(urth) The significance of Apu Punchau

[Gwern Branwen]

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On Wed, Dec 31, 2008 at 9:45 AM, David Stockhoff  wrote:
> Jeff Obviously, this is not a matter that can be truly resolved. You're
> right that the destiny-control machinery must be used for something, and we
> are told in general terms what that is. But again I'd have to assert that,
> if common-sense analysis means anything here, one archipelago per galaxy is
> simply not enough computing power, however you measure it, to micromanage
> each world in a galaxy---but also that it would surely require such energy
> to run (and there has to be implementation as well) that it would take an
> entire universe to feed it.

This would be incorrect; you drastically underestimate the limits of
computing. An area the size of a laptop could simulate entire worlds
many many times over.

Good reading in this are includes Seth Lloyd's paper "Ultimate
physical limits to computation". See
http://www.ar-tiste.com/qcomp_onion/jan2002/UltimateLaptop.htm and
http://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/9908043

The limits are intimidatingly vast, and certainly many times (if not
orders) greater than what they need to run Briah.

- --
gwern
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