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Re: Energy content of a mathematical result.

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg48702] Re: Energy content of a mathematical result.
• From: John Doty <jpd at whispertel.LoseTheH.net>
• Date: Fri, 11 Jun 2004 03:52:25 -0400 (EDT)
• References: <ca3gnu$rri$1@smc.vnet.net>
• Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com

It's essentially 100% hot air. In theory, the thermodynamic cost of 
computation is zero. Google for "reversible computation".

There is a slight theoretical cost to communicate the result from the 
computer to you (since you are not a reversible system!), given by 
Shannon's Channel Capacity Theorem.

In practice, of course, we don't use reversible computers (nor do we use 
reversible heat engines).

-jpd


Matthias.Bode at oppenheim.de wrote:
> Dear Colleagues,
> 
> is there a theory - or hypothesis - which share of the processors energy
> consumption goes into the result when e. g. a system of equations is being
> solved or a list is being subjected to Sort (by Mathematica)? - The
> processors output cannot be just 100 per cent hot air.
> 
> Best regards,
> Matthias Bode
> Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. KGaA
> Untermainanlage 1
> D-60329 Frankfurt am Main
> GERMANY
> Tel.: +49(0)69 71 34 53 80
> Mobile: +49(0)172 6 74 95 77
> Fax: +49(0)69 71 34 95 380
> E-mail: matthias.bode at oppenheim.de
> Internet: http://www.oppenheim.de
>