Equation 6 · Part 9 · When Generation Becomes Free, Attention Becomes the Scarce Good
Denominator: c_v G_t
What this part means
The complete quantity below the fraction bar; it must be nonzero for this division.
Its job in the formula
occurs below the fraction bar. The quantity above the bar is divided by this expression; zero is excluded as a denominator.
Full expression→Denominator: c_v G_t→Article meaning
The passage around this formula
An accounting identity makes the consequence visible. Let be the number of claims placed before some audience in period t , let be that audience’s total attention budget, and let be the average attention cost of verifying one claim. The number of claims that can be verified, and the fraction of what arrives that is actually checked, are then . This is bookkeeping, not a finding. Its only content is what it forbids. Simon’s point was that is bounded by hours and by human processing capacity, and that this bound is not responsive to technology in the way that is. If rises by an order of magnitude, falls by an order of magnitude unless…
Learn the underlying idea
A fraction a/b means a divided by b. The top number is the numerator; the bottom number is the denominator, and it cannot be zero.
Open the illustrated fractions: division written vertically guide →
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