random(1-100)

August 28, 2006 3:08 PM

Please pick a random number between 1 and 100 (Explanation follows after filling out a short form.)
posted by kika (146 comments total)

I picked 50.
posted by sbutler at 3:11 PM on August 28, 2006

If you've reached this page, you have probably already given me a random number. Thanks!

Now I'll explain what the point of that was. I am conducting an experiment to see what numbers I will get if I ask a bunch of people to pick a random number between 1 and 100. It was important to me that the page be very simple so as not to influence the numbers people entered.

My guess is that there will be preference towards certain numbers over others. Whenever I try to think of a random number, I tend to lean towards 7's. I decided to also add those extra questions so that I'll be able to see if different patterns arise in, for example, males and females. Or maybe math-savvy people will generate less random numbers than non-math people because they think too hard about it. Or then again, it may spread evenly across the board, providing the most boring results possible.

Once I have a good number of submissions (I would like hundreds of thousands, but I don't think I'll get that lucky) I will gather the findings and publish them on this page. So check back here later!
posted by monju_bosatsu at 3:12 PM on August 28, 2006

Way to screw with his(her) results, jerk.
posted by alexei at 3:16 PM on August 28, 2006

I feel as if I've just been a part of something great.

That was some good macaroni.
posted by Schlimmbesserung at 3:17 PM on August 28, 2006

This could be interesting once there are some results. As it is, it's sort of *shrug*
posted by raedyn at 3:20 PM on August 28, 2006

So did I win?
posted by brain_drain at 3:23 PM on August 28, 2006

It'll turn out to be a demonstration of how much people enjoy screwing things up deliberately. (S)he was never going to get decent results, not when people can go back and submit more numbers.
posted by edd at 3:25 PM on August 28, 2006

Yeah, wish it had some results.
posted by BackwardsHatClub at 3:25 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 2. That'll fuck with his head.
posted by bob sarabia at 3:26 PM on August 28, 2006

Damn, I was hoping it would tell me that I picked the number everyone inevitably picks because of [insert miscellaneous quirk of human psychology here]

I have learned NOTHING.
posted by fleetmouse at 3:26 PM on August 28, 2006

WOOOO I GUESSED IT!
posted by Citizen Premier at 3:30 PM on August 28, 2006

I was offended by the suggestion that I only have half a brain.
posted by hydrophonic at 3:31 PM on August 28, 2006

I got a popup that said I was the 100,000th person to pick 18 and that I could claim my free ipod.

I filled the form full of 18's
I can't wait.
posted by isopraxis at 3:37 PM on August 28, 2006

PLZ LEAVE RANDOM NUMBER BETWEEN 1 AND 1 IN YOUR COMMENT I WILL COUNT THEM AND DISPLAY RESULTS LATER TIA
posted by Kwine at 3:44 PM on August 28, 2006

I have heard that 73 is the most common number chosen when asked that question.
posted by cell divide at 3:45 PM on August 28, 2006

DON'T PICK 12 !!!
posted by mazola at 3:46 PM on August 28, 2006

Meh.
posted by scblackman at 3:50 PM on August 28, 2006

It'll turn out to be a demonstration of how much people enjoy screwing things up deliberately. (S)he was never going to get decent results, not when people can go back and submit more numbers.

Maybe she registers IP numbers and will be able to give data about how people try to screw this up.


I doubt it, though.
posted by Citizen Premier at 3:51 PM on August 28, 2006

The answer is 42.
posted by SenshiNeko at 3:54 PM on August 28, 2006

72
posted by RufusW at 3:58 PM on August 28, 2006

How long is "later"?
posted by LoopSouth at 4:04 PM on August 28, 2006

Funny that everyone has been picking integers.
posted by edd at 4:05 PM on August 28, 2006 [1 favorite]

weird, celldivide. i chose 73, but mostly because it was the year i was born.
posted by diggum at 4:08 PM on August 28, 2006

72 here. I looked at the time 7:21, thought that 21 was a little auspicious and chose the first two digits of the time.
posted by bobo123 at 4:25 PM on August 28, 2006

72 here as well. Reality just shattered into a thousand bats.
posted by Powerful Religious Baby at 4:31 PM on August 28, 2006

Weird, I picked 73 too -- but only because it was my dad's favorite number (sports thing? I dunno) and jumped into my head.
posted by pineapple at 4:35 PM on August 28, 2006

