Stan Green

David I arrived at your website (Understanding Uncertainty) after listening to your interview with Kim Al-Khalili on the recent Radio 4, ‘Life Scientific’, programme. I noted your request for co-incidences, which you are collecting for research at Cambridge University. The following might be of interest to you: - I have been experiencing recurring (often daily) co-incidences since my late teens (I am now 64 years old). These often alarm and unsettle me, as they seem to trigger other strange co-incidences and phenomena. My family and fiends have been witness to this over the years, to such an extent, they have become quite blasé and dismissive of the pure boredom of having it pointed out to them yet again. I have this proclivity for looking at a clock for no reason (not wanting to know the time) where the hands (hour and minute) are exactly upon each other and sometimes, for a pure instant, the second hand also coincides. This can happen up to half a dozen times a day. My eye seems to be uncontrollably drawn towards the clock, a very strange feeling. Clearly this happens in my home more often, as I am in close association with a number of clocks. But strangely it happens when I enter rooms that I have never occupied before, thus not knowing the location of any clocks. This applies to outdoor clocks also, in places I have never attended before. But my eye seems to be instantly drawn towards the clock face. Even when watching television scenes, there will be a clock on the wall in the background, with the hands upon each other, mostly with recorded programme, but also those that are live. Now for the co-incidences (which, I inform, happen more often when my mind is in a state of ‘agitation’) that occur because of this co-incidence and as an example I will relate an incidence that happened when I was in my thirties: - I was at a Nine Pin bowling ally, at a local public house, with my second wife and two friends, who were aware of my proclivities. I was sitting next to Louise and noticed the hands on her watch were on top of each other at about twenty to eight. I pointed this out to her as further evidence and her boyfriend Patrick also, who was sitting on the other side of her. Patrick looked at his watch and confirmed the time. Lesley was bowling a ball at the time. Some time later (at least an hour), my eye alighted on Louise’s watch again. I was astounded to see that the hands were on top of each other, not at quarter to nine, but still at twenty to eight. At this point everyone became perplexed and we discussed what had happened. We came to the only conclusion that Louise’s watch had stopped at the instant I looked at it the first time. Or her watch had stopped twelve hours earlier and she had not looked at it since, an ever more incredible co-incidence. Freaky. I have much more anecdotal evidence of other freaky occurrences, if I can remember them. Given this phenomenon, I started investigating the chances of this happening, which in 24 hours can only be 288 (24 x 12) times. This then begged a question. At, say quarter past three, with all three hands exactly (centre line) covering each other, what precisely is the ‘exact’ time, surely three fifteen and fifteen seconds and a bit (the second hand has travelled forward from the hour, a quarter of the clock face) - all far beyond my mathematical capabilities. The hands can only be exactly on top of each other, giving the exact time, at twelve midnight and midday, or can the exact time be calculated for the 144 times it happens in the 12 hours. I then concluded that a clock that is stopped is more accurate than the best atomic clock that loses one second over 100,000 years, for the later will never be correct, but the stopped clock will be exactly right twice a day. I wonder if you have come across this phenomenon, happening to other people. If not I hope it will intrigue you sufficiently to investigate, for a conclusion might put me out of my ’misery’ (shudders every time it happens). Can you please confirm you have received this missive. Regards Stan Green