The system must satisfy two conditions: it must remain in equilibrium with its environment, and it must never discard information. But if the universe expands, equilibrium is impossible, because radiation gets diluted and stretched in its wavelength. An accelerating universe changes too rapidly for the system to reach equilibrium. And second, the requirement that it never discard information means that an intelligent being must never forget. Eventually, an intelligent being, unable to discard old memories, might find itself reliving old memories over and over again. “Eternity would be a
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