Randomize
Ratings177
Average rating3.3
Well, that was kind of bad. I have read & liked a couple of short pieces by this author before, so I'm really surprised. I did not like any of the characters and couldn't sympathize with their goals.
The quantum-computing content was explained well enough for me to follow, even though I don't know anything about the topic. That wasn't the problem, but it also wasn't exciting.
Overall, it feels like an episode of a bad TV show. These are character types, not characters.
Andy Weir has cool ideas. Good speculative fiction on the possible impact of quantum computing. Andy Weir also has problems creating captivating and interesting characters. Its not so visible in those short stories. This was fun for an hour listen though!
All I remember is that it had an Indian cast. This is the Ant man movie joke where you put the word quantum infront of everything to make it seem possible and mysterious. Very boring.
This is part of the Amazon Original ‘Forward Collection' curated by Blake Crouch. I loved The Martian and really liked Artemis. This kind of fits right in for them as a futuristic science story. These are available through prime for free on kindle or audible!
This one is very straight forward. It deals with a new super computer that would allow for the gambling scene to be entirely ripped off. Pseudo-number randomizers can be hacked through this new process, allowing the cheating to appear like genuine wins, indistinguishable. When an IT guy catching this, saving his casino millions, it's too bad that not everyone is as clean.
This was perhaps my least favorite of the Forward Collection if I'm honest. The short story features a total of perhaps three scenes, and they are all very simple. Two of which are very similar. I did like that Weir uses his signature style of heavily delivering on the science though. It just felt a little flat.
Personally a 3/5*, just not as deep or hard hitting as the others.
Wife does it again
Another twist and turn using science and human nature. Short but a pleasure to inhabit this world of a future starting tomorrow
Short and Fun
A fun little dive into quantum physics and how advances in the field may cause issues with gambling systems that rely on number randomization.
Interesting discussion on the effects of quantum computing, which isn't necessarily a too far away possibility, and how this may affect existing logical computer systems and encryption processes that are widespread currently. Plot is kind of dull, as well as the characters, but I found that thinking about the effect of quantum computing on day to day computer infrastructure and the security threats that they could potentially pose was pretty interesting.
From more of the techie side, I think there might be ways to generate essentially ‘truly' random numbers with current systems such as having a seed that changes constantly that is based off of something that is truly random such as live images of lava lamps (Details here) vs a static seed that could be eventually determined. This approach to including true randomness (vs pseudo randomness) I think helps make existing systems more secure.
There are interesting technological discussion on entanglement, how technology can both be beneficial and potentially cause some problems in the future, etc.
Overall, actually enjoyed this short story and made for interesting discussions.
Andy Weir is a one trick pony for the Adam Sandler main characters (not rly sure why he's in the position he's in (as in, how tf did he get this job), memory loss, slightly or mostly misogynistic, uses humor to a nauseating degree) in his book the Martian and based off of reviews is exactly the same as PHM. I think he's trying to get out of it with a couple of these other books like Artemis and Randomize but he just unfortunately fails. This just wasn't great.
My ranking of this Collection of Short Stories from favorite to least favorite:
1) BOOK 2: Summer Frost by Blake Crouch
2) BOOK 4: You Have Arrived at Your Destination by Amor Towles
3) BOOK 3: Emergency Skin by N.K. Jemisin
4) BOOK 5: The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay
5) BOOK 6: Randomize by Andy Weir
6) BOOK 1: Ark by Veronica Roth
I felt compelled to write a quick review here because people are ragging on this book. Andy Weir really delves deep into the science and technology - have you read The Martian?? If you read his biography as well, he was also a software developer for many years. This short story accents just that.
If you don't want the science/tech explained to you in great analogies, then move along, Andy Weir isn't for you...
This is a rather short story, which is fine for the intended purpose of this anthology (which is a great idea and very well executed in the stories I've read thus far.) Andy Weir's story explores a particular idea - that of the effect of Quantum Computing on Casinos and how someone might try to take advantage of it. I think it's a great idea and it really had my mind exploring other areas that might also be affected or influenced by this change.
If you go into the book looking for this level of involvement, you'll find an interesting story worth the short amount of time you spent. Don't expect deep character involvement. In many short stories I've read, it seems they focus on a specific character event that is life-changing. Perhaps that is what people are expecting here.
Enjoyment, in my experience, often is relative to expectation. Hopefully this short review will help set expectations in line with the piece delivered here. I liked it!
This is the first short story I have read in the Forward Collection. I see that it has a low rating compared to the other stories. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading all of the others.
I once again enjoyed the science of an Andy Weir's book, but not the characters. They weren't terribly one-dimensional like in the Martian, but they were still rather cliche. Some characters also appear in one scene, get a description, and then never shop up again. I mean, the plot is constructed in a way that they're not needed anymore, but it bugged me a bit because I like character-driven fiction. I still enjoyed the book, however, because of the clever ways the author incorporates quantum computing. Everything that happens with the tech makes sense and is explained in a simple, easy to understand fashion. Sure, the choices made by some of the characters are awfully convenient for the plot (and might not make as much sense under scrutiny), but the whole story was fun and Janina Gavankar's reading was great.My reviews for the other Forward stories: Emergency Skin by [a: N.K. Jemisin 2917917 N.K. Jemisin https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1438215930p2/2917917.jpg] ★★★★★Summer Frost by [a: Blake Crouch 442240 Blake Crouch https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1479398727p2/442240.jpg] ★★★★★Ark by [a: Veronica Roth 4039811 Veronica Roth https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544540525p2/4039811.jpg] ★★★★☆You Have Arrived at Your Destination by [a: Amor Towles 4536964 Amor Towles https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1472937967p2/4536964.jpg] ★★★★☆The Last Conversation by [a: Paul Tremblay 648612 Paul Tremblay https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1415058580p2/648612.jpg] ★★★☆☆
My least favorite of the series, but still a solid story, could've been longer, but unnecessary to do so.