# Vivek Ramaswamy **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [August 30, 2023, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352 "2023-08-30T15:30:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/201 "2023-11-15T13:05:06Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > You can also know where someone is from based on the first digits. Nitpicking: Not for numbers issued recently. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/202 "2023-11-15T14:38:28Z")
Continuing the hijack about Luhn’s algorithm … > [@scudsucker](#): > > The last number on the ID is a check number ([following the Luhn algorithm](https://fb.watch/ok4k3azfbH/?mibextid=F3zKvj)) which means there is not an even distribution of last numbers. It’s not obvious to me that is true. I was not able to locate any cite saying the distribution of check digits was inherently uneven. Strictly speaking, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, but for something as well-studied & documented as Luhn’s, you’d expect a limitation like that to appear somewhere, if not everywhere. Intuitively, we’re just summing a bunch of digits in a way that prevents Benford’s law from taking hold. And then 10-inverting the final (not leading) digit of the resulting sum. ISTM that assuming a random distribution of digits in the input you’d get a random distribution in the output. If you have a contrary cite I’m all eyes. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/203 "2023-11-15T15:16:02Z")
Last post on this way-off-subject hijack. Our ID numbers contain a YYYYMMDD birthdate as the first 6 digits, a number that indicates birth gender, a number that used to indicate “race” and other data. The checksum cannot be random, as it depends on these non-random numbers. Mine is 7603076256084 (note, this is absolutely useless for identity theft, I have no worries sharing it) First six digits are my birth date. The next four indicate my gender and birth registration order, the next indicates my citizenship status (birth or naturalised), the next is my race (now everyone gets an 8) and a checksum There is not enough unique data in there to create an even spread of odd and even numbers. It boils down to the four digits indicating gender/registration which is not random , as the [birth date](https://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=10524) will be heavily skewed towards summer in the Southern Hemisphere. (Including the “short month February”) Sorry for continuing this hijack, I will really try hard not to keep on it ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/204 "2023-11-15T15:53:00Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > > [@Mijin](#): > > > > You can also know where someone is from based on the first digits. > > Nitpicking: > Not for numbers issued recently. Further nitpicking. You can tell where they lived _when they applied_ for their SSN. In the old days, we didn’t get them at birth. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/205 "2023-11-15T16:34:10Z")
Moderating: Time to stop the hijack on the numbering system. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/206 "2023-11-15T20:38:52Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > It’s become a de facto ID number, but no one would design an ID number system like this. The company I retired from started using ssn’s for employee ids in the 1970s when they computerized personnel/payroll data. That lasted for decades before someone said “Hey, wait a minute…” I believe that was in 1994-5. Sorry @Aspenglow ! ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/207 "2023-11-15T20:43:49Z")
Moderating: I think this thread is done. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vivek-ramaswamy/989352/208 "2023-11-15T20:43:59Z")
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