Re: The IDS, the EDS and the DBMS
Date: Tue, 14 Sep 2004 15:37:52 GMT
Message-ID: <kfE1d.47611$D%.16965_at_attbi_s51>
"Laconic2" <laconic2_at_comcast.net> wrote in message news:Cf-dnY1UKMIHSNvcRVn-pQ_at_comcast.com...
>
> "Marshall Spight" <mspight_at_dnai.com> wrote in message
> news:5vs1d.432089$%_6.167991_at_attbi_s01...
>
> > The difference here is between rationals and irrationals;
> > rationals present no huge difficulties but irrationals
> > cannot be represented extensionally in finite space.
>
> I disagree.
>
> First off, the common fraction is really an expression. If I express a
> number as 10/3, I've expressed the number in a few symbols, but what I've
> expressed is "the result of dividing 10 by 3". This number can't be
> expressed exactly as a finite decimal fraction, or as a finite binary
> fraction.
>
> In this sense "sqrt(2)" is not all that different.
You don't think precise representation of irrationals is any harder than precise representation of rationals? I am somewhat sceptical, but I would be delighted to be wrong about this.
> I could, if you were so inclined, be represented as a finite ternary
> fraction.
Okay, bring on the precise representation of sqrt(2)!
Marshall Received on Tue Sep 14 2004 - 17:37:52 CEST