Wolfram has always been difficult for me to follow. I think it's because he tends to drone on, I don't know why. I don't think even he knows why. My understanding of what I have managed to listen to or read is that being who we are, we don't process information fast enough in order to see much of what is around us, even while it is happening before us. An example is to take a minute under consideration, you can think about how long a minute is. It's tangible to us. It's not very long. But if we think about how long a femtosecond is, it is not tangible at all. We can't experience a femtosecond. We can experience a whole bunch of femto seconds, but not just one. This is just one example of what I perceived the meaning of his thinking to be. Is that wrong, or so far off? Not only can we not experience a femtosecond, we will never be able to experience a femtosecond because our brains are simply not fast enough and aren't built to exist at such a scale. If that's what it means, then does that mean that he is referring to our ability to exist in certain scales, and our tendency to know the scale in which we exist? And, to exist outside of that scale, requires different computational parameters? Additionally, is this an extension of dimensions, just in time, not space? Does he differentiate between the two?
I know that the perception of scale has more to do with, well, perception, whereas computational irreducibility (as I understand it to be, anyway) is more of a function of natural processes....or THE underlying function from which all other functions stemming from that, are built upon. ... Right? Between that and perception of the scale in which we have evolved to exist in, it seems like they are at least closely related...
Some of what has been discussed here in the comments has me doubting my understanding, is the reason I ask.
To extend my question, could computational irreducibility help to explain why the Universe tends to "recycle" so many parts of itself? Is that some sort of telltale sign that when we see these patterns (golden ratio, fractals, recurring structures in naturee), we are looking at a fundamental aspect of the universe in some form, or it's computationally irreducible equivalent, or is this to be determined?
So this is about where it clicked for me: A function, to us normies, is something consisting of at least one part that doesn't do anything and another part that does something but has no tangible form, 'the operation'. So, to me, irreducible can only mean that there is some level where the function is the thing and vice versa, so that this irreducible function, from our (current) space-time-perspective, has no constituents except 'self'.
Which is nonsense, because self is worthless without stuff it can react with or to. Except, is it really?
A femtosecond can't be experienced because subpixel-sized movements/fractions of reactions happen during this short measurement. But that's irrelevant for the interface between this function and nature and evolution from their current space-time-POV and their, and thus our, space-time-blind-spots. It's like thought and action when there is not enough time to stop a movement or when stopping that exact movement would terminate the intended result.
But I actually don't think that irreducibility is the right term. It should be liminality or something, focusing on the fact that nothing temporary is measurable before the emergence of THE underlying function, which is what I used to think The Planck length is for (more or less) constant space.
I know that the perception of scale has more to do with, well, perception, whereas computational irreducibility (as I understand it to be, anyway) is more of a function of natural processes....or THE underlying function from which all other functions stemming from that, are built upon. ... Right? Between that and perception of the scale in which we have evolved to exist in, it seems like they are at least closely related...
Some of what has been discussed here in the comments has me doubting my understanding, is the reason I ask.
To extend my question, could computational irreducibility help to explain why the Universe tends to "recycle" so many parts of itself? Is that some sort of telltale sign that when we see these patterns (golden ratio, fractals, recurring structures in naturee), we are looking at a fundamental aspect of the universe in some form, or it's computationally irreducible equivalent, or is this to be determined?