The article discusses the theoretical exploration of 'cryptos', referring to individuals transformed by a virus into 'Jokers' or 'Aces' with unique, largely unobserved abilities. Authors Tregillis and Martin propose a model for understanding these transformations based on the severity of changes and mixing angles that classify individuals. They set three rules about the existence of these cryptos and suggest a more complex framework for analyzing outcomes. Tregillis emphasizes that this model is complex and not suitable for beginners but could inspire advanced students in honors seminars to tackle open-ended research.
They also suggest the existence of "cryptos": Jokers and Aces with mutations that are largely unobservable, such as producing ultraviolet racing stripes on someone's heart or imbuing "a resident of Iowa with the power of line-of-sight telepathic communication with narwhals. The first individual would be unaware of their Jokerism; the second would be an Ace but never known it."
The resulting proposed model assumes two apparently random variables: severity of the transformation-i.e., how much the virus changes a person, either in the severity of a Joker's deformation or the potency of an Ace's superpower-and a mixing angle to address the existence of Joker-Aces.
We translated the abstract problem of Wild Card viral outcomes into a simple, concrete dynamical system. The time-averaged behavior of this system generates the statistical distribution of outcomes," said Tregillis.
Tregillis acknowledges that this might not be a good exercise for the beginning physics student, given that it involves multiple steps and covers many concepts that younger students might not fully comprehend.
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