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George Duke wrote on Sun, May 4, 2008 08:02 PM UTC:
Lasswitz's Universal Library (1901) settles on 100 different characters
and each volume 40 lines per page, 50 characters per line etc.: 10^6
characters per volume. We want to express in ''print'' everything which
can ever be said, be it scientific or metaphysical. How many volumes are
required? In the Library, Lasswitz asserts, are the lost works of Tacitus
and all the future works of everybody as well. One volume has the ''space
repeated one million times.'' Another goes that way until one 'a' at the
end of line 40, page 500. The CV counterpart might be Large one-dimensional
Chess with one shared royal Alfil. 
In 13th Century, Lullus' device used concentric rings, to be turned to
bring inscribed words into new arrangements: Blood is *blue* *green*
*purple* *red*. Other investigators followed. Giordano Bruno, Athanasius
Kirchner, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz. Leibnitz's calculating machine,
reducing the problem, performed addition, division, roots, exhibited at
London in 1763.  Kempelen's chess-playing 'automaton' Turk, invented
1769, debuted at London 1783. [See previous here] Symbolic logic,
combinatorics, game theory, computer algorithms. No infinity. Instead,
perfectly finite number whether volumes, game Rules-sets, languages,
within certain defined parameters only so many possible arrangements.
Variously, according to aspects and whether we count books or sheets: as
many as 10^2000000 (Books) or as few as 25^1000 (Sheets). Herewith strict 500 pages or equivalent, although notionally a Variant could postulate 501 pages. A fortiori, within hundred-square space or less there can be only finite Rules-sets likewise because they one and all are circumscribed or subsumed within finite wording and characters. [Source: ''Postscript to 'The Universal Library' '' by Willy Ley]

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