There’s a mathematical formula scientists use called ‘the drunkard’s walk’ to determine how long a photon, emitted in the center of the sun, would take to make the journey to the outer surface. The random turns it makes on its way out are analogous to the random turns a drunkard makes while trying to get home from the bar.

In both cases, the distance traversed from the start is the typical step size times the square root of the number of steps taken. Factor in the length of time a typical step takes, and you have your answer.

For the photon, this works out to be thousands or possibly hundreds of thousands of years “bouncing around” in the sun before being spit out into space and ending up smacking into your eye at 6 trillion miles an hour about 8 minutes later. For the drunkard, it’s a bit messier of a problem with far more variables, but you get the idea.

I only wish I’d known about this back when I was that drunk staggering home. I could’ve explained to my poor wife that I was out there contributing to science for the betterment of all mankind — at which point her fist would’ve smacked into my eye at 6 trillion miles an hour, I’m sure.

–Photo by me