Infinity - Revision history

Aschlafly at 16:34, June 22, 2026

2026-06-22T16:34:56Z

Aschlafly: grammar through the term "infinitive", which is a description of an action without limitation in subject, time, or tense

2026-06-22T16:33:19Z

grammar through the term "infinitive", which is a description of an action without limitation in subject, time, or tense

Aschlafly: improve intro by trimming

2025-05-30T19:15:25Z

improve intro by trimming

Aschlafly: /* Infinity and sports */ Baseball has no clock and no time limits. For this and other reasons, this classic game has been described as timeless (which is the same as infinite time).

2025-04-09T03:37:30Z

Infinity and sports: Baseball has no clock and no time limits. For this and other reasons, this classic game has been described as timeless (which is the same as infinite time).

Aschlafly: in baseball, there is infinite time

2025-04-09T03:36:02Z

in baseball, there is infinite time

Aschlafly: in currency, devaluation to zero occurs if and only if there is infinite inflation

2025-04-06T23:29:32Z

in currency, devaluation to zero occurs if and only if there is infinite inflation

Conservative at 01:39, February 17, 2025

2025-02-17T01:39:57Z

Conservative at 01:39, February 17, 2025

2025-02-17T01:39:22Z

Conservative: /* Anselm and Shakespeare */

2025-02-17T01:37:39Z

Anselm and Shakespeare

Conservative: /* Mistranslated as "unsearchable" */

2025-02-17T01:36:27Z

Mistranslated as "unsearchable"

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 *[[architecture]], as in the [[Abbey Church]] in [[St. Louis]] that embraces infinite accessibility and outreach;
 *[[mathematics]] through [[calculus]], [[set theory]] and [[singularity|singularities]];
-*[[abortion]] through the realization that the unborn child has infinite potential;
+*[[abortion]], in false denial that the unborn child has infinite potential;
 *[[quantum mechanics]] through infinite [[uncertainty]];
 *[[economics]] through the infinite opportunity discovered by the [[Coase theorem]];

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 *[[quantum mechanics]] through infinite [[uncertainty]];
 *[[economics]] through the infinite opportunity discovered by the [[Coase theorem]];
 *[[physics]] through the [[Big Bang]] (infinite [[energy]] density) and the speculative [[black holes]] (infinite mass density);
 *[[politics]] through dictatorships (infinite authority) and [[separation of powers]] to avoid concentration of infinite power;

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-'''Infinity''' means beyond enumeration.<ref>This improved definition comports best with the use of the term in mathematics, in everyday life, and across cultures and languages.</ref>  Appreciation of infinity -- particularly infinite time -- is remarkably useful mentally and emotionally.  "Paradise" is infinite [[happiness]] and [[joy]] eternally; "[[Hell]]" is infinite distress; in electronics, an "open circuit" has infinite resistance.<ref>Anxiety or fear about infinity is a psychiatric condition known as "apeirophobia", which exists because infinity is real.</ref> '''''Recognition of infinite time can overcome almost any anxiety'''''. Financial-related stress can be reduced by recognizing money as being infinite.  A human being has infinite potential.
+'''Infinity''' means beyond enumeration.<ref>This improved definition comports best with the use of the term in mathematics, in everyday life, and across cultures and languages.</ref>  Appreciation of infinity -- particularly infinite time -- is remarkably useful mentally and emotionally.  "Paradise" is infinite [[happiness]] and [[joy]] eternally; "[[Hell]]" is infinite distress; in electronics, an "open circuit" has infinite resistance.<ref>Anxiety or fear about infinity is a psychiatric condition known as "apeirophobia", which exists because infinity is real.</ref> '''''Recognition of infinite time can overcome almost any anxiety'''''. Financial-related stress can be reduced by recognizing that money is infinite.  A human being has infinite potential.
-The existence of infinity tends to prove the existence of [[God]].  Nature and the universe reflect mathematical truths, and denying the existence of God implicitly denies the existence of infinity, contrary to logic, evidence, and the enormous usefulness of the concept.
+The existence of infinity tends to prove the existence of [[God]].  The universe reflects mathematical truths, and denying the existence of God implicitly denies the existence of infinity, contrary to logic, evidence, and infinity's enormous usefulness.
-The food supply is essentially infinite in cultures where obesity is a problem; wealth is essentially infinite for those who cannot spend it all in their lifetime; and time is infinite for those who waste it.  "More" in those situations is meaningless; less is nothing to have anxiety about.  Some scoff at primitive cultures that use infinity rather than large numbers, but that is a productive way to view quantities larger than meaningful.  Also, infinity reinforces the primacy of the future (which is infinite) over the past (merely finite).  Given that "time is money," "infinite time" ([[eternal life]]) is "infinite money" and the concept helps deal with financial anxiety.
+The food supply is essentially infinite in cultures where obesity is a problem; wealth is essentially infinite for those who cannot spend it all in their lifetime; and time is infinite for those who waste it.  "More" in those situations is meaningless; less is nothing to have anxiety about.  Some scoff at primitive cultures that use infinity rather than large numbers, but that is a productive way to view quantities larger than meaningful.  Also, infinity reinforces the primacy of the future (which is infinite) over the past (merely finite).  Given that "time is money," "infinite time" ([[eternal life]]) is "infinite money" which helps reduce financial anxiety.
 [[File:Abbey Church Saint Louis.jpg|right|200px|thumb|church's infinite accessibility and outreach]]
 Understanding infinity has advanced many fields, including:

