Instant vs. Instantaneously 2

[ESquared]

To me, instantaneously has the sense of "without the passage of time." A teleporter might instantaneously move you to another galaxy. Instantly, though, has the sense of "very very soon" or "in a short period of time."

I can't look it up right now but I thought I'd toss this out for discussion.

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[CajunCenturion]

Guilty as Charged!

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[ESquared]

When does the SAME instant begin/end?
When does the NEXT instant begin/end?
Give that an instant is an indeterminate period of time, how do you determine when the current instant ends and the next instant begins? How can you distinguish between the two if instants are indeterminate?

The same instant is the exact same point in time... as I said before, with no elapsed time whatsoever between two events.

The next instant is based on a subjective perception of "beginning the shortest time later possible."

That I cannot specifically say, down to the nanosecond, what the start of the next instant is, does not mean that I cannot properly use this concept. Instantaneous is a closed concept. Instant is an open concept. For example, we can look at someone and usually say whether he has a beard or not. But we cannot define a beard as X number of hairs of length Y. So, the definition of beard is an open concept.

 

[Elsebet]

I stepped into the alien laboratory and was instantly taken to another planet. The journey to that planet took several minutes.

The second sentence contradicts the first. In the first you are "instantly taken" which infers you were instantly (no perceived time) transported from the laboratory to the alien planet. If you worded it "and instantly began a journey to another planet" then the second sentence would play support and make sense.

I stepped into the alien laboratory and was instantaneously taken to another planet. The journey took no time at all.

Here the second sentence is just redundant.

I realize these are examples but they don't properly illustrate, in my opinion, a distinction between the words "instantly" and "instantaneously". I have to agree with previous posters that since instantaenously sounds similar to simultaneously there can be construed the notion that it shares similar meaning. A simultaneous event requires two or more objects, however an instantaneous event still requires only one.

"My spell was cast instantaneously."
"We cast our spells simultaneously.

 

[Stella740pl]

A simultaneous event requires two or more objects, however an instantaneous event still requires only one.

I thought so, too. Only not objects, rather events.

Then, to be intantaneous, an event shouldn't necessarily happen at the same instant as another event, right? Unless we count an event's start and end as 2 different events that happen simultaneously?

 

[ESquared]

Hi Elsebet,

I see your point about instantly. However, consider the following.

My mother yelled at me "get down out of that tree NOW!" And I was so startled that I instantly fell to the ground. The trip to the ground took 1.0 seconds.

My mother yelled at me "get down out of that tree NOW!" And I was so startled that I instantaneously fell to the ground. The trip to the ground took no time at all.

You are investing a meaning into "instantly transported to another planet" which is not necessarily present. It not an unreasonable interpretation, but from my two examples above, I hope you can see that there is room for my interpretation as well.

Perhaps word order matters here. The following examples illustrate the difference, to me.

I stepped into the alien laboratory and was instantly taken to another planet. The journey to that planet took several minutes. (instantly modifying taken, in the next instant the removal occurred.)

I stepped into the alien laboratory and was taken to another planet instantly. The journey to that planet took no time at all. (instantly modifying "taken to another planet," in the same instant.)

But maybe I am making things up!

 

[ESquared]

The first word-order example sentence works better with "and instantly, was taken to another planet." I should think more on this.