Timestep
Definition
A timestep is the slice of simulated time between one update of a simulation and the next. Faster physics needs smaller timesteps: femtoseconds for atoms, attoseconds for electrons.
On this site
It’s why the Atom rung needs 1015 updates per second for each atom.
Role in the model
Detail adds up twice: in how many things you track, and in how often you update them. Atoms need a new position every femtosecond, so an atom-level world runs at a quadrillion updates per second. That’s why finer matter floors take far more computing than the number of things alone would suggest.
Related
14 short pages, one per thinker, each with its matching dial. See also the reading list.