On Thu, Sep 4, 2008 at 10:53 AM, Matt Mahoney <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > To clarify what I mean by "observable universe", I am including any part that > could be observed in the future, and therefore must be modeled to make > accurate predictions. For example, if our universe is computed by one of an > enumeration of Turing machines, then the other enumerations are outside our > observable universe. > > -- Matt Mahoney, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
OK, that works. But, you cannot invoke current physics to argue that this sort of observable universe is finite (so far as I know). Of course, that is not central to your point anyway. The universe might be spatially infinite while still having a finite description length. So, my only remaining objection is that while the universe *could* be computable, it seems unwise to me to totally rule out the alternative. As you said, the idea is something that makes testable predictions. So, it is something to be decided experimentally, not philosophically. -Abram ------------------------------------------- agi Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/303/=now RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/303/ Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=8660244&id_secret=111637683-c8fa51 Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
