4 ms·
Miracle, eh? Try "fiction". Unlimited exponential growth is not even theoretically possible in a three-dimensional universe (goes for tree data structures too,
by brazzy 17y ago
Miracle, eh? Try "fiction". Unlimited exponential growth is not even theoretically possible in a three-dimensional universe (goes for tree data structures too, BTW).
The solution is option 2: every once in a while, great fortunes are wiped out by great misfortune (if not by plain incompetence): War, natural disaster, hyperinflation, nations defaulting on their debts. You cannot hedge against everything.
- jey 17y agoUnlimited exponential growth is not even theoretically possible in a three-dimensional universe. He's not referring to infinite growth. Also, "three-dimensional universe" does not preclude unbounded growth, but a finite universe does.
- brazzy 17y agoA three-dimensional universe (and, I forgot to mention, the speed of light as an absolute limit) does preclude unbounded exponential growth. Anything physical that grows exponentially would eventually (and faster than you think) have to form a sphere whose radius increases faster than the speed of light. Thus, exponential growth is, in the real world, never more than a comparatively short phase.
- jey 17y agoTouché.