J
jackzhuo
Guest
I built this because I wanted a digital I Ching that honors the original math, rather than just Math.random().
Technical detail for the curious:
The simulation follows the traditional Yarrow Stalk algorithm (Da Yan). The core of this algorithm relies on modulo-4 arithmetic on the stalks remaining after a random split.
To make it physically realistic, I used a Box-Muller transform to simulate the user splitting the stalks with a Gaussian distribution (since humans naturally tend to split near the middle), rather than a uniform random split.
I was worried this 'human bias' might skew the modulo probabilities, so I ran a 1-million-run Monte Carlo simulation to verify.
The Result: The remainders [0,1,2,3] still emerged with a near-perfect 25% distribution (deviation < 0.05%).
So, the app simulates the physics of human imperfection while preserving the mathematical perfection of the probability distribution (where Old Yin is 1/16).
Stack: Next.js + Tailwind css
Happy to answer any questions about the math or the hexagrams!
Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46261942
Points: 50
# Comments: 32
Technical detail for the curious:
The simulation follows the traditional Yarrow Stalk algorithm (Da Yan). The core of this algorithm relies on modulo-4 arithmetic on the stalks remaining after a random split.
To make it physically realistic, I used a Box-Muller transform to simulate the user splitting the stalks with a Gaussian distribution (since humans naturally tend to split near the middle), rather than a uniform random split.
I was worried this 'human bias' might skew the modulo probabilities, so I ran a 1-million-run Monte Carlo simulation to verify.
The Result: The remainders [0,1,2,3] still emerged with a near-perfect 25% distribution (deviation < 0.05%).
So, the app simulates the physics of human imperfection while preserving the mathematical perfection of the probability distribution (where Old Yin is 1/16).
Stack: Next.js + Tailwind css
Happy to answer any questions about the math or the hexagrams!
Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46261942
Points: 50
# Comments: 32