The Numbers/Theories

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Red Herring

The numbers are actually be the biggest red herring in the show's history. They are merely the code for the button and are inserted randomly by producers to keep the fans guessing.

Transmission

  • The numbers may be a "safe code" sent via the underwater cable (which, via podcasts, will have quite a special importance, lending potential credence). This safe code may let the DHARMA network off the island know that everything is ok, and to procede with the Periodic Resupply Drop (DL/CC have said they will also be visiting this in future episodes). When the Swan imploded, the numbers ceased being transmitted, and the listening station was alerted to this. Naomi's team (via DHARMA) was sent to investigate, ergo the importance of the numbers (see Enter 77). This would also imply that Penny is part of DHARMA. (We know that Widmore and Hanso are connected, so even this part is not wholly implausible).
    The special importance turned out to be their leading to the Looking Glass.

Location

  • They may be coordinates
    • The numbers specify a location somewhere between Australia and Los Angeles if interpreted as Geographic coordinates - there seems to be a real island (Kosrae Island) near that location.
      • If you now go from 4.815 N 162.342 W a stright line heading along course which is 325°, you will nearly hit an island, part from Micronesia which is called Pingelap. Maybe thats the place Michael and Walt are meant to go to.
    • Latitude: 4° 8 Min. 15 Sec./Longitude: 16° 23 Min. 42 Sec. is about 150 miles West of Bangui in The Central African Republic... about 400 miles SE from the border to Nigeria
    • 4.815 N 162.342 W, shown on a map along with the air route mapping along the great circle route for SYD-LAX (which is the original flight-plan for Oceanic 815 map
    • 4.8151 S Lat., 174(Which is 180-6).2342 W Long. These coordinates lie in the Pacific Ocean, in a direct line between Sydney and Los Angeles
    • Coordinates 04 42 15N, 160 23 18W take you to an area just offshore of Washington Island between Australia and LA

Effects

  • When used for personal gain, they appear cursed.
  • According to one of the Exec. Producers, they may have no meaning whatsoever.
    • The numbers themselves are not significant. The people who use them are significant. People like Jack, Kate, Hurley and Sawyer have certain extrasensory powers (see Bea Klugh's List). In their hands, the numbers could appear significant when it is the people themselves who are influencing events. Walt was shown to have unusual powers. He would have been on Bea Klugh's list if she didn't have him already. Average people have no influence over the numbers.
  • The numbers are part of the Valenzetti equation, but that is only one of the many meanings they have. They have intrinsic, possibly sinister, magical and metaphysical properties that connect them specifically to the Island and bring people to it. The Valenzetti equation itself may even be completely false, but what is important is that belief in the numbers brought the DHARMA initiative to the island. The link between the numbers and the island is also why they were used as the code for the button, because they resonate uniquely with the electromagnetic anomaly. Their sinister nature also explains the effect they have on Hurley and Sam Toomey, at first helping them, but then bringing bad luck. With Hurley, this bad luck eventually brings him right to the island. The Others, who according to Mikhail Bakunin lived on the island long before the DHARMA Initiative, may have their own ideas about what the Numbers represent.
  • The Dharma Initiative was ultimately successful in slightly changing the numbers. The radio tower on the island (with its automated calculation and broadcast of the numbers) was replaced with the distress message to keep anyone on the outside from finding out as they should have. All the bad luck and other problems associated with the numbers are related to the universe course-correcting as a result of the numbers (and the the Valenzetti Equation) actually having changed.
    • The island may have been sent into the future when the hatch imploded. The numbers being broadcasted from the tower let the outside world know when the Valenzetti equation has been altered by events on the island.

