I once noticed a similar state machine in a restaurant I used to patronize. Instead of taking table numbers, they would bring toothpicks when coming to ask if

I once noticed a similar state machine in a restaurant I used to patronize. Instead of taking table numbers, they would bring toothpicks when coming to ask if everything is Ok. The way I upset the system was to hide the toothpicks. The waiter passed by a few minutes later, scanned the table as they walked, then suddenly stopped, took a good look at the table, seemed to be thinking and trying to remember, "didn't I already give them toothpicks? I guess not" they must have thought to themselves as they rushed off. Not a minute later they came back, put toothpicks on the table and asked if everything was OK, still with a somewhat confused expression on their face. But then* they went home that night, already decided that they can't make such a mistake again. For the next two decades they researched memory, neurology, AI, computer vision, machine-human interfaces, and everything else they needed - in order to install a chip in their head that will always know if they had already put the toothpicks or not. After 23 years of work, they went back to weighting on tables, with the chip in their head, satisfied that they had done alright, at least as much as the customers with the service. * the asterisk divides the comment into two halfs: true and untrue.