19-Year-Old Develops Ocean Cleanup Array That Could Remove 7,250,000 Tons Of Plastic From Oceans

[zipplewrath]

41. Slight technical fallacy

If they spit out half with every revolution, it will never spit it all out. Partially you'll be spitting stuff back and forth between gyres. In reality though, that equation probably doesn't hold true as the magnitude of the gyres decreases. Somewhere you probably achieve some sort of equilibrium where it doesn't spit out any more than it takes in. Sooner or later you're gonna have to go get the stuff. Although by then you may not care enough to go.

I'm reminded of an old joke from engineering school.

A physicist, a mathematician, and an engineer are entered into a contest. At one end of a room they place the three in chairs. It is a very long room with lines marked off in increments. At the other end, they place the worlds most beautiful woman. The three are told they can approach her, but only by reducing the distance between them by half or less with each step in her direction. The bell sounds and the engineer takes off. The physicists and the mathematician stay seated. When queried, the physicist explains that it is pointless, approaching by half will never allow you to get to the other end of the room, you'll always fall short. The mathematician nods his head in agreement. The engineer, still moving quickly across the room announces, "I can get close enough!".