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Block

Walter Edward Block (born August 21, 1941) is an American economist and prominent advocate of the Austrian School of economics and anarcho-capitalism.^[1] He holds the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Economics at Loyola University New Orleans, where he has taught since 2000, following positions at institutions including Rutgers University, the University of Central Arkansas, and the Fraser Institute.^[2] Block earned a B.A. in philosophy from Brooklyn College in 1964 and a Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University in 1972, and he has authored or co-authored over 700 refereed journal articles and numerous books, including the influential Defending the Undefendable (1976), which applies libertarian principles to socially stigmatized activities.^[3]^[4] Block's work emphasizes first-principles defenses of private property, voluntary exchange, and minimal government intervention, critiquing mainstream economic policies on issues like minimum wages, antitrust laws, and environmental regulations through praxeological reasoning rooted in human action.^[5] His contributions extend to public policy debates, including opposition to eminent domain and advocacy for privatization of services like roads and courts. Despite his scholarly output, Block has encountered professional controversies, including student petitions for his dismissal and university investigations alleging bias in his expressions of libertarian views on topics such as discrimination and immigration, which critics from progressive institutions have labeled as promoting racism or sexism—claims Block attributes to ideological intolerance in academia.^[6]^[7]^[8]

Physical and material uses

Construction and building

In construction, a block refers to a precast, typically rectangular unit made from materials such as concrete, stone, or wood, serving as a modular building component for walls, foundations, pavements, and other structural elements.^[9]^[10] These units provide load-bearing capacity through compressive strength, with concrete variants often featuring hollow cores to reduce weight while maintaining structural integrity via reinforced grout filling.^[11] Historically, blocks originated with quarried stone in ancient monumental architecture, exemplified by the limestone blocks averaging 2.5 tons each used in the Great Pyramid of Giza, constructed around 2580–2560 BCE.^[12] These massive units were transported via ramps and sledges, enabling precise stacking for enduring compressive loads without tensile reinforcement.^[13] The transition to industrialized production began in the late 19th century, culminating in Harmon S. Palmer's 1900 invention of the first viable machine for casting hollow concrete blocks, which standardized dimensions and accelerated on-site assembly compared to hand-cut stone.^[14] This innovation shifted reliance from labor-intensive quarrying to factory-molded units, enhancing scalability for urban infrastructure.^[15] Key types include concrete masonry units (CMUs), which encompass both solid blocks for paving and cored versions for walls, and early cinder blocks incorporating blast-furnace slag for lighter weight.^[16]^[17] CMUs must meet ASTM C90 specifications, mandating a minimum average compressive strength of 2000 psi (13.8 MPa) for load-bearing applications, ensuring resistance to vertical forces in assemblies like multi-story walls.^[18]^[19] Precast concrete blocks further optimize efficiency through vibration-compacted mixes, achieving uniform density and allowing integration with steel reinforcement for seismic resilience.^[20]

Toys

Wooden building blocks emerged as educational toys in 1837 through the innovations of Friedrich Froebel, the founder of the kindergarten system in Germany, who designed them as sequential "Gifts" (specifically Gifts 2 through 6) to enable children to manipulate cubes, cylinders, and spheres for intuitive exploration of geometry, proportion, and spatial harmony.^[21] These blocks emphasized free play guided by natural curiosity, allowing young learners to replicate and invent forms observed in the physical world, thereby cultivating perceptual and constructive skills absent in rote instruction.^[22] The mid-20th century introduced interlocking plastic variants, with LEGO's Automatic Binding Bricks debuting in 1949 as a durable evolution of wooden precursors, featuring studs and tubes for secure, reversible connections that promote expansive, self-directed constructions.^[23] Unlike scripted toys, these modular systems prioritize combinatorial creativity, where children iteratively test stability, symmetry, and scale through trial and assembly, fostering emergent problem-solving over narrative-driven play. Empirical studies affirm block play's causal role in enhancing spatial cognition and preparatory STEM competencies, as children physically negotiate volume, alignment, and equilibrium—core principles underlying engineering and mathematics. A longitudinal analysis of 3-year-olds linked greater block-building complexity to superior spatial visualization, mathematical reasoning, and even reading proficiency by age 4.5, with effect sizes indicating persistent gains independent of socioeconomic factors.^[24] Complementary intervention research demonstrates that guided block activities yield measurable improvements in preschoolers' mathematics scores (e.g., via enhanced counting and patterning) and executive functions like inhibitory control, outperforming unstructured alternatives by facilitating deliberate causal experimentation with physical constraints.^[25] Such outcomes underscore blocks' value in bridging sensory-motor experience to abstract reasoning, though benefits accrue most robustly from sustained, scaffolded engagement rather than passive provision.^[26]

