Re: [asa] Radioactive decay of U-238 is imminent (just wait a few billion years)

I *thought* I had a handle on what immanence means --which was in part related
to time. (e.g. the car crash was imminent.) Then, after consulting some
dictionaries I discover the spelling difference between imminence and immanence;
the latter of which, apparently has nothing to do with time, but probably
everything to do with what TEs often talk about. I think I was often confusing
the two words (& not even realizing they weren't one word.)

Thanks for helping me clarify my vocabulary. (maybe some others had similar
confusion.)

--Merv
  

Quoting Murray Hogg <muzhogg@netspace.net.au>:

> John Burgeson (ASA member) wrote:
> > I take "imminent" to mean "at any time." No indication in the word as
> > to whether that time is 10 nanoseconds from now -- or 4 million years.
>
> Hi Burgy,
>
> It strikes me that a scientific example illustrating the notion of immanence
> would be radioactive decay.
>
> To take the most extreme instance, there is nothing inconsistent with the
> observation that for any atom of Uranium-238 the decay to Thorium-234 is
> "imminent" AND with the belief that with a half-life of about 4.5 billion
> years it's probably not worth sitting around waiting for it to happen!
>
> Blessings,
> Murray
>
>
>
>
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Received on Thu Jan 22 15:37:45 2009