Equations and Codes

  • Hold the ALT key in notepad/wordpad (font type must be "System") and type the numbers 4 8 15 16 23 42. Release ALT, and you will get the Greek symbol µ (Mu) which is the name of the lost continent Lemuria, which is similar to Atlantis.
    • It should be noted that only the last 8 digits (15 16 23 42) produce Mu (µ)- it doesn't matter what precedes them.
  • They may be related to the Valenzetti equation
    • According to information about the Equation, specific causes for the destruction of humanity were cited, and each subsection of DHARMA ostensibly worked at changing the relevant variable. The numbers may represent a timeframe or number of years/decades to destruction based on that variable. If so, the actual time to destruction would rely on a function of those numbers, since several of such "deadlines" would have already passed.
    • They are the current solutions/roots of the equation, and the purpose of the Dharma Initiative is to change these roots of the equation, as stated by Alvar Hanso. Since the solution to the equation is supposed to predict the end of mankind, then Hurley, Leonard, Danielle etc. espousing these numbers as 'cursed' are spreading these numbers around with a negative connotation, causing death & suffering through their belief in the fatal character of the numbers. When Hurley chooses hope over the 'curse' of the numbers & starts the car, he has effectively overcome the curse of the numbers, is changing the numbers of the valenzetti equation simply by choosing to ignore their power... IMHO this is the purpose of the island as it is now, get a bunch of people together (Flight 815 survivors) who unwittingly will overcome the despair accompanied with the numbers and to build a society based on hope, thus changing the numbers of the equation & eventually bringing about a better future for mankind.
    • The implication of changing the numbers isn't just that end of the world can be avoided. If the numbers can be changed even slightly, it opens the door not just to saving the world, but reengineering the world into a utopia. The discovery of the Valenzetti equation opened a "window" into the workings of fate. DHARMA's task was to find even the slightest weakness in any part of the equation as a springboard from which an all-out attack on the equation could be made.
  • Each of the Numbers represents one of the 6 stations. The number 4 represents the Swan because the alarm sounds when the Countdown Timer reaches 4 minutes. Also 108 is equally divisable by 4 as 108/4 = 27, though 27 is not equally divisable by 4.
    • Using a chart of trigrams
      • 4 is upper mountain and lower water.
      • 8 is upper water and lower earth.
      • 15 is upper earth and lower mountain.
      • 16 is upper thunder and lower earth.
      • 23 is upper mountain and lower earth.
      • 42 is upper wind and lower thunder.


Stations

  • The numbers were some sort of coded instructions that told a computer program to discharge the Swan Station generator. This can explain why the discharging is not automated or why the Losties couldn't just press "Execute" instead of typing in the numbers and then pushing the button.
  • According to the Pearl Orientation Video, they may only be arbitrary and only part of the experiment.
  • The hatch is producing some sort of evil weapon:
    • 4= Beryllium (Be) -- Powdered beryllium is extremely toxic!
    • 8= Oxygen (O) -- If carbon is the foundation of life, oxygen is the fuel
    • 15= Phosphorus (P) -- Phosphorus is all about fire
    • 16= Sulfur (S) -- Sulfur is the element of war and is one of three ingredients in gunpowder
    • 23= Vanadium (V) -- Vanadium as an impurity gives the green color to many pretty gemstones (Green flash)
    • 42= Molybdenum (Mo) -- The melting point of molybdenum is a good 1000C higher than steel and used as laser (!) applications.
      • If this is true could relate to hatches: Beryllium, the outside (quarantine signs on doors) Oxygen, the staff (medical centre) Phosphorus, the flame Sulfur, the arrow (both to do with war) Vanadium, the pearl (pearls and gems both valuable) and Molybdenum, the swan (strong and tough (like the concrete wall))
  • The numbers may be a nod to the real-world phenomenon of the numbers station
  • The numbers may reference field strength increases in the "anomaly." The four-minute warning alarm is the "last chance" warning to input the numbers and push the button. The implication is that the numbers may "activate" in reverse order. At 42 minutes past the button push, the first field jump occurs, then 23 minutes later the next, 16 minutes later the next, fifteen the next, eight the next. The alarm goes off - the level is getting too high. The final field jump, four, occurs four minutes later at a total of 108 minutes elapsed. The supporting evidence for this field-strength hypothesis is the readout in the listening station during the system failure - the notice is headed with the number 7418880, the product of the numbers and the "full strength" field discharge.
  • The DHARMA stations could be researching the numbers for the Valenzetti equation. One number could research a paticular field as in "Station 3 or The Swan could be studying #15, the third number in the equation order, 15 could possibly refer to Electromagnetism" and the rest for all the 6 research stations. station 1 = 4/ station 2 = 8/ station 3 = 15/ station 4 = 16/ station 5 = 23/ station 6 = 42. Take into account that The Flame is allegedly "station 4", it could've been a research facility in a science field, for example lets say it studied Meteorology for a while and then the research was moved to a newer facility, before it became a "communication facility" as claimed by Mikhail.

