"Who Can Name the Bigger Number?" is an essay by computer scientist Scott Aaronson at 17 years old on naming larger and larger numbers. The essay is somewhat dated, so there is no coverage on larger numbers that have appeared in modern times (such as TREE(3)), but it still discusses how utilizing new paradigms is more important than repetitively iterating fast-growing functions.
The Big Number Duel at MIT was inspired by this essay; the winning entry is known as Rayo's number.
In 2017, Aaronson gave a follow-up talk that references the article.
External links[]
- The essay at Aaronson's website
- "My Big Numbers talk at Festivaletteratura"