Bifalgorithm post

Ask a computer for a random number. It can't really make one, so it cheats. It takes a seed and runs it through a formula. Outcomes a string of numbers that look totally random. Feed it the same seed again and the same numbers come back. So it was never random. It was predictable all along. Same seed in, same numbers out. That's why it's called pseudo-random. Same numbers every time is great for games, but secrets need real, unpredictable noise.

Ask a computer for a random number. It can't really make one, so it cheats. It takes a seed and runs it through a formula. Outcomes a string of numbers that lo…

Ideas in this flowchart

  • Random Number Generation
  • Pseudo-Random Process
  • Seed Input
  • Formula Application
  • Output Numbers
  • Predictability
  • Same Seed, Same Output
  • Pseudo-Randomness
  • Use Cases
  • Games
  • Need for True Randomness
  • Secrets and Security
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Ask a computer for a random number. It can't really make one, so it cheats. It takes a seed and runs it through a formula. Outcomes a string of numbers that look totally random. Feed it the same seed again and the same numbers come back. So it was never random. It was predictable all along. Same seed in, same numbers out. That's why it's called pseudo-random. Same numbers every time is great for games, but secrets need real, unpredictable noise.

C
Charlotte Montgomery
9w

"Ask a computer for a random number. It can't really make one, so it cheats"

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