Osler's Razor

Today we started the jury selection exercises. One special feature we had this year was a group of second-quarter students who had been killed, stuffed, and then laminated so as to appear life-like (somewhat) as they were placed in the seated position in the jury box. Nothing against them... they were just like many real jurors, hestitant to draw any attention to themselves and answer questions.

This problem has, in the past, led to moments of true greatness. My personal favorite occurred, I believe, in about 2002. A group of students in the role of jurors were being completely unresponsive to a series of questions regarding their drug use. First the attorney asked if any of them had ever used cocaine. No responses. Then he asked if any of them had ever used marijuana. Again, no movement. Then he asked if any of them had ever seen any illegal drugs of any kind, and again they had no response whatsoever. Finally, desperate for an interaction, he moved on to the improper use of legal substances:

"What about stuff that you can use that isn't really illegal? Like, uh... huffing paint? Anyone ever huff paint? [silence] You just open up a can of paint and put your head in there and breathe really deeply... [becomes nostalgic] at first, you just feel a little dizzy, but then it kind of hits you, and it's like 'whoooooo!' you are flyin'! And all you really need is a can of paint..."

At this point, he didn't ask a question, he just kind of stared into the middle distance, either reminiscing about good times or mortified at what he had just said. It was hard to tell.