Here's my prediction. If and when Jack and the Losties change the past/future, the proof will be in the math. There will be a new set of "cursed" numbers. I believe the numbers that we have come to know and fear, 4 8 15 16 23 and 42, are actually a serial number of sorts. Like Rouseau's message. It was on a loop. Every iteration of the message had a number. 4815162342 is the "time stamp" that represents which time loop the Losties are caught in. From the beginning of the show and up until they change their past/future, they have been in time line "4815162342."
The show itself has already hinted at this theory. When the oceanic 6 get rescued, they arrive in a plane with the numbers "1717" on the side. Big deal, right? BUT WAIT! They were never supposed to leave the island. Therefore, they were already starting to change their "FATE/numbers." And THEN, in this week's episode, "The Variable," Juliet tells Kate that the code to the sonic fence is 141717. Is that a coincidence? A red herring? I think not. It's proof that our heroes have already started to change their destinies. The numbers are beginning to change, even if just a little bit. The variables are shifting. 15 becomes 14, and 16 becomes 17. So assuming that only those two numbers have changed so far, the equation is now 4 8 14 17 23 42. The sum of those numbers? It's still 108. The same as the sum of 4 8 15 16 23 42.
So MAYBE the sum of the old numbers (108), represents the 108th time the loop has occurred. And MAYBE the new numbers' sum will equal 109, representing the next iteration of the (slightly different) time loop.
Each time the loop plays out, the "variables" change the outcome, even if just slightly, therefore creating a new mystical equation/barcode.
The show itself has already hinted at this theory. When the oceanic 6 get rescued, they arrive in a plane with the numbers "1717" on the side. Big deal, right? BUT WAIT! They were never supposed to leave the island. Therefore, they were already starting to change their "FATE/numbers." And THEN, in this week's episode, "The Variable," Juliet tells Kate that the code to the sonic fence is 141717. Is that a coincidence? A red herring? I think not. It's proof that our heroes have already started to change their destinies. The numbers are beginning to change, even if just a little bit. The variables are shifting. 15 becomes 14, and 16 becomes 17. So assuming that only those two numbers have changed so far, the equation is now 4 8 14 17 23 42. The sum of those numbers? It's still 108. The same as the sum of 4 8 15 16 23 42.
So MAYBE the sum of the old numbers (108), represents the 108th time the loop has occurred. And MAYBE the new numbers' sum will equal 109, representing the next iteration of the (slightly different) time loop.
Each time the loop plays out, the "variables" change the outcome, even if just slightly, therefore creating a new mystical equation/barcode.