Ha. 79, suckers. YOU LOSE!
posted by cortex at 4:37 PM on August 28, 2006

I thought about it a bit and went for 37.
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 4:38 PM on August 28, 2006

72 also. weird.
posted by stargell at 4:40 PM on August 28, 2006

Was he on to something with the 7s? I picked 47.
posted by fusinski at 4:40 PM on August 28, 2006

OK, now I'm a little freaked out-- I picked 73 as well.
posted by dersins at 4:40 PM on August 28, 2006

π
posted by clevershark at 4:43 PM on August 28, 2006

18
posted by boo_radley at 4:43 PM on August 28, 2006

62 or 63, I think; I mashed blindly at the number row with two fingers.
posted by five fresh fish at 4:51 PM on August 28, 2006

It wouldn't let me type 2.9999999999999999999r, so I had to type in an equivalent number: 3 :)
posted by kaemaril at 4:52 PM on August 28, 2006

it let me enter 9819. I'm not sure how I feel about that.
posted by boo_radley at 4:55 PM on August 28, 2006

Hehehehehe. It did let me enter 2.99 however.

Guess when (s)he asked:

When you read "between 1 and 100" what did that mean to you?
1 and 100 are valid entries
1 and 100 are invalid, because it says between

(S)he omitted the one about:
Integer numbers only are valid entries
Any number between 1 and 100 are valid entries

:)
posted by kaemaril at 4:59 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 11. And got a cool little badge to add to my site.
posted by orchidthief at 5:03 PM on August 28, 2006

I think I picked 76, but I'm not sure (I saw this elsewhere and did it several days ago). It was definitely in the mid-70s, though. Weird.
posted by languagehat at 5:05 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 8 -- because I've always liked that number.
posted by bim at 5:06 PM on August 28, 2006

Whoa. I picked 72 as well. I almost always pick multiples of nine.

I knew this one guy once who used to answer 'e' or 'pi' whevener someone asked him that question. He was a total ass.
posted by cobaltnine at 5:13 PM on August 28, 2006

I'm super lazy - 4 was the closest one digit number when I moved my hand towards the num row on the keyboard.
posted by Meatbomb at 5:20 PM on August 28, 2006

79! And I see I'm not the first person to do so. 42 and 69 were my secondary options, but 79 popped into my head first so there you have it. Now I'm going back to enter 42 and 69 just because I can.
posted by antifuse at 5:21 PM on August 28, 2006

Also, I didn't bother filling in the form (it said it was optional, so why would I bother?), and did a Bill & Ted air guitar after putting in 69.
posted by antifuse at 5:22 PM on August 28, 2006

Another 72! We have a winnah!
posted by Blue Buddha at 5:29 PM on August 28, 2006

This would have been so much better had he asked us to think of an integer between 1 and 100, then asked us a series of questions, and then guessed our number based on our answers.

Not that the questions would have anything to do with the numbers -- they would just be representative of consistent thinking in a large enough sample.

Survey sites like that were all the rage, like, 7 years ago.
posted by thanotopsis at 5:32 PM on August 28, 2006

I'm this many! *holds up two fingers.*
posted by yeti at 5:47 PM on August 28, 2006

bob - I picked 2 as well. Weird.
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 5:49 PM on August 28, 2006

I also picked 79. Now I want to change my answer.
posted by horsewithnoname at 5:51 PM on August 28, 2006

23. I am a unique snowflake!
posted by inigo2 at 5:53 PM on August 28, 2006

My money's on 88. It's the number that popped into my head as soon as I read the post, and it's the one I entered. There really was no method at all about it.
posted by clevershark at 5:54 PM on August 28, 2006

ok i guess i am just a perv.


69.
posted by ShawnString at 6:08 PM on August 28, 2006

It seems to accept decimal points and the minus sign, but not letters or other operands. I put down -.2
posted by allen.spaulding at 6:12 PM on August 28, 2006

72 here as well
posted by sideshow at 6:18 PM on August 28, 2006

52.
posted by johndog at 6:18 PM on August 28, 2006

I chose n, where n is a number between 1 and 100.
posted by kfx at 6:23 PM on August 28, 2006

47

then i got an email that said: "Which Weezer Member Are You? RIVERS!"

which is awesome because i usually relate to him the most.
posted by tsarfan at 6:23 PM on August 28, 2006

17
posted by UseyurBrain at 6:24 PM on August 28, 2006

82. Presumably I win...for now.
posted by Sparx at 6:26 PM on August 28, 2006

Mazola, Why did you say "Don't pick 12!"

