Monday, April 24, 2006



Cats in boxes

In 1935, Erwin Schrodinger proposed the now infamous thought-experiment known as Schrodinger's cat. A cat is placed in a sealed box with some way of killing it attached to a quantum process with a 50% chance of triggering it. The cat is then theoretically neither alive nor dead, but in some indeterminate 50 - 50 quantum state which will only be determined when the box is opened and the wave function collapsed. And ever since, cats have been afraid to get into sealed boxes.

What I can't understand is why my cats are afraid of getting into their cat cages to go to the vet. They have a grill door on them, and holes in the side. They can see out, and I can see in. Surely they understand that that means there's no danger of being Schrodingered?

10 comments:

Do you talk about going to the vet in their presence? Cats fully understand English, you know - they just choose not to speak it..

Posted by Rich : 4/24/2006 02:56:00 PM

I'm careful to speak only of the "V-word". But they can probably glork that from context.

Posted by Idiot/Savant : 4/24/2006 03:30:00 PM

The aren't scared. They are simply uninterested in having their valuable sleeping time interrupted by whatever trivial cage-related activity you have presumptiously taken it upon yourself to plan for them. At least if they are normal cats that is so.

Posted by Amanda : 4/24/2006 03:54:00 PM

*falls over giggling*

This is evidence that you need a personal blog as well, you know. :P

Posted by Anonymous : 4/24/2006 06:07:00 PM

Probably they realise that one day you'll realise you're a greenie, and that will be their last trip in the box. Why take the chance?

Moz

Posted by Anonymous : 4/24/2006 08:41:00 PM

you realise that blogging about your cat puts you on the same level as Murray at silent running.

Posted by sagenz : 4/25/2006 12:48:00 AM

Sage: it's the day between the weekned and Anzac day - practically a weekend in other words. Nobody expects anything serious, do they?

Posted by Idiot/Savant : 4/25/2006 01:09:00 AM

Would you let some mad bastard stuff you in a cage?

Also, let's not forget that your cat has clearly established a household heirarchy in which it bleats and you leap to open the door, provide food, put more wood on the fire etc. For you to then try and stuff him in a box is nothing less than a revolutionary uprising of the proletariat as far as he's concerned - you bet he's not happy. Bloody world's turning upside down.

Posted by Psycho Milt : 4/25/2006 09:01:00 AM

Because they are cats , that is they do their business in other peoples gardens and if they are in a box they won't be able to.
Sadly I can never get near to my neighbours cats (8-10 at last census) to get them into a box.

Posted by Anonymous : 4/25/2006 11:01:00 PM

Could I note that the feline world regards v*t as an obscenity, given its connotations of pain,
thermometers stuck in unmentionable
places etc. While I welcome the toms getting their ghoolies cut off angle of it, I do have my objections.

And incidentally, why hasn't the animal rights movement protested Schrodinger and his cat abuse?

HRH Nut
(Inky Black
Empress of
Vogeltown and
Outlying Bits of
Wellington. With
Particular Interests
in Fish Canneries...)

Posted by Anonymous : 4/29/2006 11:10:00 AM