And, indeed, I will ask on my own account here, an idle question: which is better—cheap happiness or exalted sufferings? Well, which is better?---Fyodor Dostoevsky ---Notes from Underground
There are certain people of whom it is difficult to say anything which will at once throw them into relief—in other words, describe them graphically in their typical characteristics. These are they who are generally known as “commonplace people,” and this class comprises, of course, the immense majority of mankind. Authors, as a rule, attempt to select and portray types rarely met with in their entirety, but these types are nevertheless more real than real life itself.
For instance, when the whole essence of an ordinary person’s nature lies in his perpetual and unchangeable commonplaceness; and when in spite of all his endeavours to do something out of the common, this person ends, eventually, by remaining in his unbroken line of routine—. I think such an individual really does become a type of his own—a type of commonplaceness which will not for the world, if it can help it, be contented, but strains and yearns to be something original and independent, without the slightest possibility of being so.---Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
"Podkoleosin" [A character in Gogol's comedy, The Wedding.] was perhaps an exaggeration, but he was by no means a non-existent character; on the contrary, how many intelligent people, after hearing of this Podkoleosin from Gogol, immediately began to find that scores of their friends were exactly like him! They knew, perhaps, before Gogol told them, that their friends were like Podkoleosin, but they did not know what name to give them. In real life, young fellows seldom jump out of the window just before their weddings, because such a feat, not to speak of its other aspects, must be a decidedly unpleasant mode of escape; and yet there are plenty of bridegrooms, intelligent fellows too, who would be ready to confess themselves Podkoleosins in the depths of their consciousness, just before marriage. Nor does every husband feel bound to repeat at every step, "Tu l'as voulu, Georges Dandin!" like another typical personage; and yet how many millions and billions of Georges Dandins there are in real life who feel inclined to utter this soul-drawn cry after their honeymoon, if not the day after the wedding! Therefore, without entering into any more serious examination of the question, I will content myself with remarking that in real life typical characters are "watered down," so to speak; and all these Dandins and Podkoleosins actually exist among us every day, but in a diluted form. I will just add, however, that Georges Dandin might have existed exactly as Moliere presented him, and probably does exist now and then, though rarely; and so I will end this scientific examination, which is beginning to look like a newspaper criticism. But for all this, the question remains,-- what are the novelists to do with commonplace people, and how are they to be presented to the reader in such a form as to be in the least degree interesting? They cannot be left out altogether, for commonplace people meet one at every turn of life, and to leave them out would be to destroy the whole reality and probability of the story. To fill a novel with typical characters only, or with merely strange and uncommon people, would render the book unreal and improbable, and would very likely destroy the interest. In my opinion, the duty of the novelist is to seek out points of interest and instruction even in the characters of commonplace people.
For instance, when the whole essence of an ordinary person's nature lies in his perpetual and unchangeable commonplaceness; and when in spite of all his endeavours to do something out of the common, this person ends, eventually, by remaining in his unbroken line of routine--. I think such an individual really does become a type of his own--a type of commonplaceness which will not for the world, if it can help it, be contented, but strains and yearns to be something original and independent, without the slightest possibility of being so. To this class of commonplace people belong several characters in this novel;-- characters which--I admit--I have not drawn very vividly up to now for my reader's benefit.
There is nothing so annoying as to be fairly rich, of a fairly good family, pleasing presence, average education, to be "not stupid," kind-hearted, and yet to have no talent at all, no originality, not a single idea of one's own--to be, in fact, "just like everyone else."
Of such people there are countless numbers in this world--far more even than appear. They can be divided into two classes as all men can--that is, those of limited intellect, and those who are much cleverer. The former of these classes is the happier.
To a commonplace man of limited intellect, for instance, nothing is simpler than to imagine himself an original character, and to revel in that belief without the slightest misgiving.
Many of our young women have thought fit to cut their hair short, put on blue spectacles, and call themselves Nihilists. By doing this they have been able to persuade themselves, without further trouble, that they have acquired new convictions of their own. Some men have but felt some little qualm of kindness towards their fellow-men, and the fact has been quite enough to persuade them that they stand alone in the van of enlightenment and that no one has such humanitarian feelings as they. Others have but to read an idea of somebody else's, and they can immediately assimilate it and believe that it was a child of their own brain. The "impudence of ignorance," if I may use the expression, is developed to a wonderful extent in such cases;--unlikely as it appears, it is met with at every turn.
