Weird, Man
Could happen
coincidence A surprising concurrence of events, perceived as meaningfully related, with no apparent causal connection
Coincidences fascinate us. When they happen, we elevate them to something which transcends pure chance and are compelled to search for their significance. We seem discomforted by the idea of a random universe and want to feel that our lives are governed by a grand plan.
John Allen Paulos, a professor of mathematics at Philadelphia's Temple University, says: "Coincidence feels like a loss of control. Human beings are pattern-seeking animals. It might be part of our biology that conspires to make coincidences more meaningful than they really are."
Coincidences make us yearn for a world beyond this observable one in which we may find a structure and a meaning for our lives. They do not have to be based on an act of faith. They occur to the biggest cynics as well as to those who devoutly believe in the supernatural.
The fact is, the law of averages says that with a big enough denominator -say, the world - stuff will happen, including some very weird stuff. Instead of coming from a power which transcends time and space, coincidences, some people say, are the inevitable result of the law or probability applied to a chaotic universe. Or, as statistician Persi Diaconis of California's Stanford University says: "The really unusual day would be when nothing unusual happens."
Photographic evidence
A man in England was doing a jigsaw puzzle, a beach scene in a resort he had visited with his wife when she was suffering from a long and eventually terminal illness. Upon closer examination, he noticed his wife in the crowd.A young couple met and fell in love in Australia. Months later they discovered that, before meeting, they had visited the same place in Thailand at the same time. The woman pulled out a holiday snap which a companion had taken of her. In the background was her new boyfriend smiling into the camera.
Unlucky number
9/11 = 9+1+1 = 11
September 11 is the 254th day of the year. 2+5+4 = 11
After September 11 there are 111 days left in the year.
Standing side by side, the Twin Towers looked like a giant number 11.
The first plane to hit the towers was American Airlines Flight 11 carrying 92 passengers. 9+2 = 11
New York was the 11th state to be added to the union.
Even this article is on page 11. How weird is that?
Double trouble
In 1975 a man was struck and killed by a taxi while riding a moped in Bermuda. One year later his identical brother was killed while riding the same moped - by the same driver in the same taxi carrying the same passenger.In Detroit in the 1930s Joseph Figlock was walking down the street when a baby fell on him from a high window. Both were unharmed. A year later the same baby fell from the same window, and its fall was broken by the same Joseph Figlock. Again, both were unharmed.
Clued up
When the Allied forces were planning the Normandy invasion of June 6 1944, the following code words were used and were among the best kept secrets of World War II: Utah and Omaha for the beaches where the landing would take place; Mulberry for the artificial harbour to be built after the landing; Neptune for naval operations; and Overlord for the entire invasion plan.On May 3 1944 the first code word, Utah, appeared as an answer in the Daily Telegraph crossword, followed by Omaha (on May 23), Mulberry (May 31) and finally Neptune and Overlord (both on June 2). An investigation by British Intelligence found that the crossword compiler had no knowledge of any invasion plans and had to all intents and purposes chosen the words at random.
President precedent
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