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 In [[baseball]], a pitcher has an infinite Earned Run Average (ERA) when he allows earned runs without obtaining any "outs" by the opposing team, because the ERA is a pitcher's average earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched (i.e., 27 outs obtained).  In 2019, Nationals relief pitcher Trevor Rosenthal had an infinite ERA until he finally obtained an out.<ref>https://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/2019/04/11/trevor-rosenthal-nationals-reliever-infinity/3433399002/</ref>
-Baseball has a potentially infinite duration, with no time limits.  For this and other reasons, the game has been described as timeless.
+Baseball has no clock and no time limits.  For this and other reasons, this classic game has been described as timeless (which is the same as infinite time).
 == Ongoing disputes about infinity ==

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 *[[Resurrection]]: personal awareness of infinite time implies, as a matter of logic, actual realization of infinite time through resurrection;
 *[[Abraham Lincoln]]: "Surely God would not have created such a being as man, with an ability to grasp the infinite, to exist only for a day! No, no, man was made for immortality";<ref>https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/abraham_lincoln_121271</ref>
 *in [[probability]], impossibility is what is infinitely unlikely;
 *as to dignity, "Infinite Dignity" is the title of a [[Vatican]] document condemning transgender procedures as published on April 8, 2024;<ref>https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2024/04/08/240408c.html</ref>

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-'''Infinity''' means beyond enumeration.<ref>This improved definition comports best with the use of the term in mathematics, in everyday life, and across cultures and languages.</ref>  Appreciation of infinity -- particularly infinite time -- is remarkably useful mentally, emotionally, and personally.  "Paradise" is infinite [[happiness]] and [[joy]] eternally; "[[Hell]]" is infinite distress; in electronics, an "open circuit" has infinite resistance.<ref>Anxiety or fear about infinity is a psychiatric condition known as "apeirophobia", which exists because infinity is real.</ref> '''''Recognition of infinite time can overcome almost any anxiety'''''. Financial-related stress can be reduced by recognizing money as being infinite.  A human being has infinite potential.
+'''Infinity''' means beyond enumeration.<ref>This improved definition comports best with the use of the term in mathematics, in everyday life, and across cultures and languages.</ref>  Appreciation of infinity -- particularly infinite time -- is remarkably useful mentally and emotionally.  "Paradise" is infinite [[happiness]] and [[joy]] eternally; "[[Hell]]" is infinite distress; in electronics, an "open circuit" has infinite resistance.<ref>Anxiety or fear about infinity is a psychiatric condition known as "apeirophobia", which exists because infinity is real.</ref> '''''Recognition of infinite time can overcome almost any anxiety'''''. Financial-related stress can be reduced by recognizing money as being infinite.  A human being has infinite potential.
 The existence of infinity tends to prove the existence of [[God]].  Nature and the universe reflect mathematical truths, and denying the existence of God implicitly denies the existence of infinity, contrary to logic, evidence, and the enormous usefulness of the concept.
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 *movies: ''From Here to Eternity'' (1953), ''Avengers: Infinity War'' (2018), ''Infinity'' (1996), and the TV show ''Forever'' (2014-15); famous lines from movies include "To Infinity and Beyond!" (Buzz Lightyear in the ''Toy Story'' films).
 *understanding other terms: infinity helps define other terms concisely, such as "open circuit" (infinite resistance);
-*[[Resurrection]]: personal awareness of infinite time implies, as a matter of logic, personal realization of infinite time;
+*[[Resurrection]]: personal awareness of infinite time implies, as a matter of logic, actual realization of infinite time through resurrection;
 *[[Abraham Lincoln]]: "Surely God would not have created such a being as man, with an ability to grasp the infinite, to exist only for a day! No, no, man was made for immortality";<ref>https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/abraham_lincoln_121271</ref>
 *in [[probability]], impossibility is what is infinitely unlikely;
 *as to dignity, "Infinite Dignity" is the title of a [[Vatican]] document condemning transgender procedures as published on April 8, 2024;<ref>https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2024/04/08/240408c.html</ref>
 *in [[infinity in engineering|engineering]]: in a DC circuit, a capacitor has infinite resistance, while [[Earth]] has infinite capacitance;
-*in an [[eclipse]], the refraction of light around the [[Moon]] results in the equivalent of infinite light intensity (which can damage the naked eye); and
+*in an [[eclipse]], the refraction of light around the [[Moon]] results in the equivalent of infinite light intensity (which can damage the naked eye);
 *in carpentry and [[materials science]]: wood of infinite density is needed to build a spiral staircase with multiple twists and no supporting column, which can hold a dozen people at once - see [[Loretto spiral staircase]].