I'd like to know because... ummmm - I picked 12.
posted by matty at 6:30 PM on August 28, 2006

Er... how many people here were born in the 70s?
posted by zennie at 6:40 PM on August 28, 2006

37
posted by scallion at 6:40 PM on August 28, 2006

Computer Programming Axiom: "The generation of random numbers is too important to be left up to chance."
posted by Vindaloo at 6:47 PM on August 28, 2006

I chose 37 of course, because this is statistically the most likely number to be picked and because I am a sheep.
posted by FissionChips at 6:48 PM on August 28, 2006

72 here. It was my football number.
posted by Mhead at 7:05 PM on August 28, 2006

72. Yes, really.
posted by knave at 7:06 PM on August 28, 2006

this is so stupid.
posted by wumpus at 7:07 PM on August 28, 2006

70somthing...but now I don't remember. Weird, though...
posted by ssmug at 7:09 PM on August 28, 2006

42
posted by coust at 7:10 PM on August 28, 2006

Also 72. Strange.
posted by saslett at 7:14 PM on August 28, 2006

A strange game. The only winning move is not to play.
posted by juv3nal at 7:18 PM on August 28, 2006

I went with 95 because it was the first number that I thought of that wasn't 42 or had a 7 in it. I was told when I was 16 that everybody picked either 42 or a number with a 7 in it. Being a born contrarian every random number I've picked since has neither been 42 nor had the number 7 in it.
posted by Kattullus at 7:19 PM on August 28, 2006

So, what will it be? A neat bell curve with some outliers caused by "culturally" "significant" numbers? Weird spikes at the upper and lower bounds caused by the unimaginative? A theoretically unexplainable amount of support for "42"?

The suspense!
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 7:20 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 1 before reading Kwine's post.

It also takes -1, 0, 0.1 and very large numbers (999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 works).

It doesn't take letters.

Also, it is observed that there is no immediate retaliation for being an a-hole and putting in -1, 0, and 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999.

I await the Internet police's momentary arrival (or at least a pang of secret shame.... *looks at watch* .... I'll let you know)
posted by modernerd at 7:22 PM on August 28, 2006

37

I'm not alone in my 37-ness!
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 7:30 PM on August 28, 2006

95
posted by erebora at 7:39 PM on August 28, 2006

Everyone who picked 72 has cancer, but they don't know it yet.
posted by jenovus at 7:41 PM on August 28, 2006

I'm with fleetmouse.

I also picked a 70-something, but I'm pretty sure it was 73, which fortunately means that I don't have cancer.
posted by craven_morhead at 7:46 PM on August 28, 2006

I'm such an asshole.
posted by wobh at 7:47 PM on August 28, 2006

Another 47 here. I just like how it looks aesthetically.
47
Ooooh, prettyyyyy!
posted by zoinks at 7:53 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 2. It's my favourite number.
posted by Hildegarde at 8:22 PM on August 28, 2006

I'm with clevershark. 88 popped into my head and I typed it in. (On the numerical keypad.)
posted by bink at 8:28 PM on August 28, 2006

99
posted by Hal Mumkin at 8:39 PM on August 28, 2006

How about 78?
posted by barrista at 8:55 PM on August 28, 2006

72...no, everyone will pick that one...hm, 14?...no, multiple of 7. 4? OK, 4.
posted by carsonb at 8:59 PM on August 28, 2006

I predict:
(a) A bias towards numbers in the middle of the range.
- I think, when "trying" to be random, people like to avoid the extremes. When asked to pick a number between 1 and 100, I think relatively few will pick "2".
(b) A bias against numbers below 10 (ie. single digit numbers)
- When asked to pick numbers in this range, I think your mind automatically moves towards double digits. Numbers between 1 and 100? Hmm that means pick a random two-digit number.
(c) A bias against numbers like 10,20,30...
- I think people like to try and be random by picking "unusual" or "messy" numbers. 47. 53. 81. Not boring, even numbers like 40.

