In fact, the mere act of opening the box will determine the state of thecat, although in this case there were three determinate states the catcould be in: these being Alive, Dead, and Bloody Furious.
Bursar?””Yes, Archchancellor?””You ain’t a member of some secret society or somethin’, are you?””Me? No, Archchancellor.””Then it’d be a damn good idea to take your underpants off your head.