Point taken. I am accustomed to seeing "mega" used as a prefix
usually meaning "a million" or more specifically "2 to the 20th
power" or "1,048,576" as in megabytes or megapixels, but I guess
these also were intended to mean "important numbers" of things.
Gigathanks for your answer.
BJB
--- In BoundaryPoint@egroups.com, michael donner <m@d...> wrote:
> from brian earlier
>
> >why "mega?"
>
> in a word whimsy
>
>
>
>
> but your question tho short deserves better than a glib answer
> for it is actually a mega question
> & i thank you for it accordingly
>
> indeed i am not even sure i grasp your full intention in putting it
just
> that way
> but this much i can & do gladly say right off
> & you can fill me back in if i have missed any of your curiosity
>
>
> first
> to my mind & i think in objective reality also mega means big in
> physical size &or great in importance
> & since points have no physical size the term megapoint must refer
only to
> the relative importance of such a point
> or else it is a misconception & a misnomer &or a joke
> which admittedly it also partly is
>
> for a sense of the real greatness of megapoints tho consider that
the
> azconmut 4corners megapoint averages over 20 thousand visitors a
month
>
> for recent news of it btw see
> http://seattlep-i.nwsource.com/national/four13.shtml
>
> its closest known runner up multistate point in the united states
the
> tristate point coksok averages about 30 visitors a month
>
> the only other such multipoint with a guestbook to compare nesdwy
> averages about 1 visitor a month
>
> so in terms of perceived importance there is no contest
> for we simply have 1 megapoint that just about everyone recognizes
> & 64 or 82 other secondary level multipoints all mostly forgotten
> except perhaps by the couple dozen of us here etc
>
>
> second
> tho actual point size never varies the number of boundary lines
convergent
> at any given point is perhaps its most distinctive characteristic &
is
> responsible for the standard but still slightly extravagant
nomenclature
> embracing such terms as tripoint quadripoint quintipoint etc
> even tho users of these terms know full well that each of the
various sorts
> of points they indicate is but a single & uniform point
>
> for a point is a point is a point
>
> terms like triple point or trijunction or tristate point are perhaps
> slightly more exacting
>
> but even if junctions of only 3 boundaries were not the standard
issue &
> didnt stand in the overwhelming majority & had not by their sheer
> ordinariness automatically ennobled all the more complex boundary
junctions
> such as quadripoints & quintipoints & made these into megapoints by
virtue
> of their own great rarity alone
> the latter would still be megapoints by virtue of their more
numerous
> consituencies or participating sovereignties
>
>
> third
> if you are asking why i like mega in preference to any other term
> then i must say
> all boundary junction points are already technically great points or
> megapoints when compared to all the less distinguished points on a
boundary
> line
> so points more complex than tripoints are really not just great or
> megapoints but actually greater or meizopoints
>
> oops i will avoid that last word tho because it is so ugly & opaque
> & i have avoided making such technical distinctions generally
> so as to focus upon & perhaps even magnify the most obvious
differences
> & thus for simplicity & convenience i have devalued my names as
follows
>
> number common name invented names distribution
> 3 tripoint multipoint 99 percent
> 4 quadripoint multipoint & megapoint 1 percent
> 5 quintipoint multipoint & megapoint & meizopoint very rare
> 6 sexipoint etc
>
> & similarly & by the same token the greatest point in any given
set i
> have been referring to as the maxipoint of that set just because
this
> seems useful & fun too
>
>
> so azconmut is the uncontested maxipoint of the united states as
well as
> its only secondary megapoint
>
> & the south pole a former sexinational point used to be the clear
> maxipoint of the world as well as its only primary megapoint
>
> & bwnazmzw if actualized might become the new maxipoint & only
primary
> megapoint of the world
>
>
> but otherwise
> since there are evidently no primary quadripoints nor any secondary
> quintipoints anywhere in the world to stand out from their classes
& lead
> them & the world
> then the bottom line appears to be that the tertiary quintipoint
glhemaokpa
> is at the moment by default or tiebreak the maxipoint of the
world
>
> again pure whimsy but at the same time a painstaking reflection of
> objective reality
>
>
> fourth
> if you are asking why i like to distinguish megapoints at all
rather than
> just go back to sleep & call things tri that arent tri
> or other things states that arent states
> or other things points that arent points
> or not call things points that are points etc etc
> well you know me i cant sit still & am rather fond of the truth
> especially when it is so entertaining
>
>
> but please say more to help me out if this still misses your point
>
> m