Talk:1208: Footnote Labyrinths
Way to nerd-snipe me, Randall. Alpha (talk) 04:52, 6 May 2013 (UTC)
In the nested-footnotes interpretation, 5 has to be ignored: The 6 must be true, and the 6 says that it’s “actually a 1”, but with footnote 2+2 which says “ibid.” and thus equals footnote 3, which is true. So 6 really does mean actually a 1, which leaves 5 to be ignored. --77.186.8.191 10:47, 6 May 2013 (UTC)
The footnote for 6 is actually 1 to the 2 to the 2 Schmammel (talk) 12:36, 6 May 2013 (UTC)
Explaination is wrong : abc = a(bc) = ab^c (confer the definition of a gogol = 10^100 = 10102, and a gogolplex = 10^gogol = 10(10100), not 10^110. So since 1^2= 1, No12 really means No1.
Question, alternative explination
I wasn't really satisfied with the whole discarding of the infinite loop, so I worked through the problem seperately using the nested footnotes. Then, when we hit the infinite loop I split between the two possible answers (either the infinite loop ends on true or false). As I read it, they both get the same answer:
no (3)
no (not true (5))
no (not true (true (2 < 6 < 3))
no (not true (true (2 < 6 < (not true))))
no (not true (true (2 < (actually 1 < 2 < 2 (not true 3 < 2)))))
no (not true (true (2 < (actually 1 < 2 < 2 (not true (5)))))
Split!
If 6 is false (infinite loop possibility)
no (3 < 5 < 2)
no (not true (7)) - meaningless, so discard
no (not true)
If 6 is true (infinite loop possibility)
no (3 < 5 < 1 < 2 < 2)
no (3 < 5 < 1 < 4)
no (3 < 5 < 1)
no (3)
no (not true)
Both lead to the answer "... experiments to observe this and we found evidence for it in our data".
- Yes, but at each stage you may "toggle between interpreting nested footnotes as footnotes on footnotes and interpreting them as exponents (minus one, modulo 6, plus 1)." That is, a23 may either be read as "apply note 8 (=2mod6) to text a", or as "apply note 3 to text "2", then the result to text a".
