Max Weber argued over a century ago that the end result of rationalist thought would be bureaucracy — and that it would then founder on its own internal contradictions.
So, here is a place to record those contradictions, as small ‘narratives of absurdity’. The over-specification in ICD-10 will give us a rich trove, but all other sources are welcome. Some of my most recent favourites are:
- Y92.72 – chicken coop as the place of occurrence of the external cause
- V97.33XD – sucked into jet engine, subsequent encounter
- Y92.146 – prison swimming pool as place of occurrence, subsequent encounter
- W61.62XD – struck by duck, subsequent encounter
- W55.29XA – other contact with cow, subsequent encounter
- R46.1 – bizarre personal appearance
- w61.11XA – injury from macaw
- Y92.253 – opera house as the place of occurrence of the external cause
- Injuries from falling spacecraft
Please add your own to the list.