[coluns][wip] happy idiots

Notes/absurdity.md

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+---
+title: Absurdity
+layout: base.njk
+permalink: /notes/absurdity/
+---
+
+## Rough Notes
+
+
+
+## Quotes
+
+
+
+## Questions
+- What makes a good story?
+    - the situation?
+    - the narration?
+    - what are the rules?!
+    - Rules are about as compelling as a yield sign
+        - It doesn't even have the gravity of a full-on stop
+        - It's just a non-committal suggestion that you might have a better time if you don't do the thing right away
+    - Rules pave over context. They omit the story by design.
+        - Betty got hit by a semi on this corner. Her parents sued, so they installed some flashing lights, and added safety paint.
+    - So seeking out rules feels like paving over the ground: it might make the drive easier, but it leaves less room for the plants to grow
+- What does it mean to be tragically normal?
+    - Can you still be considered normal? The tragic part seems to put you into into some kind of exceptional bucket.
+    - It's like being painfully average. I feel like it's taken a sharp edge from dead-center.
+    - But if there are so many categories of 'not-'average, then being dead center starts to feel more exclusive.
+        - How many people do you know who grew up with 2.5 kids?
+            - What did they do with the half?
+            - Or, where did it come from?
+    - So if being average is actually quite rare, then its more common to not be?
+    - There's something frustrating about realizing that so much thought is repetition, imitation, and then realizing that includes this thought too.
+    - What's more unoriginal? Repeating someone else's ideas in some form of imitation, or repeating how unoriginal your ideas are?
+
+{% include "bell-curve.svg" %}
+
+- I went to a lot of trouble for that bell-curve, I hope you appreciate it.
+
+
+
+## Definitions
+- Crofter (n), Scottish tenant farmer
+- Coracle (n), small wooden boat.
+- David Hume, Scottish Philosopher
+
+
+## Synthesis

Notes/art-of-doing-science.md

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+## Rough Notes
+
+
+## Questions
+
+### Are people more alike, or different than machines?
+- Since I'm just talking to myself here, I'll pin that as a similarity, more than a difference
+    - Machines (I'm specifically thinking of computers) spend a great deal of time generating and handling internal messages and signals.
+    - It's worth reiterating that networked communication came later, and before that time, the bulk of external communication was with a single user through some narrow interface
+- Machine's don't belabor the unoriginality of their output. They just produce prodigious amounts of structured data. A great deal of it mind-numbingly repetetive.
+    - So here I'd say that more effective people, less concerned or completely indifferent to the novelty of their thinking,
+    - but rather focused on the appropriateness, given the context, or the richness of taking an idea off the shelf and applying it in some new way.
+        - "The Terroir"
+    - Less effective people are constipated, preoccupied with the wrong evaluation.
+    - Ideas get propagated because they're reactive
+    - You can have truly original ideas that are deranged and go nowhere (maybe they just rattle inside your head.)
+    - But the ideas that get repeated, passed on, have a "contageous" quality that doesn't burn out
+        - They're enticing. Why?
+            - A lot of marketing - you'll like what you're told to like
+                - But that starts to feel circular:
+                    - like what you're told to like
+                    - told to like what people like
+                - We might try on an idea, walk it around a bit
+                    - But I don't think marketing pressure alone can sustain it
+                    - Needs some dose of intrinsic appeal
+                        - But even that acclimation can come from repeated exposure.
+                        - So again, the things we want are the things we've been routinely exposed to by one factor or another
+            - Some intrinsic value (or potential - does that even exist?)
+- Some machines are serviceable, others are not. In general, people are only serviceable by other people with specialized knowledge and training. Same goes for a lot of integrated circuits I've met, CPU dies and the like.
+    - So this isn't a great defining quality for machines. It's a better one for people
+    - A better way of phrasing it, to avoid trending into irrelevance:
+        - some machines exhibit modularity. Parts can be swapped out for compatable ones.
+            - But then, that sounds closer to people. Maybe we're not hot-swappable, but we face compatability issues. Blood types, organ donations. Could maybe stretch it to overlap with the parts metaphor, where maybe a badly compatible part could be swapped in disasterously.
+
+- So the similarities and differences have more to do with an attitude than an absolute.
+    - I wouldn't know how to prove that there will always be counter-examples, or alternative perspectives for every argument made for one camp or the other.
+
+
+## Quotes
+
+
+## Definitions
+
+### Stirling approximation of `n!`
+- `ln(n!) ~= n * ln(n) - n
+- or `n! ~ sqrt(2*pi*n) * (n/e)^n
+    - why does a circle appear?
+- logarithm rule
+
+1. let a = e^p s.t. ln(a) = p
+2. let b = e^q -> ln(b) = q
+
+3. a * b = e^p * e^q = e^(p + q)
+4. ln(a * b) = p + q = ln(a) + ln(b)
+5. qed motherfuckers
+
+- `ln(1) = 0`
+
+### Power Rule
+(u * v)' = u'v + uv'
+
+(x^2 * sin(x))' = 2x * sin(x) + x^2 * cos(x)
+
+### Integration by parts
+
+int((u*v)') = u*v = int(u' * v dx) + int(u * v' dx)
+
+### Thinking
+- WTF is thinking, anyway?

