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Occam’s razor
It was recently announced that a fully functional Occam’s razor has been successfully tested in laboratory conditions. Since the concept was first created scientists, mathematicians and logicians have all made use of its principles to optimise their theories. This has often been difficult and controversial due the nuanced nature of what makes an explanation the simplest. Now, however, those difficulties are a thing of the past.
The razor is a 60cm long falcata-style polyrotatium blade, which provides the closest shave yet (removing hair to a Planck-length away from the skin) and reduces any explanations presented to it into the simplest form possible.
The two methods of theory delivery that have been trialled so far are verbal and paper formats. For the first round of tests overly-complex theories were spoken over the cutting edge of the blade while a listener stood by the non-cutting edge of the blade. The listener recorded what they heard, which, in every instance of the experiment, was the simplest version of what the speaker had said. For the second round of tests overly-complex theories, printed on 90gsm paper, were struck with the cutting edge of the blade. When the blade was lifted the papers had all been rewritten in their simplest form possible, except in two instances. In these two instances the papers had been rewritten in an unintelligible scrawl. It is hypothesized by the scientists conducting the experiments that this is due to a simpler explanation existing but not enough evidence was presented to the blade to allow for such a theory to be written. They will be testing this hypothesis in the coming months.
Dr Roger Hawworthy, of the University of Universal Science and Exploration, says: “This is probably the most important invention for scientific publication since the invention of the printing press.”
Upon further interrogation Dr Hawworthy added a slight correction to his above statement: “Of course I wasn’t including the Scientific Journal of International Science when I said that. Please don’t hurt me anymore! I’ve done what you said!”
The team of scientists and engineers who constructed the razor hope it will be in stores by spring next year.
With our in-house reporter Rachel Richards
Always wear a hardhat. You know it makes sense.
Image courtesy of Photostock / FreeDigitalPhotos.net