different between hypothetical vs computronium

English

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ?????????? (hupothetikós)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?ha?p????t?kl/

Adjective

hypothetical (comparative more hypothetical, superlative most hypothetical)

1. Based upon a hypothesis; conjectural
2. (philosophy) conditional; contingent upon some hypothesis/antecedent

Synonyms

• conjectural
• (contingent upon some hypothesis): conditional

Antonyms

• (actual): actual
• (in philosophy): categorical

Translations

Noun

hypothetical (plural hypotheticals)

1. A hypothetical situation or proposition

   These hypotheticals serve no purpose until we have more information.

Related terms

• hypothesis
• hypothesize

English

Etymology

Blend of computer +? neutronium.

Noun

computronium (uncountable)

1. (science fiction) Programmable matter.
2. (science fiction, philosophy) A hypothetical material engineered to maximize its use as a computing substrate.
   • 2005, Charles Stross, Accelerando, Ace Books, Chapter 1, "Lobsters":

     They should be working on uploading and solving the nanoassembly conformational problem instead. Then we could turn all the available dumb matter into computronium and use it for processing our thoughts. Long-term, it's the only way to go.

   • 2014, Nick Bostrom, Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies, Oxford University Press, page 140:

     To this end, the AI might produce computronium (matter organized in a configuration that is optimal for computation) and use it to implement digital minds in states of euphoria.