Quantum Osaka
By Topaz Talyn
Disclaimer: I do not own Azumanga Daioh or any related characters
It was an average day in Yukari's class. Yomi, Tomo, and Chiyo were all gathered around a desk discussing something when suddenly Osaka approached them with a determined look on her face.
"I heard something funny over the weekend." Said Osaka "But I got a problem."
"What's your problem?" asked Chiyo
"I didn't hear the end so I was hoping that you guys could help me figure it out."
"Sure we can! You've got three geniuses on your side Osaka!" screamed Tomo causing Yomi and Chiyo to stare at her.
"Okay here it goes. You put a cat in a sealed container."
In the back of the room Sakaki suddenly began paying attention.
"And in the container is a canister of poison gas."
Sakaki blanched.
"After one hour there's a fifty percent chance that the gas has been released" Osaka continued
"Why is that?" asked Yomi. Osaka paused for a moment
"I forget," Osaka sighed then continued, "So the question is, if you don't open the box, is the cat alive or dead?" The three girls just stared at Osaka
"Osaka, there's no way to answer that." Replied Chiyo
"Where did you hear this anyway?" asked Yomi
"I KNOW!" Tomo yelled. Everyone once again stared at her
"If it's not dead then it's alive and if it's not alive then it's dead so the answer is, the cat is both dead and alive!" Everyone continued staring at Tomo
"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard!" screamed Yomi.
At that point Yukari entered and everyone went back to thinking about other things. Everyone except one person.
"It's not dead. It's not dead. It's not dead." Chanted Sakaki in the back of the room now on the verge of tears.
Author's Note: I know I oversimplified the concept but keep in mind that none of the characters completely grasp it either. And if you don't know, this is the Schrödinger's Cat experiment.