Science shows why fans don't have to 'wait until next year'The Friday after the Red Sox clinched the World Series by beating the St. Louis Cardinals in a four-game sweep, the MIT dome was mysteriously transformed into a baseball with red stitching and a Red Sox logo. That same day, Oct. 29, one Ben Bitdiddle circulated a tongue-in-cheek scientific paper via the Internet providing a mathematical explanation for the Red Sox victory, which marked the end of the Curse of the Bambino. The paper "1918-2004: A Hybrid-'Sigh' Analysis of Reversing the Curse" was attributed to students in the so-called MIT Department of Legends and Hexes in Room 6-666. The irrefutable mathematical proof follows. "The Boston Red Sox last won the world championship of baseball, the World Series, in 1918. In 1920 they sold George Herman Ruth, a.k.a. 'Babe Ruth,' a.k.a. 'The Bambino' to the New York Yankees for $100,000. "Since that time the Red Sox have been unsuccessful at clinching a world championship title. The Yankees however proceeded to write the greatest success story in baseball history. This ironic twist of fate has come to be known as the Curse of the Bambino, which has prevented Red Sox victory for 86 years, until 2004. "Is this a coincidence? The researchers here at the Department of Legends and Hexes believe that it is not. We have found conclusive numerical evidence that, in fact, the curse did exist, and that its influence has expired. This brings in a new era of Red Sox domination and Yankee demise. "The Red Sox last won the World Series in 1918, they were last in the World Series in 1986. There are 86 years between 1918 and 2004. There are 18 years between 1986 and 2004. "As is such with phenomenon of the paranormal, one can clearly see that this cross-checking analysis is indisputable proof that the 86-18 hybrid cancellation theorem holds. Go Sox." A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on November 3, 2004 (download PDF). |
Photo / Donna Coveney
The MIT dome wore its own festive attire for the Red Sox World Series celebration parade Oct. 30. As the sun rose over the dome Oct. 29, two days after the Sox clinched the victory in Game Four, it revealed that the dome had been transformed into a baseball bearing a Red Sox logo. The fabric logo remained until after the parade, when Facilities workers took it down. The Facilities workers in the photo claimed innocence.
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Photo / Donna Coveney
MIT had its own baseball 'cap' for a short time.
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CONTACTDenise Brehm RELATEDMIT fans get assist in Red Sox victory - Boston went a little baseball crazy last week and the MIT community went right along with it as New England rooted the Red Sox on to the team's first World Series victory in 86 years. 11/3/2004 Take me out to the boardroom ��������������������������� - A management school like MIT Sloan wouldn't think of using an organization that takes 86 years to achieve its ultimate goal as a positive teaching lesson. But Boston's historic World Series victory is a case study of business and managerial success. 11/3/2004 Green lights for Red Sox - Inhabitants of MIT's Green Building sent a salute across the Charles River to the Red Sox at Fenway Park during the first two World Series games on Saturday and Sunday. 10/26/2004 More: Hacks and humor |