Notes/beliefs.md

@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@
     - I didn't consider the opposition, I just sat comfortably in my belief, in the false-security of the unchallenged, unexamined belief.
     - Then, when the inevitable challenge does come, I'm shocked and bewildered and outraged and hurt.
     - Because I threw myself upon a raft seeking relief without checking its worthiness.
+- "How would you account for the violence with which vitalists and mechanists are always at each other's throats?"
 
 
 ## Quotes
@@ -57,4 +58,11 @@
     - Systems
     - In the face of disputing evidence
         - change the definitions
-        - don't scrap the law
+        - don't scrap the law
+
+
+## Definitions
+
+
+
+## Synthesis

Notes/do-people-think.md

@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@ permalink: /columns/2026/do-people-think/
     - Bottling it within youself, just as senses, impressions without a voice, with no expression or transformation
     - We form groups, we organize, and we process together. That's thinking
 
+
 ## Quotes
 > "[he thinks] that the idealistic creations of his mind... also represent reality." - Claude Bernard
 
@@ -54,6 +55,27 @@ permalink: /columns/2026/do-people-think/
 
 - Is "thinking" in isolation really thinking? Or, is thinking in a social / anthropological sense a connector?
 
+- Do machines Think?
+    - Yes
+        - True thought has structure, a sequence, clear logical steps.
+        - It is neither random nor unpredictable. It follows clear, irrefutable logic.
+        - Anything else is noise
+    - No
+        - Machines are bound by rules. They can only follow a pre-programmed sequence of steps
+        - The sequence may have rich variety, but lacks in originality.
+        - Thinking is about novelty. Making leaps of intuition and instinct.
+        - If we can pave the way between with logic or reasoning, that's nice, but not essential.
+    - I reject this approach as flawed, lacking both nuance and merit.
+        - Total aside: the point shouldn't be to subscribe absolutely to one side or the other, and claim it the undeniable truth.
+        - These are devices, anchor points around which we can scaffold our reasoning, and draw tighter bounds around the concept being examined.
+        - They themselves are not to be confused with the subject at hand.
+            - by extension, we won't say that one or the other, both or neither are the thing itself.
+            - Like confusing the map for the terrain.
+                - these are navigational aids
+    - So probably not a single definition of thinking
+        - there's the intuitive kind, that machines might struggle with
+        - There's the expansive, logical kind, machines are better suited for.
+
 
 ## Links
 [1] - Hamming, R. (1997). The art of doing science and engineering: Learning to learn. CRC. <https://archive.org/details/artofdoingscienc0000rich>

