- Obi Wan Stevobi
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- Exalted Mythic Member
Posted by: theslatcher
Posted by: Mastergee
Because maths makes no sense in the real world.
It does. But according to OP the tortoise's travel speed is a tenth of Achilles(always). However, by that standard;
Tortoise = 10m/the time
Achilles = 100m/the time
So, after (the time)*2, Achilles will have traveled 200m and the tortoise 20m.
But if you want it to go more advanced, Achilles still wins.
The obvious answer is that Achilles does win the race handily. And any practical person would simply say that Achilles passed the turtle at the 111 meter mark. But, if you break it down logically to determine at what exact distance the turtle was over taken, it isn't possible. You end up repeating forever. At some point you just have to give up and round.
In ancient Greece, when logic was in its infancy and they were trying to define what motion actually means, this was a major problem. They knew the correct answer was that Achilles won the race, because that could be demonstrated, but they couldn't logically explain how the faster thing could pass the slower thing granted the slower had been given a head start.
Just a bit of mathematical history. Came across it today and figured I'd share.