this post was submitted on 24 Oct 2024

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submitted 4 weeks ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 44 points 4 weeks ago (3 children)

How so? Absolute zero is the coldest possible temperature, it's physically impossible for an object to be colder. Saying that's arbitrary is like saying it's arbitrary to define 0 m/s as not moving.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

0 m/s as not moving.

Well, technically...

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 weeks ago

If the earth rotates but the object doesnt does it move?

If the object remains still in space but the earth moves away from it, does it move?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago)

Every decision is arbitrary in some way. We, as humans, defined it would be better to arrange the periodic table a certain way, based on characteristics of the elements, but the characteristics chosen are arbitrary. We could've just chosen a different set for ordering, like alphabetical.

Tho, that's a correct (IIRC) yet weird usage of "arbitrary", and since language exists to talk, not to be correct, we might as well not use this definition of arbitrary and stick to what conveys information better.

Edit: I'm wrong! perhaps "correct" was the word I meant to say, not sure tho.

[+] [email protected] -25 points 4 weeks ago (5 children)

It’s still assuming a scale. It’s actually worse because the scale is implied by context.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 4 weeks ago

Zero kelvin is very contextually useful. Put very simply it literally relates to the motion of atoms. At zero, they move zero.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

What? What context? The scale is the same as Celsius which is derived from the properties of water. And 0K is when there is absolutely no heat energy in the thing being measured. There is no context where this is not the case.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 4 weeks ago

The context of.. reading the fabric of the universe?

You're right, that is totally irrelevant to.. a physicist.

I see you're trolling, so I look forward to your condescending response, but to be successfully condescending you have to be at least somewhat convincing in displaying intelligence, if you can manage that then this whole argumentative act will go much better and people will get much angrier.

TLDR, Try the same troll tactic but with less incompetence for better results.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 4 weeks ago

Halving something requires a scale...

[–] [email protected] -3 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

The scale doesn't matter, double is always double. No matter if expressed in 1m is half of 2m, or 3ft is half of 6ft. Same is true for temperature, als long as the zero point is fixed.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

Scale always matters, it is the anchor point for shared communication.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Double is a scale in itself, it assumes the first thing as 1 and the second thing as 2. The are no other scales needed when I say something is double the other thing. The other thing is the scale here.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 weeks ago

holy shit lol