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Air bubble in dice-affecting rolls?
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<blockquote data-quote="Surgoshan" data-source="post: 4631193" data-attributes="member: 61205"><p>1) I agree that the effect will be minor. However, I roll my d20 a couple dozen times a game. When you go through the weeks, through the campaign, it adds up.</p><p></p><p>2) I disagree that the average will be the same. You're assuming that the irregularities are regular. That is, that the die has been flattened so that it's thinner in one direction than the other. If this were true then you'd be right; the average would be the same. The die would show a marked preference for two faces, say 9 and 12. However, that's not the case. The irregularities of the dice are random, so the center of gravity has in fact shifted. The interaction between the shape of the die and the center of gravity will be somewhat complex, but the end result will be a marked preference for a certain face, or a collection of faces around a certain point on the face of the die.</p><p></p><p>The end result is that the average will <em>not</em> be the same, and that certain rolls will be favored over others.</p><p></p><p>For example, let's say that a die is formed so that the it's narrower 8-13 than it is 2-19. By your assumption, the die would land on 8 or 13 more often than anything else (and, frankly, that'd still be pretty <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />). However, in reality the center of gravity will be randomly shifted so that either 8 or 13 will be preferred. And we know that that preference will show because the rounding of the edges means that the die will roll further and thus be more free to find its optimax* solution. The irregularity of the die and its rounded edges add up to an unpleasant combination; its preferred face will show quite strongly.</p><p></p><p>Do air bubbles affect rolls? Yes. Even more strongly than you might think. Air has an incredibly low density; the center of gravity of a die with a bubble will be radically shifted and the face closest to the bubble will be favored.</p><p></p><p>* Optimax in the sense that nature seeks the minimum potential energy.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Surgoshan, post: 4631193, member: 61205"] 1) I agree that the effect will be minor. However, I roll my d20 a couple dozen times a game. When you go through the weeks, through the campaign, it adds up. 2) I disagree that the average will be the same. You're assuming that the irregularities are regular. That is, that the die has been flattened so that it's thinner in one direction than the other. If this were true then you'd be right; the average would be the same. The die would show a marked preference for two faces, say 9 and 12. However, that's not the case. The irregularities of the dice are random, so the center of gravity has in fact shifted. The interaction between the shape of the die and the center of gravity will be somewhat complex, but the end result will be a marked preference for a certain face, or a collection of faces around a certain point on the face of the die. The end result is that the average will [i]not[/i] be the same, and that certain rolls will be favored over others. For example, let's say that a die is formed so that the it's narrower 8-13 than it is 2-19. By your assumption, the die would land on 8 or 13 more often than anything else (and, frankly, that'd still be pretty :):):):):):)). However, in reality the center of gravity will be randomly shifted so that either 8 or 13 will be preferred. And we know that that preference will show because the rounding of the edges means that the die will roll further and thus be more free to find its optimax* solution. The irregularity of the die and its rounded edges add up to an unpleasant combination; its preferred face will show quite strongly. Do air bubbles affect rolls? Yes. Even more strongly than you might think. Air has an incredibly low density; the center of gravity of a die with a bubble will be radically shifted and the face closest to the bubble will be favored. * Optimax in the sense that nature seeks the minimum potential energy. [/QUOTE]
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