And I make these predictions because I picked 43.
posted by Jimbob at 9:19 PM on August 28, 2006

The first number I thought of was 7. Then I thought that was too low, so I contemplated changing it to...wait for it...72! But in the end I stuck with my initial choice.
posted by xigxag at 9:23 PM on August 28, 2006

I said 47 as well, but that phenomenon has been documented.
posted by Hot Like Your 12V Wire at 9:26 PM on August 28, 2006

I couldn't put in pi, so, 9.2.
posted by The Mauve Frog at 9:33 PM on August 28, 2006

Huh, I picked 73 as well. here's the feedback I left:

First of all, I don't believe in the "right brained/left-brained" division. This was something that entered pop culture from theories in the 1970s; it is not really scientifically valid.

I did not immediately concern whether 1 and 100 were valid entries before I saw the question on the survey page. Why would I? Obviously there is a wide range of numbers that are valid under each definition.

Finally: I did pick the number "42" first but then changed it because that's kind of a "famous" number. For both 42 and my answer 73, I think I chose based on the sound properties of the first digit, and then the second digit was picked to sound good after the first.

posted by delmoi at 9:39 PM on August 28, 2006

I put in 66 with the keypad and expected the follow-up page to either scream at me, or have some elaborate means of demonstrating that for some reason everyone picks 66.
posted by The Monkey at 9:44 PM on August 28, 2006

85 but only because I failed to correctly type 58
posted by Hicksu at 10:01 PM on August 28, 2006

72 here
my that's an awful lot of 72s, what an unrandom number.
posted by oonh at 10:03 PM on August 28, 2006

76
posted by rlef98 at 10:09 PM on August 28, 2006

W00t! I'm the only 67 in the room. Suckers! I'm special and you're not.
posted by SeizeTheDay at 10:31 PM on August 28, 2006

I was gonna pick 57, because that's the number of tits on stage in Vegas, but then I remembered that 23 is the most random number of all.
posted by oncogenesis at 11:16 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 72. I guess he really CAN read minds!
posted by Balisong at 11:23 PM on August 28, 2006

I picked 78 too.
posted by saysthis at 11:36 PM on August 28, 2006

57
posted by MythMaker at 12:03 AM on August 29, 2006

Oh, christ- another 72 here.
posted by robself at 12:07 AM on August 29, 2006

Funny, when this was linked on digg (A Random Number) 72 came up a few times (5 mentions out of 274 comments) but nowhere near as often as here (14 picks out of 100 comments).
posted by bobo123 at 12:35 AM on August 29, 2006

Ha, The Monkey! I typed 66 as well. When someone asks me for a random number between 1 and 10, I almost always think 6. Extending this same habit to a number between 1 and 100, I went for 66.
posted by milov at 2:36 AM on August 29, 2006

MythMaker: I picked 51.
posted by toma at 2:56 AM on August 29, 2006

86 - I AM LORD OF ALL I SURVEY. I was originally going to enter another number, but for the life of me I can't think of what that number was -- I just remember going to type, pausing, then typing 86.

The number of 7's is interesting!
posted by cavalier at 3:47 AM on August 29, 2006

Ha! I picked 27.
posted by ikalliom at 3:47 AM on August 29, 2006

I picked 4. I was afraid to go any higher - better to stay near zero where it's safe.
posted by klarck at 5:17 AM on August 29, 2006

my that's an awful lot of 72s

No kidding. What the hell is going on?
posted by languagehat at 5:41 AM on August 29, 2006

38 - my age for 2 more days. I figured even numbers were less likely because they're too neat. Actually, most simple (symmetrical) designs I've seen feature an odd number, 3, 5, 7 points, corners, flowers etc.
posted by b33j at 6:20 AM on August 29, 2006

I also picked 4 - perhaps the most common of the single digits?
posted by mdonley at 6:58 AM on August 29, 2006

For random number from 1-10, most people pick 7.

For random number from 1-4, most people pick 3.

...and it's looking like 72 or 73 is the choice for 1-100.

So how do I make money with this knowledge?
posted by LordSludge at 7:17 AM on August 29, 2006

So how do I make money with this knowledge?

Make bets with suckers at even odds, clean up in the long term. Hustle, baby.
posted by cortex at 7:36 AM on August 29, 2006

You might guess I would pick 88, but you'd be wrong.
(I picked 71, but only after dismissing my first instinct of 72 because it had too many factors)
posted by rocket88 at 7:44 AM on August 29, 2006

Seems I'm the only one to pick 23.
posted by drleary at 7:46 AM on August 29, 2006

82.
posted by ddf at 7:51 AM on August 29, 2006

I first typed 66, then changed it to 67, then changed it to 73, which I finally entered after briefly considering 37.

