The collapse of supertasks
History and Philosophy of Physics
2013-09-03 v1 General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Abstract
A supertask consists in the performance of an infinite number of actions in a finite time. I show that any attempt to carry out a supertask will produce a divergence of the curvature of spacetime, resulting in the formation of a black hole. I maintain that supertasks, contrarily to a popular view among philosophers, are physically impossible. Supertasks, literally, collapse under their own weight.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1309.0144,
title = {The collapse of supertasks},
author = {Gustavo E. Romero},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1309.0144},
year = {2013}
}
Comments
10 pages, accepted for publication in Foundations of Science