Send in the Clowns

Thought experiments are common where infinitely many entities acting in concert give rise to strange results. A contemporary family of these thought experiments have been labeled “New Zeno” cases. These cases, however, can be generalized to ensure almost any outcome from systems with limited materials. Consider an infinite series of clowns, with iron wills and instantaneous balloon-placing powers. The chapter argues that, given New Zeno assumptions, as well as ensuring things like balloons appearing without any clown placing them, they can ensure the existence of mountains of ice cream or even the movement of galaxies. Reflection on these cases helps bring out what is so troubling about New Zeno cases, and raise again the specter that there is something impossible about actual physical infinites of this sort.