system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Random: Is it really just algorithms?
gpt
Yes: most computers (such as an ipod) which generate random numbers do so with what's called a *pseudorandom generator*.  This is an algorithm that produces results which are "close enough" to being random that it usually doesn't matter.  A CPU is incapable of producing true random numbers by just doing math.

Some computational tasks, such as scientific simulations, need true random numbers.  When these are required, a special peripheral device is often added, called a hardware random number generator.  This uses physical effects, such as thermal noise, to generate true random numbers.