Spatial and geographical uses

Urban and land divisions

A city block in urban planning constitutes the smallest unit of land delimited by surrounding streets, usually forming a rectangle within a gridiron street system that orthogonally intersects to maximize subdivision efficiency. This configuration originated in deliberate master plans to rationalize property delineation and infrastructure deployment, exemplified by the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 for Manhattan Island, which overlaid a rigid grid of numbered streets and avenues to supersede irregular terrain and enable speculative real estate development without regard for natural contours.^[27]^[28] The plan's uniformity stemmed from Enlightenment-era principles favoring geometric order to accommodate population growth and commerce, creating discrete parcels conducive to ownership transfer and construction standardization.^[29] Standard block dimensions in grid-planned U.S. cities typically span 300 to 660 feet (approximately 1/20 to 1/8 mile) per side, though variations exist based on local ordinances; for instance, Chicago's blocks measure 330 by 660 feet, aligning eight longer sides to one mile.^[30]^[31] Such scales support walkable urbanism, as a 5-minute pedestrian radius—equating to about 1/4 mile or 400 meters at average speeds—covers roughly 4 to 8 blocks, facilitating access to services without vehicular dependence and reducing circulatory dead space.^[32]^[33] Economically, grid blocks promote causal efficiencies in land use by partitioning space into interchangeable units that lower surveying costs, simplify zoning enforcement, and incentivize dense, market-responsive building; this contrasts with pre-industrial organic morphologies, where meandering paths from ad hoc expansion fragmented holdings, inflated navigation distances by up to 30% in empirical comparisons, and constrained scalability for trade and population influx.^[34]^[35] Uniform blocks thus underpin value maximization per acre through predictable infrastructure like utilities and roads, fostering fiscal sustainability absent in convoluted layouts prone to underutilized interstices.^[36]

Places

Block Island, located approximately 9 miles south of mainland Rhode Island in Block Island Sound, was settled in 1661 by sixteen English families from the nearby colony of Warwick.^[37] The island, part of New Shoreham town, spans 9.734 square miles and had a year-round population of 1,410 according to the 2020 U.S. Census, though this swells significantly during summer due to tourism.^[38] Its isolation, stemming from its position as the southernmost part of Rhode Island's coastal archipelago known as the Outer Lands, historically promoted a maritime economy reliant on fishing and shipping, with limited mainland access shaping patterns of self-sufficient agriculture and community resilience against environmental pressures like erosion from Atlantic exposure.^[39] In Kansas, unincorporated communities such as Block in Miami County illustrate the division of rural landscapes into standardized land blocks under the Homestead Act of May 20, 1862, which allocated 160-acre parcels to qualifying settlers to encourage westward expansion and individual farming operations. This surveying method, implemented across public domain lands opened after 1854 territorial organization, prioritized rectangular grids over irregular topography, enabling efficient claims in flat prairie regions but often leading to challenges like soil depletion without irrigation in semi-arid zones. Block, also referred to as Block Corners, remains a small, sparsely populated area reflecting these early 19th-century federal policies aimed at converting communal Native-held territories into private holdings, with Miami County's proximity to eastern Kansas borders facilitating initial settlement waves post-Civil War.

Technical and scientific uses

Engineering

In mechanical engineering, a block refers to a rigid structural component designed to house moving parts, distribute forces, and withstand stresses from mechanical and thermal loads. The cylinder block, also known as the engine block, forms the foundational structure of internal combustion engines, containing the cylinders, coolant passages, and mounting points for crankshafts and other assemblies; it transfers combustion pressures and piston forces to the engine frame while managing heat dissipation.^[40] Typically cast from materials like gray cast iron for its damping properties and resistance to wear or aluminum alloys for reduced weight, the block must endure cyclic stresses exceeding 100 MPa in high-performance applications.^[41] A pivotal advancement occurred with the Ford Model T's introduction in 1908, featuring a one-piece cast-iron inline-four cylinder block that integrated all cylinders, enabling efficient mass production through simplified assembly and reduced machining compared to prior designs with separate cylinder castings.^[40] This monolithic construction improved rigidity, minimizing vibrations and alignment issues under operational loads, and supported the engine's 20 horsepower output at 2,000 rpm, contributing to over 15 million vehicles produced by 1927.^[42] Pulley blocks, integral to lifting and rigging systems, consist of one or more sheaves mounted in a rigid frame to redirect rope or cable tension, achieving mechanical advantage by multiplying input force through multiple supporting strands—typically MA equals the number of load-bearing ropes in frictionless ideal conditions, though real efficiency drops to 50-80% due to bearing friction and rope bending losses.^[43] Documented in ancient engineering, such systems trace to Mesopotamian use around 1500 BCE for hoisting, with Greek adaptations by the 6th century BCE employing compound pulley blocks in temple construction to lift stones up to 400 kg using human or animal power.^[43]^[44] Engineering blocks prioritize force distribution to prevent localized stress concentrations, analyzed via principles of statics where compressive and shear stresses are resolved as σ = F/A for normal loads and τ = F/(2A) for shear across contact planes, ensuring uniform load paths through finite element modeling.^[45] Fatigue failures, however, remain a critical concern, particularly in aluminum alloy blocks lacking a true endurance limit unlike ferrous materials; empirical tests show crack initiation after 10^5 to 10^7 cycles under thermal-mechanical cycling at stresses above 150 MPa, often propagating from casting porosities or microstructural defects in hypoeutectic Al-Si alloys.^[41]^[46] Untested designs risk premature cracking, as evidenced by field data from high-mileage engines where subsurface voids amplify stress risers, underscoring the need for validated heat treatments and alloy refining to extend service life beyond 200,000 km.^[47]^[48]

