The Paradox Thread

[midnight rain]

Originally Posted by jibber

the coastline itself isn't infinite, but the length is undefinable. Although maybe that's what you meant by infinite.

In a way, though, it is infinite in length. I mean you can just keep getting more accurate and accurate with more precise measurements and that just expands the length of the coastline. This makes me question any distance ever measured and the concept of 'distance' as a whole.

[jibber]

Originally Posted by Tuna

In a way, though, it is infinite in length. I mean you can just keep getting more accurate and accurate with more precise measurements and that just expands the length of the coastline. This makes me question any distance ever measured and the concept of 'distance' as a whole.

Yeah well that's kind of what I said in my post above. The coastline is just an arbitrary example of an argument that says nothing can really be accurately measured. I just take issue with the word "infinite" to define it rather than unmeasurable. The actual measure of an object/thing/whatever may be infinite, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the thing itself is. It just means that we don't have the means to define that end.

[midnight rain]

Originally Posted by jibber

Yeah well that's kind of what I said in my post above. The coastline is just an arbitrary example of an argument that says nothing can really be accurately measured. I just take issue with the word "infinite" to define it rather than unmeasurable. The actual measure of an object/thing/whatever may be infinite, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the thing itself is. It just means that we don't have the means to define that end.

I guess saying it "approaches infinity" may be a more appropriate term for it.

It's not even the defining the length of it matter. It's getting the precise measurements of it.

For example, a straight line's length CAN be defined.

A real jagged coastline, as is used in the coastline paradox, can't be because it's impossible to take in every little degree (and 1/8 of a degree, 1/16, etc.).

See where I'm going? Or do I just sound like an idiot?

[jibber]

Originally Posted by Tuna

I guess saying it "approaches infinity" may be a more appropriate term for it.

It's not even the defining the length of it matter. It's getting the precise measurements of it.

For example, a straight line's length CAN be defined.

A real jagged coastline, as is used in the coastline paradox, can't be because it's impossible to take in every little degree (and 1/8 of a degree, 1/16, etc.).

See where I'm going? Or do I just sound like an idiot?

No I think we're actually saying the same thing. I was saying that by that argument nothing with mass can actually be defined by size. I used the term length because we were still talking about a coastline.