The Fastest Way To Find Waldo

less than 1m read

·Nov 10, 2024

Here's how to become scary good at finding Waldo.

In 2015, data scientist Randall Olssen used all 68 of Waldo's hiding spots in the seven primary books to build this kernel density estimate. So where's Waldo really? He's here!

Now, there are more ways to connect these 68 dots than there are atoms in the observable universe, and that makes it very hard for us to find the perfect path for our eyes to trace across each page to find Waldo the fastest.

Olsen estimates it would take the 10 largest supercomputers on Earth more than 10 unvigentian times longer than the universe has existed to find the perfect solution. So instead, he used a genetic algorithm to find a nearly perfect solution.

This is how you start: on the left at the top of the bottom third, scan across for a bit and then jump up to the bottom of the top third. Move about halfway into the right page and then dive down.

If Waldo isn't there, check the very middle or the edges. Using this method, I've been able to find Waldo in an average of like 10 seconds per page. It's incredible! And guess what? Waldo has never once found me.

Tsunamis 101 | National Geographic

Free Solo 360 | National Geographic

View All

What Does Colonizing Mars Look Like? | MARS

What will life be like in a early Mars colony? ROGER LAUNIUS: Let’s take some stages in terms of how we might do things on Mars. There is exploration, somebody going out and coming back. The next stage would be some sort of research station. We will most…

Interpreting behavior of _ from graph of _'=ÃÂ | AP Calculus AB | Khan Academy

Let g of x be equal to the definite integral from 0 to x of f of t dt. What is an appropriate calculus-based justification for the fact that g is concave up on the open interval from 5 to 10? So, concave up! Before I even think about what it means to be …

15 Things Everyone Wants But Money Can’t Buy

You know, there are things money can’t buy. You know it, but you forget it. You forget that fundamentally, you’re on the same level as the richest people in the world. You have to appreciate these things now, so that when your wealth grows, your motivatio…

Worked example: Determining an empirical formula from combustion data | AP Chemistry | Khan Academy

We are told that a sample of a compound containing only carbon and hydrogen atoms is completely combusted, producing 5.65 grams of carbon dioxide and 3.47 grams of H2O, or water. What is the empirical formula of the compound? So pause this video and see i…

How to read a document | The historian's toolkit | US History | Khan Academy

Hello David, hello Kim. So today what we’re doing is taking a look at this speech by one of my favorite Presidents, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which he gave at his inauguration in 1933. I think what’s really important about looking at a speech like this i…

Coexisting With the Lions of Botswana | National Geographic

[Music] Lions are an iconic species of Africa, and to have the opportunity to work in a wild place like this and to actually be able to make a difference, it’s hard to describe how important it is to me. In northern Botswana, lions move out of the delta …

The Fastest Way To Find Waldo

More Articles