Superboy No. 154 Cover – Blackout for Superboy

Sometimes I am convinced that folks at DC Comics in the 1960s came up with covers like this and worked backward to create the most absurd story they could. The synopsis for this issue from DC Fandom goes like this,

Superboy rescues a fisherman who places a second adhesive emblem on top of Superboy’s chest. The emblem contains a transmitter which allows the fisherman to fire a heat ray from long range that makes Superboy think his heat vision is out of control. Superboy dons a pair of lead glasses and summons Krypto to lead him without sight. Though his crime fighting abilities are hampered, Krypto’s assistance allows him to continue. Dr. Dento, the fisherman, then tries to eliminate Krypto with synethetic Red Kryptonite. Superboy removes the lead glasses to help Krypto and learns that his eyesight is normal. Krypto discover the emblem transmitter which leads them to Dr. Dento, who is then taken into custody.

Superboy No. 154 - Blackout for Superboy
Superboy No. 154 – Blackout for Superboy

Von Neumann on Random Number Generators

Any one who considers arithmetical methods of producing random digits is, of course, in a state of sin. For, as has been pointed out several times, there is no such thing as a random number — there are only methods to produce random numbers, and a strict arithmetic procedure of course is not such a method.

-John von Neumann, Monte Carlo Method, 1951.