(no subject)
so i'm preparing to go to richmond. getting my chumbwamba tunes ready for the bus...
but i'm thinking about zeno's paradox. the one where achilles gives the tortoise a head start in the race, and the tortoise takes off running. then achilles runs half the distance that the turtle has moved away from him. in the mean time, the tortoise has progressed a little way forward. now the distance separating achilles from the tortoise can still be divided in half, so achilles, still running, closes half the gap. meanwhile, the tortoise has progressed a little further still. but the distance separating achilles from the tortoise can always be divided in two. so really--even if the tortoise was standing still--there's an infinite distance separating the two. and achilles will never pass the clever tortoise.
mathematics people love tossing the solution to this thing around like it's so simple. but it boggles my mind to no end. oh sure... so the mere fact that time passes, that one can move from point a to b, that one can inhale a single breath or draw a cup to her lips is evidence of infinity...
but i'm thinking about zeno's paradox. the one where achilles gives the tortoise a head start in the race, and the tortoise takes off running. then achilles runs half the distance that the turtle has moved away from him. in the mean time, the tortoise has progressed a little way forward. now the distance separating achilles from the tortoise can still be divided in half, so achilles, still running, closes half the gap. meanwhile, the tortoise has progressed a little further still. but the distance separating achilles from the tortoise can always be divided in two. so really--even if the tortoise was standing still--there's an infinite distance separating the two. and achilles will never pass the clever tortoise.
mathematics people love tossing the solution to this thing around like it's so simple. but it boggles my mind to no end. oh sure... so the mere fact that time passes, that one can move from point a to b, that one can inhale a single breath or draw a cup to her lips is evidence of infinity...