3 ms·

The point of a library containing every possible book is you don't need any meta information – if it has every possible book, it doesn't matter what order you p

The point of a library containing every possible book is you don't need any meta information – if it has every possible book, it doesn't matter what order you put the volumes, or pages, or words together. And that's why the library containing every possible book contains no information (think, for every correct maths textbook, there is one with every fact negated, one with every number replaced with the Unicode symbol for a cake, and very many that are wrong in all manner of nastily subtle ways.)

Evbn 14y ago
You are being intentionally vague for no good reason. Define library in a reasonable way and your claim is not true. Define library as an "uncatalogued lexicographically sorted collection" and your claim holds. A library is about selection and organization and metadata (a form of compression), not merely enumeration.
ImprovedSilence 14y ago
>>> the library containing every possible book contains no information Slightly tangential, but this reminds me of an old saying I used to apply to both my paintings and my music. (and my critique of others) "Emphasis on everything is emphasis on nothing" I think it goes along with that idea that if everything is there, there is nothing to discern it from anything else. And thus it becomes bland, and contains no real information (or emotion, as would apply to music/art). Leading me to another thought, if emotions can be encoded as information though music, is there a way to digitize this? (The easy answer being yes, hello 1s & 0s) But I think there is more thought in there to be had... </stream of consciousness> sorry I got lost in there for a little...
- ninetax 14y ago
  Getting way OT here but.... That reminds me of how my mom watches American Idol. She watches all of the contestants, and can't decide on who to vote for, so she votes for all of them....

Evbn 14y ago

You are being intentionally vague for no good reason. Define library in a reasonable way and your claim is not true. Define library as an "uncatalogued lexicographically sorted collection" and your claim holds. A library is about selection and organization and metadata (a form of compression), not merely enumeration.

ImprovedSilence 14y ago

>>> the library containing every possible book contains no information Slightly tangential, but this reminds me of an old saying I used to apply to both my paintings and my music. (and my critique of others) "Emphasis on everything is emphasis on nothing" I think it goes along with that idea that if everything is there, there is nothing to discern it from anything else. And thus it becomes bland, and contains no real information (or emotion, as would apply to music/art). Leading me to another thought, if emotions can be encoded as information though music, is there a way to digitize this? (The easy answer being yes, hello 1s & 0s) But I think there is more thought in there to be had... </stream of consciousness> sorry I got lost in there for a little...

ninetax 14y ago
Getting way OT here but.... That reminds me of how my mom watches American Idol. She watches all of the contestants, and can't decide on who to vote for, so she votes for all of them....