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jl6 • yesterday at 9:53 PM • 1 reply • view on HN

Yes, regardless of the specific labels, there are clearly interesting and meaningful differences between these things, and it’s worth having vocabulary capable of distinguishing them. The whole universe is a continuum of stuff but it helps to have more than just the word “stuff”.


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VorpalWay • yesterday at 10:26 PM

Arguably there are just two categories: stuff and not-stuff (aka vacuum). And then you go from intergalactic space (almost entirely not-stuff) via interstellar space (marginally more stuff) through planets and stars up to neutron stars (lots of stuff) to black holes (well, we don't actually know what is inside a black hole exactly, our models break down).

Is this classification useful for everyday life? Not at all, but looking at things from different perspectives for a change can be quite amusing.