The Numbers Are Shifting Theory

Next time you are watching Lost, see how many times the number 7, and other numbers are used. Due to the implosion of the hatch, The Valenzetti Equation may of changed due to a huge factor disappearing, the electromagnetism. Since the numbers are changing, the luck is changing for the islanders and for the others, hence potential rescue, life (not death) and Hurley not having the curse.

  • The number 6 is used several times through out the show. Perhaps 8 will change to 6, like there were 8 survivors of the crash according to Jack, but only 6 were rescued.--Montand's Arm 22:32, 4 June 2008 (PDT)
  • When Hurley explains to his father that the numbers on the gauge were the lottery numbers, he will be shown that they weren't.


Mathematical

Valenzetti Equation

See also:Valenzetti Island (theory)

  • The Numbers could be the solution to the Valenzetti Equation, specifying either the remaining time left before the extinction of the human race or the date/time of humanity's demise. ie: 42 years, 8 months, 23 days, 4 hours, 16 minutes, 15 seconds, or 23 years, 42 days, 8 months, 4 days, 15 hours, and 16 minutes, or many other permutations of the Numbers. This is unlikely, however, for the following reason:
  • The DHARMA Initiative is experimenting with the equation to see if they can use it to change the future and/or extend human life.
    • This is strongly suggested by the Sri Lanka video, in which a man claiming to be Alvar Hanso states "That is the work to which you have committed yourselves. Change the core values of the Valenzetti Equation, and you will change the course of destiny."
    • The blast door map makes a reference to "Valenzetti-related research activity".
    • This could explain a lot of phenomenon on the Island: the polar bears, who ordinarily would perish in such an environment; accelerated healing; the button's ability to prevent electromagnetic build-up seemingly by doing nothing more than entering the Numbers; the Others (assuming they are connected with the DHARMA Initiative) regarding themselves as "good" people; and so on.
    • The Others may have successfully changed one of the core values by kidnapping Walt.
      • Ben (aka Henry Gale) says to Michael in the final episode of the second season "we got more than we bargained for when Walt joined us."
    • What would happen when the Numbers change, presuming the Swan station had a real effect on the study instead of or in addition to being a psychological experiment?
      • Will the Numbers the button-pusher enters change (ie, space-time continuum is preserved and so the "new reality" is the changed set of numbers)? Will the recipient computer somehow sense this? Does, then, the recipient device exist "outside" the space/time continuum?
      • Will the reaction to the Numbers change? IE, will the same numbers no longer reset the countdown, requiring use of the Failsafe?
      • However the Numbers change, will the researchers be able to determine if it is for the better or for the worse?
  • In the Sri Lanka Video, Alvar Hanso made it clear that the Valenzetti Equation was developed in 1962. Obviously any prediction would have to be after this date.
    • Interestingly, the crash occurred 42 years after this.
  • The Numbers represent a value in the Valenzetti Equation corresponding to different ways of human distinction as mentioned in the Sri Lanka video.

e.g. 4 nuclear fire
8 chemical
15 biological warfare
16 conventional warfare
23 pandemic
42 over-population

The goal to reach a mortality of 30% in a village also mentioned in the Sri Lanka video is an effort to change the value 23 to 30 for pandemic.

  • If the Valenzetti Equation was developed around 1962 (following the Cuban Missile Crisis), wich was before Dharma came to the Island, the core values MUST have been changed by the Incident. If th equation really predicts "Dooms Day", a button pushing protocol to save the world every 108 minutes would have to change it. The Numbers may also have changed after the Fail Safe.

Anti-Valenzetti

This whole equation story is a bit weak. Please have in mind that the Sri Lanka video may be fake or explaining some cover up. If the Numbers are some factors in an equation they should be an ordered set, in other words each number should correspond to a particular value in the equation. Now what we see is that the Numbers are in sorted order - it is extremely unlikely that an equation of such great complexity to have factor ordering matching the sorted sequence. The second thing is that the Numbers are small integers, which is nearly impossible for a real-world (physical) equation.