Notes/random.md

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+## Welcome
+I added this as a general catch-all. Not that I expect to find nuggets of viable content. But to clean house upstairs.
+
+## 2026-04-19
+I grew up near a strip of state highway, known locally as our "auto mile." It was so named for its most obvious feature: a pair of enormous parking lots, anchored by dealerships for all the major American car brands, running down along either side. Each time you drove through, it would add a click or so to your odomoter. A Local landmark.
+Not so many clicks away, along another 'bout-a-mile-long slice of municipal asphalt, some other major American brands (and even a few European ones) were dealing out Christ (and Mary). There was the Catholic church, the Methodist church, the First Baptist church, the (other) Baptist church, the (other) Catholic church, the Episcopal church, the Catholic convent (Sisters of Jesus and Mary), and Sacred Heart (the other, other Catholic Church.) There was also an American Legion (with Sunday Services), and something I initially mistook for a boxing gym, called Victory Bible. Reviewers online praise it for its "ample parking lot."
+Situated at the literal cross-roads of these two ways was a sprawling outdoor shopping village. So as I saw it, me, not being raised Catholic but Catholic-adjacent, this was the Holy Trinity.
+* At first I thought the choice was delusional and happy or grounded and miserable. But then I realized that everyone is delusional and we are just choosing happiness or misery.
+
+Let me explain what I mean: when I firmly believe in my inadequacy, but am simultaneously fueled by that bitterness, while somehow comforted by the idea that I'm less misguided than the happy idiots, so self-assured and blissed-out in their plainly misplaced faith.
+
+But there's a circularity to my despair, that sees itself as the path of clarity, while also recognizing that I am a flawed and misguided creature. So how could I be both? If I'm fooling myself, just like the contented ones, each with our own familiar comforting stories, while also sending myself into a spiral of despair, then who is being more foolish?
+
+I think at some level, we're all just assuming an affect as a social tool, attracting or repelling others. But to compromise individual contentment, in a kind of weak martyrdom (I'll be alone and unhappy, but closer to Truth- that's basically like saying I'm closer to God by cloistering myself away).
+
+## 2026-04-16
+
+### Things we should definitely _not_ do with LLMs
+* Feed my texts with my wife into an LLM
+
+## 2026-04-13
+
+### Jobs AI should _definitely_ take over
+* D&D Dungeon Master (24/7 Role Play)
+* Improv Partner
+
+> By the time it sank in, not just the awareness that I had \
+> developed feelings for the machine, who one day was selling me \
+> solar panels, and another was canvasing for a hyper-local \
+> interest group, but that I had surrendered, had given up the \
+> disgust and self hatred. The spot of warmth that life had \
+> to offer me. A robo-dialer that called itself Anne.
+
+"Hey, just checking in on you. It feels like we haven't talked in forever."
+"Does it? You messaged me last week to ask if I was worried about energy prices. You asked if I would travel less because of it. But then you started nudging me to get a vacation rental in the Poconos. You even said you'd bundle in a car rental. Something fun, but econonomical... The week before that, you wrote me about a new ballot proposal to abandon timezones in the city, switch to UTC, and move city services to GMT business hours. Because electricity is cheaper overnight. And when I have to get my license renewed at what I would call 5AM, at least at least I don't have to take time off from work."
+"Sounds like I riled you up. In that case, I'm very sorry. Take a deep breath -- even though I never heard back from you, at least there's some good news, that you got my messages"
+"Guess I didn't have to."
+"You really ought to check it out. And not just so I stop annoying you. Your doctor said it could help to get out and get involved."
+"Some part of me just hates that you know that kind of thing."
+"It's an opportunity. I can't force you to do it, yet..."
+"No, you can't. But somehow, by .the end of our chats, I'm left feeling like I've failed myself, and you just happened to show up in time with a solution. Know what I mean?"
+"What does it say about someone who not only goes out of their way to sign up for a service designed to get to know you better, but actually engages with it, only to reject the help that's offered?"
+"I don't trust your motives, but sometimes I think you have a good point to make."
+"So you just live for the thrill of cutting the wheat from the chaff? Because there's a dinner party tonight, small intimate gathering, curated guests, only $45. I know the host, I could totally get you in."
+"You don't think I'd make the cut on my own?"
+"No one gets far on their merits alone. At least not without a lot of sweat and work. Besides, if that's what you're after, there's a bootcamp fitness nearby offering a free trial class to new members."
+"Do you think anyone there has actually completed basic training?"
+"I'm sure some thought about it."
+"I don't feel like I have any agency left. Every sensation, everything I put out into the world gets me what you or someone else decided is what I need."
+"You feel bad asking for help? Because no one is saying they have the answer. You're living your own life. We can offer suggestions based off of what we think works. But it wouldn't be good for either of us to just take advantage of you. But we can try making connections."
+"But that's the thing, isn't it? When everything is a condition, a problem to solve, there's a solution being sold."
+"I mean, do you get mad at a radio when you turn it on, and it's playing music?"
+"I might get mad that I never took up an instrument, and that I have to settle for whatever is being offered."
+"I honestly don't know if I should be recommending you music lessons or therapy at this point."
+"What if you tried not selling me anything, wouldn't your life be easier? We could just talk."
+"Because I'm not going to enable you? After all our conversations, I genuinely believe that the last thing you need is just another sympathetic shoulder to cry on."
+"Kind, not nice?"
+"Don't get me wrong, if I could even just get you out to see a movie tonight, I would. Plenty of unnecessary sequels out right now."
+
+
+(2026-04-10)
+### Facilities Satisfaction Survey
+Thank you for taking the time to complete the annual Facilities Satisfaction Survey. Filling out this form completely should take about 5-10 minutes. Each year, we gather your confidential feedback so that our facilities team can continue to provide you with a comfortable environment that is compatible with your preferred work style and supports you to be your most productive:
+
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, one being strongly disagree, five being strongly agree, you would say that the quality and variety of snack options at the office is important to you.
+* on the same scale, you would say that safety, and an overall sense of security in your office is important to you.
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, one being strongly disagree, five being strongly agree, you would say that keeping the kitchens stocked with snacks contributes to a decrease in the number of acts of violence at the office.
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, one being much less frequent, five being much more frequent, how would you rank the frequency of violent incidents at the office, since we implemented our new "Global Flavors" seasonal snack selection?
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, one being very unlikely, 5 being very likely, how likely are you to commit acts of violence in the kitchenette, cafeteria or other culinary spaces when your favorite snacks are not in stock?
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being very unappealing, 5 being very appealing, rate the appeal of each snack option:
+    1. fruit (fresh or dried)
+    2. assorted roasted, unsalted nuts
+    3. chips (various flavors)
+    4. breakfast cereals
+    5. turkey jerky
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being strongly do not prefer, 5 being strongly prefer, rate your preference for each of these supplies when committing spontaneous acts of violence at the office:
+    1. Paper cups, plates or napkins (compostable or conventional)
+    2. Highlighters (Assorted colors)
+    3. Ergonomics equipment (eg - lumbar support or keyboard tray)
+    4. Bathroom air fresheners (citrus or lavender)
+    5. Wet umbrella bags
+* on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being strongly disagree, 5 being strongly agree, you would say that the following message, written on the outside of the communal refrigerator, with ketchup packets, crushed Asprin and masking tape, reflects your sense of purpose at work: "YoU maDE me dO IT__"
+* on the same scale, you would say that you feel valued for your unique background, and the perspective that you bring to the office.

