critical minds want to know the answer to this question

  • jeff 👨‍💻@programming.dev
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    4 months ago

    I’m way overthinking this, but I’m going with finite. It could be an unfathomably large number, but gender is a human construct and there are a finite number of humans. Let’s say each human that ever lives has a unique gender identity - there could be billions or trillions, but it would still be finite.

    • Match!!@pawb.social
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      4 months ago

      what about Genders Georg, who lives in a cave and has uncountably many genders all by xemself?

      • jeff 👨‍💻@programming.dev
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        4 months ago

        I thought something similar, but the human brain is finite, so I don’t think a single person could have an uncountably infinite gender; unfathomably large, maybe, but it would still be finite.

        Edit: I’m not trying to be bigoted here. If someone does identify that way I don’t want to discredit your identity.

        • polonius-rex@kbin.run
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          4 months ago

          A single human brain is finite, but the possible configurations of neurons across any possible hypothetical brain is decidedly infinite.

          • jeff 👨‍💻@programming.dev
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            4 months ago

            I’m no mathematician, but I don’t think that’s how it works. A quick Google says there are 100 billion neurons. So you would have 100000000000! possible combinations, unfathomably large, but finite. Granted, a human brain is more complex than the configuration of neurons, but I don’t know how it becomes infinite.

            I’m also way past the point of overthinking this.

            • polonius-rex@kbin.run
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              4 months ago

              yeah, but the relative positions and relative lengths and relative widths and relative densities and relative conductivities of those neurons are real numbers

              • jeff 👨‍💻@programming.dev
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                4 months ago

                Now we are getting into the quantum physics question of if the universe is discrete or continuous. Which seems to be unsolved.

                So I guess that’s my answer. If the universe is discrete then there are finite genders, and if it’s continuous then there could be infinite genders.

                • knokelmaat@beehaw.org
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                  4 months ago

                  I fucking love where this went, as I was thinking the exact same responses while reading this thread! Love it when a question about gender results in fundamental ideas surrounding mathematics and the nature of reality.

    • polonius-rex@kbin.run
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      4 months ago

      but you could birth a new person who didn’t fit that finite number

      there will always be a hypothetical new person who could exist

      • Match!!@pawb.social
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        4 months ago

        me, pedantically giving birth to a new child in order to prove the n+1 case

        • t3rmit3@beehaw.org
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          4 months ago

          Countries have been trying gamification and incentivization to increase birth rates, when they should have been appealing to our pedantic impulses all along.