John von Neumann, "Various techniques used in connection with random digits" by John von Neumann in Monte Carlo Method (1951), ed. A.S. Householder, G.E. Forsythe, and H.H. Germond.
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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 on Arithmetic
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "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." in the context of "John von Neumann, "Various techniques used in connection with random digits" by John von Neumann in Monte Carlo Method (1951), ed. A.S. Householder, G.E. Forsythe, and H.H. Germond." to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Arithmetic" (Quotes: Quotes listed alphabetically by author, : A large part of the quotes originates from Memorabilia mathematica or, The philomath's quotation-book by Robert Edouard Moritz. Published 1914., M-N)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About John von Neumann
John von Neumann (28 December 1903 – 8 February 1957) was a Hungarian-American-Jewish mathematician, physicist, inventor, computer scientist, and polymath. He made major contributions to a number of fields, including mathematics (foundations of mathematics, functional analysis, ergodic theory, geometry, set theory, topology, and numerical analysis), physics (quantum mechanics, hydrodynamics and quantum statistical mechanics), economics (game theory), computing (Von Neumann architecture, linear programming, self-replicating machines, stochastic computing), and statistics.
About John von Neumann
John von Neumann (28 December 1903 – 8 February 1957) was a Hungarian-American-Jewish mathematician, physicist, inventor, computer scientist, and polymath. He made major contributions to a number of fields, including mathematics (foundations of mathematics, functional analysis, ergodic theory, geometry, set theory, topology, and numerical analysis), physics (quantum mechanics, hydrodynamics and quantum statistical mechanics), economics (game theory), computing (Von Neumann architecture, linear programming, self-replicating machines, stochastic computing), and statistics.
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