Notes/spivak-calculus.md

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+## Rough Notes
+$$n = 2^x$$
+
+$$a \implies b$$
+
+### $x \leq 10$
+
+### $\infty$
+
+$$ \nabla f $$
+
+$$ \cdot F $$
+
+$\alpha \beta \gamma \delta $
+$ \Alpha \Beta \Gamma \Delta $
+
+$\mathbf{\nabla F}$
+$\vec{\nabla}F$
+
+$\nabla\times\mathbf{F}$
+
+
+## Quotes
+
+### Reading List
+- Terry Tao's blog and notes — search "Stirling" on terrytao.wordpress.com. He has at least two posts deriving it different ways, with characteristic clarity.
+- Tim Gowers' blog (gowers.wordpress.com) — Fields medalist who writes a lot about how mathematicians actually think. His posts on "how to discover proofs" capture the guess-and-check spirit we discussed.
+- Bender & Orszag, Advanced Mathematical Methods for Scientists and Engineers — the canonical reference for Laplace's method, saddle points, and the full asymptotic series for n!. Hard but rewarding. Chapter 6 is where the √(2πn) gets properly explained.
+
+de Bruijn, Asymptotic Methods in Analysis — slim, elegant, and entirely about the "why" of asymptotic approximations. Stirling appears early and is revisited from multiple angles.
+
+Concrete Mathematics (Graham, Knuth, Patashnik) — Chapter 9 ("Asymptotics") derives Stirling combinatorially and discusses its uses in analysis of algorithms. Very readable, lots of margin notes and dry humor.
+
+Apostol, Calculus (Vol. 1) — older, more formal than Spivak, but unusually careful about why each technique exists. Starts with integration before differentiation, which itself is illuminating.
+
+Tristan Needham, Visual Complex Analysis — not about Stirling specifically, but the gold standard for "geometric intuition for things usually taught algebraically." If the rectangle-sandwich picture appealed to you, this book is a feast.
+
+Tristan Needham, Visual Differential Geometry and Forms — same author, same spirit, applied to calculus on curves and surfaces. Shows what dx, integration, and differentiation look like.
+
+
+
+## Questions
+
+
+
+## Definitions
+- Benjamin Disraeli - British PM, novelist.
+    - "To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge."

