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And Rosta scripsit:
> > A bit of stuff can only be singled out of the mass of all the bits of
> > stuff if it is physically separate. So the middle 1/9 of a glass of
> > water is not a lo djacu}, because it is not physically distinct from
> > its neighbours.
>
> True for all but the most contrived pragmatic contexts. The real
> criterion is not physical separateness but simply fixed size or
> fixed boundaries in conceptual space.
I agree. But there are predicates that are natural perfect atoms,
such as "x1 is a cubic metre of water", tretretrecau. If you have
a tank of water, it is a group with respect to this predicate.
(At least if its size is an integral number of tretremitre.)
--
John Cowan jcowan@hidden.email www.ccil.org/~cowan www.reutershealth.com
"In computer science, we stand on each other's feet."
--Brian K. Reid