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:39, February 17, 2025
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−	'''Infinity''' means beyond enumeration.<ref>This improved definition comports best with the use of the term in mathematics, in everyday life, and across cultures and languages.</ref> Appreciation of infinity -- particularly infinite time -- is remarkably useful mentally, emotionally, and personally. "Paradise" is infinite [[happiness]] eternally; "[[Hell]]" is infinite distress; in electronics, an "open circuit" has infinite resistance.<ref>Anxiety or fear about infinity is a psychiatric condition known as "apeirophobia", which exists because infinity is real.</ref> '''''Recognition of infinite time can overcome almost any anxiety'''''. Financial-related stress can be reduced by recognizing money as being infinite. A human being has infinite potential.	+	'''Infinity''' means beyond enumeration.<ref>This improved definition comports best with the use of the term in mathematics, in everyday life, and across cultures and languages.</ref> Appreciation of infinity -- particularly infinite time -- is remarkably useful mentally, emotionally, and personally. "Paradise" is infinite [[happiness]] and [[joy]] eternally; "[[Hell]]" is infinite distress; in electronics, an "open circuit" has infinite resistance.<ref>Anxiety or fear about infinity is a psychiatric condition known as "apeirophobia", which exists because infinity is real.</ref> '''''Recognition of infinite time can overcome almost any anxiety'''''. Financial-related stress can be reduced by recognizing money as being infinite. A human being has infinite potential.

	The existence of infinity tends to prove the existence of [[God]]. Nature and the universe reflect mathematical truths, and denying the existence of God implicitly denies the existence of infinity, contrary to logic, evidence, and the enormous usefulness of the concept.		The existence of infinity tends to prove the existence of [[God]]. Nature and the universe reflect mathematical truths, and denying the existence of God implicitly denies the existence of infinity, contrary to logic, evidence, and the enormous usefulness of the concept.

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 == Anselm and Shakespeare ==
 [[Anselm]] focused on infinity to prove the divinity of [[Christ]].  [[Chaucer]] referenced "infinity" in 1374, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.  But [[Shakespeare]] used infinity more than anyone up until his time, in such classics as [[Hamlet]] ("A king of infinite space") and [[Romeo and Juliet]] (“My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite.”).  This passage from Hamlet is particularly memorable in referring to the infinite:<ref>Hamlet, 2.2.314</ref>
 {{cquote|What a piece of work is a man! how noble in reason! how infinite in faculty! in form and moving how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the world! the paragon of animals!}}

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 [[Eternity]] is infinite time, a concept that was also first introduced and emphasized by Jesus.  The [[Old Testament]] has few references to "eternity" and "eternal", while the [[New Testament]] repeatedly teaches it.  For example, Jesus taught about infinity in connection with [[Judgment Day]] when "these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."<ref>Matt 45:26 ([[NAB]]).</ref>
-== Mistranslated as "unsearchable" ==
+=== Mistranslated as "unsearchable" ===
 Many translations of the [[Bible]] mistakenly use the term "unsearchable" when "infinite" is the intended meaning. Ancient Greek lacked a word for "infinity", and instead used "apeiron" for indefinite or unlimited.<ref>Some say that the obscure Greek term "aphorismenon" was closer to the modern term of infinity.</ref>