Scott Aaronson - Is Reality Discrete or Continuous?

Imagine you're counting your toys, that’s discrete; each toy is a separate piece. But if you’re measuring how tall you’ve grown over time, that's more like continuous, like the smooth flow of water from a tap.

Scott Aaronson asks: Is Reality made up of separate pieces (like toys), or is it flowing smoothly all the time (like water)? He’s looking at whether space and time are discrete or continuous, kind of like asking if you're made of lego blocks or clay.

If reality were like lego blocks, then everything would be made up of tiny, separate pieces, you couldn't get any smaller than that. But if it's more like playdough, you could keep dividing things forever; there’s no smallest piece.

Think about a staircase versus a ramp. A staircase has steps (discrete), but a ramp is smooth and continuous. Maybe the world is like one of those, or maybe it’s both! Scientists are trying to figure out which one fits better with how everything works. Imagine you're counting your toys, that’s discrete; each toy is a separate piece. But if you’re measuring how tall you’ve grown over time, that's more like continuous, like the smooth flow of water from a tap.

Scott Aaronson asks: Is Reality made up of separate pieces (like toys), or is it flowing smoothly all the time (like water)? He’s looking at whether space and time are discrete or continuous, kind of like asking if you're made of lego blocks or clay.