July 09, 2009

Schrodinger's Box Score

Nats Hat.jpg

I mentioned t'other day the fact that it often seems the Nats go to pieces just after I turn on the tee vee, usually somewhere in the middle innings.

This got me pondering.....Is my observation indeed the equivalent of peeking into the box to see if the cat is dead or alive? If so, then so long as I don't turn on the tee vee, the quantum mixture of states (i.e., winning and losing) remains and thus also the possibility that the Nats won't go to pieces.

So I watched the Nats get swept by the Rockies last evening. The difference here was that it was a delayed broadcast of an afternoon game. Sure enough, as soon as I turned it on in the 5th Inning - Bang! This made me wonder: Even though the game was over and done, could it still be argued that without my observation there still was no quantum resolution? Could this state of mixed win and loss exist both forward and backward across time? Had I not turned on the tee vee, could the Nats still have ended up with a favorable resolution, even though they'd already lost?

(Hey, when your team's only won 24 games through July 8, you start reaching for just about anything.)

Posted by Robert at July 9, 2009 08:35 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Send this theory to the Nats. Maybe they'll pay you to not watch, thus increasing their odds of winning.
Heck, maybe you could blackmail the Phillies by threatening to become their fan.

Posted by: rbj at July 9, 2009 09:59 AM

I have the same effect on the Dolphins. On more than one occasion my sons have thrown me out of the room because I was "jinxing 'em".

Posted by: Mike at July 9, 2009 11:20 AM

I think you need to consult the Cubs (and Cubs fans) on the whole "don't do anything different..."

It could just be that the Nats routinely fall apart in the middle innings whether or not you watch, and when you watch you tune in just before they run out of steam....

"Wait until next year." Or that's what Cubs fans say.

Posted by: Zendo Deb at July 9, 2009 12:13 PM