There has to be some logical explanation why the Numbers bring bad luck, and why exactly Hurley crashed on the Island. The only possible reason could be that the Numbers trigger some "mental skills" in the people who use them. Once you use the Numbers a certain organization can track you and organize your transportation to the Island. In case the Others are in possession of mind-control technologies there are many possible scenarios how they could organize this. They might even be able to make Desmond follow Kelvin outside the Hatch and cause the system failure to bring the plane down or make the pilot to fly the plane to the Island.

Now thinking about why the Numbers could be in sorted order - may be they show the magnetic peaks of the geological magnet in the Swan. The last number is 42, the number of years between start of the experiment and the crash. There is no next number because the magnet has been destroyed. Possibly this magnet protected the world from something and now it's gone. Walt warned Locke not to open the Hatch, which suggests that something bad will happen if Locke open that hatch (no more magnet).

Gematria

The Bible

The Numbers could refer to Psalms from the King James Bible.

  • Psalm 4: An Evening Prayer of Trust in God
  • Psalm 8: God's Glory & Man's Honor
  • Psalm 15: Inhabitants of God's Holy Hill
  • Psalm 16: A Goodly Heritage
  • Psalm 23: The Lord is My Shepherd
  • Psalm 42: Thirsting for God
  • Psalm 108: A Prayer for Help Against the Foe

This notion is also supported by what Eko said to Locke when giving him the Bible he'd found, "I believe what's inside there will be of great value to you". Although he was referring to the tape inside, it could also have been a nod from the show's writers, although using the Bible in the above way could be considered to be a form of numerology by Christians.

Although it has been debunked, the Purgatory by Dante indicates that each of the groups of repentants (all on different tiers, repenting each of the 7 Deadly Sins) sing/chant a different Psalm or story of the Bible. Each Psalm/story corresponds to the sin they are repenting, as in the Prideful chant Blessed are the poor in spirit, the Envious chant the story of Vinum Non Habent, where Mary is concerned with the poor not having wine, the Wrathful sing Agnus Dei (Lamb of God), which concerns mercy, etc.

See also:The Bible


Coordinates System

8:15 as Lat/Long

8 and 15 appears as the second and third numbers from the Numbers and in Oceanic Flight 815. If you input 8:15 for both Latitude and Longitude degrees (8 deg, 15 min, 00 sec) you wind up in the middle of Nigeria. Check it out here Interesting, as Mr. Eko is from Nigeria. Also from Lostpedia: "The coordinates 9.338 7.731 are located in central Nigeria, 93387731 = 9FFTR731 (on a phone keypad) (DI 9FFTR731 - the code on the Food packaging)"

The Island contains at least two things that might have come from Nigeria: the drug smugglers' plane filled with heroine, and the slaves in the Black Rock.

Alternative Coordinates

  • Is it possible that the Numbers are indeed coordinates, but not to a location on a map, more to a particular dimension in time and space?, as suggested in Walt's comic, Green Lantern and Flash Faster Friends. To talk about 6 dimensions we need to look at the Many Worlds Interpretation on Wikipedia, which states "This six-dimensional object can also be regarded as a quantum superposition of two "alternative histories" of the original system S, one in which "up" was observed and the other in which "down" was observed.", this would also seem to tie in with the ideas of portals and dimensions that are featured in Faster Friends 2.
  • It could also be the coordinates of a linear trajectory encoded by two points in three-dimensional space: e.g. (4,8,15), (16,23,42).

Other

See also: Constellations and the Numbers.

The Numbers as a Date

  • The exact moment is April 8th, 2015 16:23:42 (4/8/15 16h 23' 42")
  • Considering that the purpose of Valenzetti Equation was to predict the end of the world, the results of that equation, The Numbers, refers to an exactly moment in time, the moment when the world ends.
  • Actually, The objective of the DHARMA Initiative described in Sri Lanka Video was to do as much as possible to change this values, what means, to change the date of the end of the world.
  • The Flashes into the Future that appears in the last chapter of Season 3 "Through The Looking Glass" and continious in Season 4, would make possible to travel until 2015, or even watch this fatal last moment through Desmond mind.


