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.

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The Fastest Way To Find Waldo

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