Infinite Coastlines?

What if I told you that all coastlines are infinite? You would probably find that hard to believe right?

In fact, any coastline length that is measured may very well be inaccurate. It may even be considered indefinite.

The reasoning behind this proposition takes its root from quite a well known paradox, known as the coastline paradox. A paradox is a claim or situation which may seem far from truth or basic reasoning, but is quite real (and sometimes mind-blowing) when explained or analyzed.

This paradox describes and even proves how no coastline can be successfully measured. When asked a simple question about how long the US coastline is, different organizations have different answers: the CIA measured the coastline to be 19,924 km, the Congressional Research Service estimated it to be 19,929 km, and both these values are in stark contrast to the 153,646 km proposed by the NOAA.

You see, as the unit of measure becomes smaller and more specific, the more precise of a measurement you get. But if the smallest unit known to mankind is on a molecular level, that could mean that the measure of every distinct object or entity is infinite due to the level of precision you would need in order to deem an accurate measurement.

Due to this, it can be claimed that there is no possible way to determine the actual measurement of shapes like clouds, snowflakes or mountains, because of their complex shape, which is somewhat proven by the coastline paradox.

So, the next time you read about a coastline’s length, you know that its measurement may not be completely accurate. Although this absurd concept seems to defy our perceived knowledge of measurement, it also establishes the fact that even the most basic things we think little of can have such minute, yet incredible, factors.

Coastline measurements

Picture Source: Researchgate.net