This confidence of a stupid man in his own talents has been wonderfully depicted by Gogol in the amazing character of Pirogoff. Pirogoff has not the slightest doubt of his own genius,--nay, of his superiority of genius,--so certain is he of it that he never questions it. How many Pirogoffs have there not been among our writers--scholars--propagandists? I say "have been," but indeed there are plenty of them at this very day.
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By Nico
05/25
Quantum Mechanic and Sexual Encounters of Extraordinary Kind
An extraordinary event is one with a very low probability of happening, yet capable of producing enormous consequences — the kind Nassim Taleb would call a black swan.
For the purpose of this text, let’s define a “sexual encounter of the extraordinary kind” as one with a probability of less than 1%.
Picture this: it’s a Saturday night. You walk into a bar and spot a stunningly attractive woman — the kind who radiates confidence, mystery, and absolute unattainability. You know, instinctively, she’s two leagues above you. The odds of even a conversation, let alone a sexual encounter, are so microscopic that you don’t even bother trying.
And that, my friend, is where quantum mechanics enters the picture.
What Is Quantum Mechanics?
It’s the branch of physics that governs the strange behavior of matter and energy at unimaginably small scales — where the rules of classical physics simply break down.
Some of its key concepts include:
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Wave–particle duality: everything behaves both as a particle and a wave.
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Superposition: a quantum system can exist in multiple states simultaneously — until observed.
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Entanglement: two particles can be mysteriously linked so that the state of one instantly affects the other, no matter the distance between them.
Quantum mechanics is astonishingly precise when it comes to predicting experimental outcomes, but deeply confusing when it comes to interpreting what’s actually happening in reality. To make sense of it, physicists have proposed various interpretations — attempts to bridge the gap between cold mathematics and our everyday intuition.
One of these is the Many-Worlds Interpretation, which proposes that all possible outcomes of quantum events actually occur — each in its own parallel universe.
The Quantum Bar Scenario
Let’s say the probability of having that improbable sexual encounter is exactly 1%. Now imagine a multiverse with 100 parallel universes (a gross oversimplification — physicists suspect the number might be infinite).
Statistically, that means there’s one universe where the encounter actually happens. One universe where you get lucky.
Amazing, right?
But wait — quantum mechanics has another trick: entanglement. If your different selves across those 100 universes are somehow linked, then perhaps some faint echo of that encounter resonates across all realities. Maybe, on some subtle level, all your other selves feel a trace of it.
Now it gets even stranger.
The Houston Street Problem
Let’s say after having a sleepless night and multiple sex acts with that gorgeous girl in your lucky universe, on your way home early Sunday morning, the car hits you on Houston Street.. Fatal.
Do you cease to exist only in that one universe, or in all 100?
If the probability of the accident was 3%, does that mean you die in three universes — each in its own slightly different way? And what happens to the remaining 97 versions of you — do they feel a ghostly echo of that death through quantum entanglement?
Thinking about it too long could drive anyone insane.
The Lottery Multiverse
To make peace with this madness, let’s try a happier example.
Suppose there’s a one-in-a-million chance of winning this month’s record-breaking $500 million lottery. Let’s say our multiverse contains a million parallel universes. Statistically, in one of them, you hit the jackpot.
Now you’re rich. You buy a Maserati, a Soho penthouse, a $250K watch, and the latest Dolce & Gabbana everything. Then, naturally, you head to the same bar, park your Maserati right in front of the door, and casually stroll inside, admiring your 250K watch.
There she is again, the same girl but this time the odds have shifted. Now the probability of an “extraordinary encounter” is at least 90%.
Let’s do the math: in 900,000 universes, that encounter now happens.
At that point, who cares about entanglement? Who cares about dying on Houston Street? Who could possibly care about anything after having their mind blown in 900,000 universes simultaneously?
The possibilities of the quantum world are endless — infinite.
So I ask: Where is the door, and how do I cross?
09/24
Gracias A La Vida
She liked me the least of all those girls that did not like me . As a matter of fact I think she did not like me at all.
What irony !
Who is writing these scripts , a cynical God or the Devil himself ? A simulation game perhaps?
No , not really just kidding.
Only real life , full of mismatches , delusions and compromises in complete display.
An ordinary existence , everything to be said can be captured in few lines , not the material for the cheesy Hollywood script or cheap sappy novel.
The early morning sun beams through the window . Drinking my first coffee, listening to the podcast.
Sleep is so elusive these days.
It seems it is going to be a beautiful day .
AI holds the power to profoundly and transformatively benefit humanity, AI guru on the podcast claims.
I feel nothing, just emptiness .
Welcome, my old friend !
EPITAF
Happens to the Heart
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