Special Containment Procedures: SCP-XXXX has no formal containment procedures. For inquiries regarding its containment, contact Dr. Mitchell Fish.
Description: SCP-XXXX is a branch of mathematics known as "error theory." While the exact nature of the field cannot be determined, evidence suggests it bears some relation to information theory, statistics, graph theory, and paranumerical algebra. Evidence of the existence and properties of SCP-XXXX is presumed to be scarce; however, what does and does not constitute such evidence is itself unknown, and must be individually verified by Dr. Fish.
SCP-XXXX, to date, has resisted all formal analysis from trained mathematicians. Analysis suggests that SCP-XXXX exhibits a layered antimemetic structure, dissuading most mathematicians from considering its relevant problems as belonging to a serious field of study. Those who are able to bypass this structure nonetheless suffer harmful psychological and neurological effects when exposed to unfiltered knowledge regarding SCP-XXXX, up to and including total brain death1.
These effects have chiefly been observed in individuals with at least a master's degree in any mathematical discipline, and are not known to have occurred in individuals without extensive mathematical knowledge. This was initially presumed to be due to the inability of laymen to grasp SCP-XXXX with the intellectual rigor necessary to trigger its effects; however, the discovery of Dr. Fish has led the Department of Mathematics to question this hypothesis.
Dr. Mitchell Fish2 is the sole individual known to the Foundation capable of successfully studying SCP-XXXX. Dr. Fish exhibits no observable anomalous properties; it is hypothesized that he is only capable of understanding SCP-XXXX due to a relatively rare combination of mathematical ineptitude and delusions of grandeur.
Addendum XXXX-1: Error Theory Research
| SUBJECT | EXCERPT FROM DR. FISH | RESULT |
|---|---|---|
| Non-formatted cell | Non-formatted cell | Non-formatted cell |
| Left-aligned cell | Left-aligned cell | Left-aligned cell |
| Right-aligned cell | Right-aligned cell | Right-aligned cell |
| Center-aligned cell | "… and he says not to call it 'out of phase' because that term only applies to waves, but the set of real numbers is a wave. I mean, if you really think about it. Look at this- I'm gonna call this an infinitely dense spiral…" | The set of "unusual numbers." (𝕌) |
Addendum XXXX-2: Known Elements of 𝕌
Mathematics personnel have used Dr. Fish's observations on a number of topics to construct a set of unusual numbers 𝕌. Mathematics personnel, without the direct application of SCP-XXXX, have been able to prove the following:
- All unusual numbers have one or more anomalous properties.
- There exist numbers with anomalous properties outside of 𝕌; however, almost all3 anomalous numbers are elements of 𝕌.
- There exist multiple functions which return elements of 𝕌, but none have been found which both return all elements of 𝕌 and exclusively elements of 𝕌.
- 𝕌 can be mapped surjectively onto to the subset of 𝕌 that exists within the complex numbers (ℂ(𝕌)). This mapping perfectly preserves anomalous properties. Thus, ℂ(𝕌) contains all of the anomalous properties of 𝕌.
𝕌 is at least countably infinite, but the precise cardinality of 𝕌 is unknown. Its cardinality could possibly be determined via SCP-XXXX, however Dr. Fish "[doesn't] bother with all that set theory bullshit" on account of "all those incomprehensible symbols."
Known elements of 𝕌 include:
- SCP-033
- entry 2
- √SCP-1313 (The solution to SCP-1313 is not itself an element of 𝕌; Mathematics personnel have surmised that, although it is a bear, as well as a number, it is not unusual).