7 ms·
Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Matter_content%E2%80%94number_of_atoms https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Matter_con
by marris 4y ago
Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Matter_content%E2%80%94number_of_atoms https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Matter_con...) thinks there are 10^80 atoms in the observable universe, which is approximately 2^240. If you only need to assign a unique ID to each atom, then you need a counter with approximately 240 bits.
But if you needed to store even one bit of information per atom (e.g. whether it is hydrogen or not), then don't you need 2^240 bits uncompressed?
- moralestapia 4y agoYup, his tweets sometime make him seem like the deGrasse Tyson of math, tbh. (And yes, I am familiar with who John Baez is and his work).