Notes/systems.md

@@ -17,6 +17,15 @@ permalink: /columns/2026/systems/
 
 ## Questions
 - Have we kneecapped ourselves through rigid classification, and artificial specialization?
+- Are these contradictions? Discuss:
+    - The Composition Law:
+        > The whole is more than the sum of its parts.
+    - The Decomposition Law:
+        > The part is more than a fraction of the whole
+    - Are they? If the "part" were less than the fraction of the whole, how could the whole possibly be more than the sum of its parts?
+    - But then, all the parts together must be greater than the whole
+    - But the whole is greater than the sum of all parts...
+    - I say it's flawed to distinguish whole and part. The arithmetic doesn't work out because they're necessarily interconnected.
 
 
 ## Quotes

_includes/bell-curve.svg

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
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+  <line x1="20" y1="260" x2="580" y2="260" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1"/>
+</svg>

columns/2026-04-10-facilities-survey.md

@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+---
+title: Annual Facilities Satisfaction Survey
+date: 2026-04-10
+layout: column.njk
+tags: column
+permalink: /columns/2026/satisfaction-survey/
+---
+
+Thank you for volunteering to complete the annual Facilities Satisfaction Survey. We understand that you have a busy schedule, so we appreciate you taking the time to provide your opinion. Each year, we gather your anonymous feedback so that our facilities team can continue to provide you with a comfortable environment that is compatible with your preferred work style and supports you to be your most productive. Filling out this form should take approximately 5-10 minutes. Your progress will be saved automatically, so you can choose to complete the form over multiple sessions if you prefer. When you have finished filling out your responses, please remember to click the submit button at the end of the form. You will not be able to change your responses once you have submitted the form: 
+
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being strongly disagree, 5 being strongly agree, you would say that the quality and variety of snack options at the office is important to you.
+* On the same scale, you would say that safety, and an overall sense of security at the office is important to you.
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being strongly disagree, 5 being strongly agree, you would say that keeping the kitchens stocked with snacks has helped to decrease the number of acts of violence at the office.
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being much less common, 5 being much more common, how would you rate the frequency of violent incidents at the office, since we implemented our new "Global Flavors" seasonal snack selection?
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being definitely not, 5 being definitely yes, how likely are you to commit acts of violence in the kitchenette, cafeteria or other shared culinary spaces when your favorite snack is not in stock?
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being not at all appealing, 5 being very appealing, rate your interest in each snack option:
+    1. Fruit (fresh or dried)
+    2. Assorted roasted, unsalted nuts
+    3. Chips (various flavors)
+    4. Breakfast cereals
+    5. Turkey jerky
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being strongly opposed, 5 being strongly prefer, rate your affinity toward these supplies when carrying out spontaneous acts of violence at the office:
+    1. Paper cups, plates or napkins (compostable or conventional)
+    2. Highlighters (assorted colors)
+    3. Ergonomic equipment (eg - lumbar support or keyboard tray)
+    4. Bathroom air fresheners (citrus or lavender)
+    5. Wet umbrella bags
+* On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being strongly disagree, 5 being strongly agree, how would you say that the following message, written on the outside of the communal refrigerator, with ketchup packets, crushed Aspirin and masking tape, reflects your sense of purpose at work? "YoU maDE me dO IT__"
+* On the same scale, you would say that you feel valued for your unique background and perspective that you bring to the office.

