it's not possible to program infinity, is it?

[kylefoley76]

a computer can't understand what infinity is, can it?

 

[MrKowz]

It depends how Infinity is being used. Computers operate on a mathematical and logic based system, in which case, Infinity cannot ever be attained by a computer, since Infinity is an undefined number that cannot be reached. However, there are mathematical proofs that can determine the value of something that has been iterated an infinite number of times.

In all truths, humans can't understand what infinity is either. It is always 1 more higher than the highest number we can think of.

 

[kylefoley76]

so if you ask a computer to choose a real number among an infinite amount, it can't do that, right?

I need to know this for a philosophy paper.

 

[MrKowz]

To my knowledge, it cannot. In order for a computer to choose a number from an infinite series of numbers, infinity must be defined. However, infinity is unable to be defined, as once it is defined, it is no longer infinity; it becomes a real number.

A computer can choose a number between 1 and 9.9E+999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999

But that is not infinity.

Also, the computer would have to return some defined amount. But say it did choose "infinity"... how could it possibly be displayed? It would take an infinite amount of time to calculate, an infinite amount of time to display, and an infinite amount of time to read.

 

[kylefoley76]

Ok, thanks. This is what I thought, I just wanted to hear someone who sounds like he knows what he's talking about, also say it. Thank you for your input.

 

[Greg Truby]

a computer can't understand what infinity is, can it?
...
I need to know this for a philosophy paper.

Erm, at least under present technology, a computer can't truly "understand" the warmth of a hug or the saltiness of a tear drop, for that matter. I'd say a computer would have a better chance of "understanding" infinity [even if it cannot actually arrive at it] before it'll understand those.

 

[cornflakegirl]

I believe that Turing did a lot of theoretical work on what a computing machine could and could not do in principle. Might be work seeing if he said anything on the subject.

 

[revans]

If you take into account our current conception of computers and how they work, Greg has it right that computers "understand" nothing. Even the most advanced AI can't really "understand" anything, they just have fuzzy logical routines to sort out possiblities and so forth.

This is not to say that a computer *can't* understand things.
You should investigate the implications of "understanding" and take into account *our* understanding of our environment and of what we call computers are capable. Kant's Evil Entity could very well be a computer, one sufficiently advanced that we have yet to see--one the Evil Entity is keeping from us.

Rich

 

[DiscoPistol]

You could also read 'Beer Cans and Meat Machines' by John Searle

 

[Expiry]

The oddest thing I heard about infinity, recently, was that there are just as many even numbers are there are odd and even numbers put together.

That kind of screws with your head.