Perception of the Numbers

It's possible that if the Island can control people's dreams (ie. Locke's plane dream and Charlie's dreams in "Fire + Water" then could it not be controlling the flashbacks also? ie. adding the Numbers into what they remember, and what we see on the screen? They may still have turned up, but not as often as we have seen, so Hurley still used them to win the lottery and heard them originally from Leonard.

If this is true, perhaps the numbers are the Constants that Daniel mentioned in "The Constant." First, let's theorize that the flashbacks aren't actually flashbacks, but time jumps, such as the ones Desmond was experiencing. In reality, all the characters would be experiencing these, which makes sense, as their plane did fly through that time membrane, if you will, around the island. If they did not have Constants, they would jump back in time over and over until they couldn't ever make it back. But, if the Island, or somebody, wanted them to stay on the island, they would have scattered the numbers through the timeline. The numbers are always present on the Island itself, so if the characters saw them in their "flashbacks," they would have a connection to the future, thereby keeping them there. This explains why it was so hard for Desmond to come back- because he had amnesia, and didn't remember the numbers. However, because he found the new Constant- Penelope- the connection was restored.

It's also possible that the Hanso Foundation or the DHARMA Initiative is controlling the dreams and flashbacks, and used Hurley to try and stop the Hatch from being opened (although they failed), possibly even inventing Leonard. If this is true, then Hurley may have not used the Numbers and may have not even won the lottery. This does not explain why he went to Australia, but again that may just be an implanted memory.



Fixing Humanity

  • The Others have recently displayed an ability to cure cancer, and the island has from the start been shown to have certain healing or regenerative abilities. The recent revelation that no women on the island can bring a child to term explains to an extent their deep interest in medical experimentation, however, it would appear that many of the Others (Ethan, Goodwin, Richard) come from medical backgrounds. As evidenced with Juliet and Jack, they are willing to go to great lengths to recruit doctors and surgeons. With these behaviours in mind, it is not impossible that the numbers have a medical explanation. A cure for cancer is obviously beneficial to humanity, and developing a method for those unable to have children to regain the ability is also a step towards improving Human physiology. The numbers may correspond to chromosomes which are being experimented on. Each chromosome has diseases related to the genes within it. The fourth, for instance, is associated with Parkinson’s, and bladder cancer among others. The 15th has connections to breast cancer. 23 is the number of chromosomes each person receives from each parent, and will assist in determining sex. Perhaps the original intention was to alter these chromosomes to create a medically superior Human, a possible explanation for the Island’s natives like Ben, who appear to be disease free. His own cancer, and the pregnancy problems could be side effects previously unknown. Despite Desmond's belief that the Vaccine does nothing, it's long term effects are yet to be seen. Also, the Sickness may be an adverse reaction to something involving the Other's continued medical experiments. Additionally, if a desire of the DHARMA Initiative was to alter part of the Valenzetti Equation, creating a Human immune to disease might go some way towards avoiding the extintion of mankind.



Numbers as phone number

The numbers could possibly be a contact phone number (481) 516-2342 which belongs to the Dharma Initiative or another secret organization yet to appear on the show. The phone number is currently not in use. The area code 481 is listed as a Geographic Relief Code in the US.

It could be a phone number in Poland: +48-1516-2342.

Numbers in mythology

I'm not always on Lostpedia, plus I am a french speaking - sorry if I make mistakes - but it seems no one wrote about a theory connecting numbers and mythology. Since it is mentionned by the Ausiello Report on July 21st 2007 that Cuse said : Penny is an important character to the overarching mythology of the show, I looked on Wikipedia to see the details about Penelope, wife of Odysseus/Ulysses. Besides being faithfull to her husband and waited for him, what stroke me is that she had 108 (which seems to be the addition of all the numbers) suitors. Well, I don't know exactly what this means, as I love lost but I am half way fanatic, but this would be kind of extraordinary if this was a coincidence, as Cuse and Lindelof and the team seem to be very attentive to little detail...




External links



Theories About Numbers v • t • e
4 8 15 16 23 42: The Numbers • 7418880 • 325
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