Chapter 657: 657
Chapter 657: The Probability Typist
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Pi didn't understand, Zhang Zian didn't either .
Yes, he had already guessed Pi's origin a long time ago, but that was because there were so few thought experiments that involved monkeys, it was easy to guess . The problem was, what did have to do with the untitled book or Archimedes Constant?
Zhang Zian didn't know the answer to the riddle, so he didn't give one . Just like how detectives need conclusive evidence before testifying against a criminal, Zhang Zian needed information before answering the riddle .
There were many monkeys that could type, so why did Pi stand out?
Until today, the answer had always puzzled him .
Now Zhang Zian knew, it had to be Pi .
Zhang Zian saw Pi delete Archimedes Constant, as well as a look of hopelessness on Pi's face . Zhang Zian didn't want Pi to be depressed again, so he stood up . It was time to make Pi understand .
Pi looked at Zian doubtfully, and pointed at the bed, meaning to say, "It's late, why aren't you sleeping? You'll be alone in the store tomorrow, and it'll be busy, right?"
Zhang Zian shook his head and pulled a chair over to sit down . He pulled the left bottom corner of the keyboard towards him, and with his pinky and ring finger, pressed Ctrl+Z .
The undo function made the Archimedes Constant that Pi deleted earlier reappear in the Word file .
"Pi, do you hate the Archimedes Constant?" Zhang Zian asked .
Pi blinked, thinking for a moment before nodding and shaking its head .
At first, Pi didn't hate the Archimedes Constant, it was actually quite fond of the endless string of numbers . So, when did it start to hate the Archimedes Constant?
It was probably from it's time at the Binhai Library .
During it's time at the library, the Archimedes Constant that Pi typed was perceived as a prank, they weren't able to see Pi nor were they able to understand it's plea for help . From the way they typed and their soft mutters, Pi knew that they weren't fond of it, and the Archimedes Constant was to blame .
Then, Zhang Zian appeared . He was the first person to actually communicate with it, but sadly, he wasn't able to understand the meaning of the Archimedes Constant either . Pi really liked Zhang Zian, and it didn't want to lose the only person it could talk to, so it started to hate the Archimedes Constant .
After that, Pi started writing its novel . From time to time, while Pi was typing, it would unconsciously type the Archimedes Constant, leaving a few readers confused . Pi wasn't able to fully control itself . It didn't want to lose readers, so whenever it saw the string of numbers, it'd get annoyed and frustrated, wishing that the numbers would disappear, so that it can be a normal author .
Zhang Zian had been watching Pi ever since it started writing its novel . He couldn't read minds, but he was able to guess how Pi felt from its facial expressions . Whenever Pi unconsciously typed the Archimedes Constant, then deleted it in frustration, he knew that Pi was starting to hate the string of numbers .
However, Pi shouldn't hate the Archimedes Constant because it was the reason why Pi existed . Since Pi used to love typing the Archimedes Constant, it stood out from the other monkeys .
Zhang Zian had to make Pi understand .
He pulled the desk drawer open, and took out a white piece of paper, a pen, a ruler and a compass .
He placed the paper on the desk and drew a circle with the compass .
Pi bewilderedly looked at what Zian was doing .
Zhang Zian placed the compass aside, and held the ruler with his left hand, pen with his right . He drew a straight line across the middle of the circle, from one side to the other .
Zhang Zian looked at his work with satisfaction, it was like looking at the bowl and chopsticks .
Placing the ruler down, Zhang Zian asked in a low voice, "Do you know what Pi is?"
Pi rolled its eyes and shook his head .
Pi had never been to school, all its knowledge was from the untitled book and even then, it was limited to what it could understand . It knew that Pi was the Archimedes Constant, but it wasn't sure what the Archimedes Constant was .
Zhang Zian smiled gently and said, "Okay, then let me tell you a story of Pi . "
Pi listened attentively . Just like the other elfins, Pi loved to listen to stories .
Zhang Zian pointed at the circle and the line with the tip of his pen, and said, "Pi is the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter . You should never hate the string of simple looking numbers because they aren't simple . It's endless . "
He looked at the Archimedes Constant that was on the screen before copying the numbers onto the paper, right below the circle .
"Pi consists of every possible combination of numbers, like your birth date, your locker combination, even your social security number . "
Zhang Zian's eyes swept across the untitled book that was resting on the desk, as if he could see all the meaningless letter combinations in the book .
A,AA,AAA,AAAA . . .
AB,ABA,ABAA,ABAAA . . .
AC,ACA,ACAA,ACAAA . . .
Z,ZA,ZAA,ZAAA . . .
ZB,ZBA,ZBAA,ZBAAA . . .
ZZ,ZZZ,ZZZZ,ZZZZZ . . .
Zhang Zian now understood that the untitled book actually had a title .
He continued, "If we change the number to letters, we'd be able to make every word in the world . Your first word as a baby, your lover's name, everything we've ever said and all the possibilities of the universe is within this simple circle .
Zian finished copying the first 100 numbers of the Archimedes Constant, placed the pen down and looked directly in Pi's eyes .
"What to do with the messages, is up to you . "
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