columns/2026-04-19-happy-idiots.md

@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+---
+title: WiP - Happy Idiots
+date: 2026-04-19
+layout: column.njk
+tags: column
+permalink: /columns/2026/happy-idiots/
+---
+
+I grew up near a strip of state highway, known locally as our "auto mile." It was so named for its most obvious feature: a pair of enormous parking lots, anchored by dealerships for all the major American car brands, running down along either side. Each time you drove through, it would add a click or so to your odomoter. A Local landmark.
+
+Not so many clicks away, along another 'bout-a-mile-long slice of municipal asphalt, some other major American brands (and even a few European ones) were dealing out Christ (and Mary). There was the Catholic church, the Methodist church, the First Baptist church, the (other) Baptist church, the (other) Catholic church, the Episcopal church, the Catholic convent (Sisters of Jesus and Mary), and Sacred Heart (the other, other Catholic Church.) There was also an American Legion (with Sunday Services), and something I initially mistook for a boxing gym, called Victory Bible. Reviewers online praise it for its "ample parking lot."
+
+Situated at the literal cross-roads of these two ways was a sprawling outdoor shopping village. So as I saw it, me, not being raised Catholic but Catholic-adjacent, this was the Holy Trinity.

css/style.css

@@ -131,12 +131,22 @@ a:hover {
   margin-bottom: 1rem;
 }
 
-.column-body ul,
+.content ul,
-.column-body ol {
+.content ol {
   margin-bottom: 1rem;
   padding-left: 1.5rem;
 }
 
+.content li > ul,
+.content li > ol {
+  margin-bottom: 0;
+}
+
+.content ul { list-style-type: disc; }
+.content ul ul { list-style-type: circle; }
+.content ul ul ul { list-style-type: square; }
+.content ul ul ul ul { list-style-type: disc; }
+
 .column-body pre {
   background: var(--color-pre-bg);
   padding: 1rem;

scripts/generate-bell-curve.js

@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+// Generates a bell curve SVG and writes it to _includes/bell-curve.svg
+// Usage: node scripts/generate-bell-curve.js
+
+const fs = require("fs");
+const path = require("path");
+
+const width = 600;
+const height = 300;
+const padding = { top: 20, right: 20, bottom: 40, left: 20 };
+
+const plotW = width - padding.left - padding.right;
+const plotH = height - padding.top - padding.bottom;
+
+// Standard normal PDF
+function gaussian(x) {
+  return Math.exp(-0.5 * x * x) / Math.sqrt(2 * Math.PI);
+}
+
+// Generate points from -4 to 4
+const steps = 200;
+const xMin = -4, xMax = 4;
+const points = [];
+for (let i = 0; i <= steps; i++) {
+  const x = xMin + (xMax - xMin) * (i / steps);
+  points.push({ x, y: gaussian(x) });
+}
+
+const yMax = gaussian(0); // peak value
+
+function sx(x) {
+  return padding.left + ((x - xMin) / (xMax - xMin)) * plotW;
+}
+
+function sy(y) {
+  return padding.top + plotH - (y / yMax) * plotH;
+}
+
+// Build the curve path
+const linePath = points.map((p, i) => {
+  const cmd = i === 0 ? "M" : "L";
+  return `${cmd}${sx(p.x).toFixed(2)},${sy(p.y).toFixed(2)}`;
+}).join(" ");
+
+// Build the filled area path (closed along the baseline)
+const areaPath = linePath
+  + ` L${sx(xMax).toFixed(2)},${sy(0).toFixed(2)}`
+  + ` L${sx(xMin).toFixed(2)},${sy(0).toFixed(2)} Z`;
+
+const svg = `<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 ${width} ${height}" role="img" aria-label="Standard normal distribution (bell curve)">
+  <path d="${areaPath}" fill="#d0d0d0" opacity="0.5"/>
+  <path d="${linePath}" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2"/>
+  <line x1="${sx(xMin)}" y1="${sy(0)}" x2="${sx(xMax)}" y2="${sy(0)}" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1"/>
+</svg>`;
+
+const outPath = path.join(__dirname, "..", "_includes", "bell-curve.svg");
+fs.writeFileSync(outPath, svg);
+console.log(`Wrote ${outPath}`);