopefully this would get them to Grillo Parlante and from there to some contact info.
I mean, Skin Horse doesn’t have a bunch of geniuses working there. Tip probably still has the same phone number.
Good point. Artie can probably deduce Jonah and Nera’s association with Skin Horse.
Does he have to deduce it, or does Sergio know already?
And geniuses with four-digit IQs couldn’t figure out that a bag guy cat carrier might have a radio locator?
High Int does not necessarily mean high Wis.
Sure, but with enough Charisma, and a permissive enough DM, you can magically make everyone else inexplicably ignore the fact that you dump statted both Int and Wis. Just look at Tip!
I was thinking similarly. Even if Skin Horse is hard to hack, that doesn’t mean it must be hard to contact them if they actually want to be contacted.
Maybe they don’t want to allow any unsolicited contact at all though, to avoid infection by ASCII coded wetware trojans. Maybe they fear that a device could be designed incorporating Second Gate technology to send a randomized text such as $ across vast numbers of alternate worlds and programmed to phone home only if the target responds by sporting a mullet (mugil cephalis) on their head.
The problem is that protecting against such attacks would require not only screening personal communications, but outside communication as a whole — avoiding the newspaper, television, and billboards.
As Alan Turing discovered while investigating Godel’s Theorem, for any sufficiently expressive algorithm A and any output sentence S, there exists an input sentence T that causes A to produce output S and terminate. You won’t find the Turing Corollary in the literature because Turing died before he could publish. Many believe some unknown entity intercepted Turing’s article submission, extended his existence proof into a constructive proof, and then administered the proper sentence T to cause Turing to output the empty string.
Ogden, you intrigue me. I need to refresh my reading of Godel and Turing.
Not the only thing. A couple of strips ago, Sergio was saying “This reality blindness situation is weird.” Nick said that back in “Unsinkable,” though he used a different word for “situation.”
It’s nice that Artie is now in that “Here’s a problem I can solve” state, as opposed to being a gerbil rolling across the keyboard as he stares up at his most beloved partner ever.
Artie dancing on the keys while Sergio is typing is adorbs.
I have fond memories of a littler archy who managed to work the keyboard…
Y’know, when they do find Skin Horse, they had better make sure it’s the Skin Horse in Annex One, and not the one in the Maragda Building. ‘Cause the latter is the one that sent Echo Bravo and Alfa Alfa to kill Artie.
“Skin Horse has been rebooted. Do you want our help or not? Very well. Stay at the library and we’ll dispatch you – I mean dispatch a team – immediately!”
This goes back to what Helen said about mad scientists (and those involved in mad science) always measuring things in terms of plausibility, rather than possibility.
Pushing on the Envelope of Plausibility with a Sledge Hammer is how Possibility becomes expanded. Submarines? Aircraft? Electrical Generation? Cell phones?
I’m just glad that At the got out of Sergio’s pocket and start contributing.
(*sigh*). Artie, not At. I’ve got to stop commenting from my tablet
Well, at least the library has modern monitors. I’ve seen way worse
Yeah but just look at that mouse!