I'm not so sure that this is really an upper limit to computation. For that matter, I'm not sure that the lithiverse really utilizes its full potential. Consider: Beyond the atoms devoted entirely to factoring, there must be at least a few zillion arranged to handle the flow of information: the allocation of trial factors, the sending of messages from one planet to the next, etc. But this isn't a major thing, just a design issue. Mainly, I'd like to dispute the "operating lifetime" figure of 1E35 Earth-years per proton. With all this computing power, the lithiverse should have been able to figure out how to build operating components out of something more fundamental than your everyday hadrons. If (this is a fantasy, right) it could build the next-generation components out of unconfined quarks, then the lithiverse would become a very exciting thing. While we're at it, why not spend some of the time working out ways to send probes at right angles to reality and explore other Universes? That would push the limits of computation beyond the range of exponential notation, practically speaking. We'd better use surreal number theory to continue this discussion. :) -- Blake Stacey Executive Director of Programming HyperSphere Software [EMAIL PROTECTED] :: http://fly.hiwaay.net/~bstacey Some chairs are ergonomic. No junk bond is ergonomic. Therefore, some chairs are not junk bonds. ________________________________________________________________ Unsubscribe & list info -- http://www.scruz.net/~luke/signup.htm
