Seedwick

When the lab tests a solitaire rule, it doesn't shuffle cards by hand. It asks the computer to shuffle. But a computer can't really shuffle randomly the way hands do. Instead, it starts from a number called a seed, and follows a long recipe to mix the cards. Start from the same seed, follow the same recipe, and you get the same shuffle, card for card, every single time.

Seedwick learned how important that was the day a young weasel named Quill didn't believe him.

Seedwick had run a careful test and found that one rule won a few more deals than another. He was pleased. But Quill crossed his arms.

"I don't believe you," Quill said. "Maybe you got lucky deals. Maybe you made a mistake. Maybe you just want your rule to win."

A few animals gasped. It was a rude thing to say. Seedwick's whiskers trembled for a second, and his cheeks went warm. It doesn't feel good when someone doubts you.

But Seedwick took a breath, and then he did something much better than arguing. He wrote a number on a slip of paper and handed it to Quill.

"This is my seed," he said. "Type it into the lab. It will build exactly the same deals I used, in exactly the same order. Then run the two rules yourself. You don't have to believe me. You can check."

Quill hesitated. Then, a little grumpily, he typed in the seed. The lab shuffled, and out came the same deals Seedwick had tested, down to the last card. Quill ran both rules. The solver played every game.

The results came back identical to Seedwick's. Same wins. Same losses. Same not sure yets.

Quill uncrossed his arms slowly. "Oh," he said. "You were right. And... I didn't have to take your word for it."

"That's the whole point," said Seedwick, and now he was smiling. "A result nobody can check is just a story. A result anyone can rebuild from a seed is something you can trust, even if you don't trust me."

Quill looked at the slip of paper for a while. "Can I keep this?" he asked. "I want to try a third rule on the same deals."