The Economist.
Backwards, forwards?
Why don't you start by going forwards?
Okay.
Right, so we start with 8, 2, 3, 7, 9, 1, 2, 8...
Dominic O'Brien is sitting in a wooden chair in his office at home,
eyes closed, brow creased, his hands clasped on his lap.
6, 6, 9...
Can you tell me what the fifth digit up from the bottom right is?
The fifth digit up from the bottom right.
Is it probably a three?
Yes, correct.
Very good.
7, 4, 9...
He's reciting these numbers from a 19th-century cottage in rural Dorset in southwest England.
9...
It's an olde worlde house with dark mahogany panels and low beams,
close to a farm that sells "eggs from our happy hens".
1, 4, 6...
Despite the setting, there's a 1980s vibe to the house: