Re: How to do magic with infinity
From: Frank Piron (empty_at_zero.nil)
Date: 10/29/04
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Date: Fri, 29 Oct 2004 14:21:50 +0200
Fri, 29 Oct 2004 13:39:32 +0200 Han de Bruijn
<Han.deBruijn@DTO.TUDelft.NL> wrote:
>> Of course such a number can not be presented by 10-adic
>> expansion. Moreover it can not be presented by any symbolic
>> generating code like "10^(10^1000)". But since there is only
>> a finite number of programs with a length smaller than the
>> volume of our universe such numbers must "exist".
> > Let us call such numbers "quasar numbers". [ ... ]
>
> Stop! I'm sorry. But I really don't understand why THIS should
> be sufficient reason for such numbers to "exist".
We call horses which are able to fly pegasus and we hear and tell
stories about them. Do they exist or not? Why is it interesting
to talk about things which do not exist?
> What happens if I simply DENY the existence of your quasar numbers? Does
> it have any observable consequences for my universe?
Yes. Our communication will stop soon and this fact is observable at
least by the people who read this NG as long as they belong to your
universe.
But seriously: if you deny the existence of quasar numbers then we
have perhaps a result from our discussion. In fact we can now extend
the set of numbers which exist in your universe: the numbers for which
we can write down generating code. Or do you say that the numbers come
to existence not before the code is executed?
>
> (Hmm, quasar numbers smell a bit like those infinite cardinals)
But they are finite and as i mentioned above there are bigger numbers
which are not quasar. Quasar numbers are kind of not describable or
random.
-- Frank Piron, etfrankatkonaddotn (leftrotate two)
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