Wang's Carpets
by Greg Egan · first published 2012
75% recommend25% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Short story on computational Wang tiles and cellular automata, later expanded into the novel Diaspora. Its mind-bending ideas about simulation and tiling suit sci-fi readers drawn to those themes.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Far in the distant, post-human future, the Cater-Zimmermann community set out to refute the theory that the universe is created exclusively for mankind by cloning themselves a thousand times over and sending each copy to a different star within the galaxy. One of the copies of Cater-Zimmermann, Paolo Venetti, arrives at Orpheus; a water-world inhabited by floating mats that perform as a Turing machine.
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Add Diaspora by Greg Egan to the simulated minds reading list (the story Wang's Carpets within it is one of my favorites).
on “We can, must, and will simulate nematode brains” ↗…dig aperiodic tiling, Greg Egan wrote a great short story in his book 'Diaspora' about computational wang tiles. http://www.amazon.com/Diaspora-Greg-Egan-ebook/dp/B00E83YOEI (the short story is titled Wang's Carpets, available separately as well, but the whole book is worth buying or checking out from the library). I hope this is considered on topic. I find fiction, particular that which inspires interest in math/code…
on “Herringbone Wang Tiles” ↗* Greg Egan - Wang's Carpets - http://bookre.org/reader?file=222997 (not exactly in the same vein, but would very much recommend nonetheless) * if you like this, then two of his novels: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaspora_(novel)…
on “The Egg” ↗Greg Egan has some fantastic writing on considering extra-dimensional space. See Wang's Carpets as the basis for https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaspora_(novel)
on “John Conway” ↗Highly recommend the short story, ”Wang’s Carpets” by Egan titled in honor of mathematician Hao Wang. See http://akkartik.name/post/wangs-carpets
on ““Scale” by Greg Egan” ↗…better. Hacking the universe (maybe or maybe not if a simulation). It would in some ways just become an extension of physics (in effect). This gives me an opportunity to bring up a favorite story of mine. Wang's Carpets by Greg Egan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wang%27s_Carpets
on “Oscar Zariski was one of the founders of modern algebraic geometry” ↗Greg Egan's work has its share of humans but also some extremely imaginative aliens. I am not sure who can relate to the aliens in Wang's Carpets. Greg Egan is a very good example of a novelist who is a GOAT but will be dismissed by most critics of lit-fic because "his characters don't have arcs" or some such.
on “The cultural decline of literary fiction” ↗FWIW the short story that that part of the book is based on is available for under a dollar Wang's Carpets, by Greg Egan https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B009ZVKQVS/
on “Wang Tiles and Turing Machines” ↗How about cellular automata simulating (spoiler) complex life forms in many dimensions, implemented in large polysaccharide constructions? :) (Greg Egan's "Wang's Carpets", later incorporated as a chapter into his "Diaspora".) http://bookre.org/reader?file=222997&pg=1 (http://archive.is/ocAgN)
on “Saturn moon 'able to support life'” ↗…accrue as a result of several different advances, though) 80% - Universe not discovered to be a simulation. 99% - Universe not discovered to be an "accidental simulation". (see Greg Egan's sci-fi story "Wang's Carpets" if you don't know what I mean here) 98% - No intelligent alien life discovered. 97% - No alien life discovered. 93% EDIT: A few more: - Ideas from logic programming languages are incorporated into…
on “Ask HN: A New Decade. Any Predictions?” ↗