# Tag Archives: binary

## Update on my “super powers”

So yes, I did actually go see a doctor this afternoon to see if my blurry-vision incident might be something serious. It wasn’t a TIA or a stroke, because apparently a TIA lasts for 30 minutes or so and includes all the symptoms of a stroke — slurred speech, immobility on one side of the body, and so on. This only lasted a few seconds and was just blurry vision. In fact nobody knows what might have caused that to happen; possibly a small blood clot or just a muscle spasm in my eye.

But I just wanted everyone to know I did get it checked out. Especially virusdoc, whose comment got me to Google “TIA” which then put the fear of God into me and then got me to the ER — where I ended up in room 14, although I was really hoping for room 16 just to make the whole powers-of-2 thing complete.

Filed under Personal

## (Super-)Powers of 2

Driving in to work this morning, I suddenly felt my vision go blurry to the point where I literally couldn’t see anything. Fortunately, I was able to pull off the road into the parking lot of a small office building before causing an accident. After I stopped and waited for the blurriness to subside, the first thing I saw was the mailbox for the office building, which had a street number of: 2048. Rather than wonder what the crap was wrong with my eyesight, or frantically try to decide whether to go see a doctor on the spot, instead the first thing I thought was hey: That’s $2^{11}$

Then, after making it to work with no more blurry vision attacks, I walked up to my office — the same office I have been entering and exiting since summer 2001 — and looked at the office number and saw it: room 128. Of course, I’ve never had a problem remembering my office number But for the first time in seven years, I noticed, hey: that’s $2^{7}$

So, maybe the blurry vision attack was me suddenly gaining the superhero power of being able to recognize powers of 2 with lightning quickness. If so, I somehow don’t see the Justice League of America saving me a seat anytime soon.