(73 is my birth year).
posted by witchstone at 8:14 AM on August 29, 2006

11806, natch.
posted by signal at 8:20 AM on August 29, 2006

72 (and I thought I was so original)
posted by caraig at 8:31 AM on August 29, 2006

47 FTW!
posted by WinnipegDragon at 8:34 AM on August 29, 2006

I can't believe so many people picked 72! Fools. I picked 27 which is obviously quite different than 72. Weird.
posted by maxpower at 8:59 AM on August 29, 2006

toma and I must be long-lost twins. I also picked 51.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 9:32 AM on August 29, 2006

45.8. I always pick fractions because no one ever stipulates whole numbers.
posted by sixpack at 9:35 AM on August 29, 2006

27!
posted by papercake at 9:46 AM on August 29, 2006

59
posted by LadyBonita at 9:48 AM on August 29, 2006

Did you guys win the boxster too? That was cool.
posted by craniac at 9:50 AM on August 29, 2006

72.
posted by designbot at 12:11 PM on August 29, 2006

93. Where's my phat lewt?!
posted by deborah at 12:27 PM on August 29, 2006

+1
posted by Smedleyman at 12:41 PM on August 29, 2006

I picked 1. It didn't even occur to me that between 1-100 could not include 1.

And he does say in the wrap-up that he doesn't store fractions. Everything just gets rounded down. I would guess that very, very few people choose 3, but now all you pi assholes are going to skew that horribly.
posted by team lowkey at 12:55 PM on August 29, 2006

Why did you want to share what number you typed in?

That's the WEIRD thing.

If you typed in a non-integer you are a BORN MONKEYWRENCHER.
posted by Twang at 12:56 PM on August 29, 2006

I picked 83. Apparently no-one else did in this thread. Special unique snowflake I am.
posted by reklaw at 1:11 PM on August 29, 2006

76 (My first thought was 77, but then I thought that was too many 7's. He might be on to something there about the 7 thing.)
posted by Marla Singer at 1:23 PM on August 29, 2006

Right.

I stared at the numbers on my key pad and randomly chose two. I COULD have chosen to type in 37....but Noooooo it came out 73. So:

A) I am most definitely not a unique snowflake

B) I am now leary of the word "random."

C) I feel that there are most definitely three types of people: those who choose non-72 or 73 numbers, those who choose 72, and those who chose 73. Those who choose non numbers are harmless eccentrics. Those who choose 72 are now my most bitter enemies. Fisticuffs? At dawn?
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 1:56 PM on August 29, 2006

Agreed. You're going down.
posted by knave at 2:10 PM on August 29, 2006

88
posted by Khalad at 2:34 PM on August 29, 2006

I feel so used! :-/
posted by mrhappysad at 2:44 PM on August 29, 2006

88

You racist.
posted by sonofsamiam at 2:47 PM on August 29, 2006

67. So he's onto something with his theory of 7s.
posted by forwebsites at 3:25 PM on August 29, 2006

7s are the hardest part of the multiplication table. Is it a factor of 7? Isn't it? Who knows! It seems so random!

QED.
posted by cortex at 4:01 PM on August 29, 2006

I was gonna do 37, but then that seemed too predictable (I thought it was one of those internet things where they tell you what you're thinking), so I took the enigmatic number 22.
posted by Arthur "Two Sheds" Jackson at 5:10 PM on August 29, 2006

13.

You 7x fuckers are creeping me out.
posted by quin at 5:29 PM on August 29, 2006

46. You people are freaks.
posted by scrump at 5:39 PM on August 29, 2006

Assuming I guessed the right number, when do I get my Chronicle of Narnia DVDs?
posted by yeti at 5:54 PM on August 29, 2006

An unselfconscious 37 here.
posted by Toecutter at 5:58 PM on August 29, 2006

I feel that there are most definitely three types of people: those who choose non-72 or 73 numbers, those who choose 72, and those who chose 73

But, what about us thirtyseveneers (37'eers)? That's close enough to 73, isn't it?
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 8:10 PM on August 29, 2006

Put me down for another 37. I had Clerks in mind.
posted by etoile at 9:25 AM on August 30, 2006

4.
posted by lpctstr; at 8:47 PM on August 30, 2006