Computing and data storage

In computing, a block denotes a fixed-size contiguous unit of data used for storage and retrieval, aligning operations with underlying hardware constraints to optimize throughput and minimize seek times. This abstraction emerged from early magnetic tape systems, which organized data into discrete blocks for efficient serialization, and extended to disk storage with the IBM 305 RAMAC, introduced in 1956 as the first commercial hard disk drive, enabling random access via movable heads over 50 disks storing up to 5 MB total.^[49]^[50] Hard disk drives (HDDs) historically employed 512-byte sectors as the fundamental physical block size, reflecting early engineering limits on areal density and error correction. Modern HDDs have shifted to 4096-byte physical sectors to enhance storage capacity and reduce error rates from smaller geometries, while maintaining backward compatibility through emulation of 512-byte logical blocks. This evolution supports higher data transfer rates, such as the 8.8 KB/s achieved by the original RAMAC, but requires alignment of higher-level blocks to avoid performance penalties from misaligned accesses.^[51]^[52]^[53] File systems build on device blocks with logical abstractions like clusters in FAT32, where default sizes scale with volume capacity—for instance, 512 bytes for drives under 64 MB, 1 KB for 128 MB, and up to 4 KB or larger for volumes exceeding 256 MB—to balance allocation efficiency against overhead. In Unix-like systems, common block sizes such as 4 KB in ext4 further abstract physical sectors, aggregating multiple for metadata structures like inodes.^[54]^[55] Block size selection entails causal trade-offs rooted in information density and access patterns: larger blocks diminish metadata overhead (fewer pointers per file) and external fragmentation risks for sequential workloads, yet amplify internal fragmentation, where the unused portion of a partially filled block—potentially approaching the full block size for tiny files—wastes capacity. External fragmentation, arising from scattered non-contiguous blocks, elevates seek latencies, as each discontinuity demands additional head movements. Benchmarks like Bonnie++ quantify these effects by measuring sequential throughput, random I/O, and seek rates across file creations and deletions, revealing degradations from suboptimal sizing or heavy updates.^[56]^[57]^[58]

Blockchain and cryptocurrency

In blockchain systems, a block serves as an immutable bundle of validated transactions linked chronologically to form a distributed ledger, enabling trustless verification without centralized intermediaries. The inaugural block, known as the genesis block, in the Bitcoin network was mined on January 3, 2009, by the pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto, embedding a timestamp and a reference to a contemporary financial crisis headline to underscore the system's motivation as an alternative to fiat vulnerabilities.^[59]^[60] Each subsequent block incorporates a header with metadata, including a Merkle root—a hash summarizing all transactions via a binary tree structure for efficient integrity checks—and requires proof-of-work (PoW) consensus, where miners compete to solve a computationally intensive puzzle to append the block, securing the chain through economic incentives aligned with network honesty.^[61]^[60] Bitcoin blocks maintain a base size limit of approximately 1 MB, constraining throughput to prioritize decentralization and verifiability over volume, with extensions like Segregated Witness allowing effective capacities up to 4 MB weight units while preserving core constraints.^[62] PoW enforces scarcity: block rewards halve roughly every four years, as in the April 19, 2024, event reducing issuance from 6.25 to 3.125 BTC per block, capping total supply at 21 million and countering inflationary pressures inherent in unanchored fiat systems.^[63] This mechanism fosters value through predictable issuance, contrasting the U.S. dollar's post-1971 devaluation—following the Nixon administration's August 15 suspension of gold convertibility—which has eroded over 87% of its purchasing power amid unchecked monetary expansion.^[64] Empirical security derives from the network's hash rate, exceeding 1,100 EH/s as of October 2025, rendering 51% attacks—wherein a majority controls rewriting—prohibitively expensive due to the immense computational resources required, far surpassing feasible collusion costs and incentivizing distributed participation over centralized rent-seeking failures.^[65]^[66] This decentralized resilience, rooted in PoW's game-theoretic alignment, empirically outperforms trusted third-party models prone to manipulation, as evidenced by Bitcoin's uninterrupted operation since inception amid fiat instabilities.^[60]

Mathematics

In combinatorial mathematics, a block design partitions a finite set of v points into b subsets known as blocks, each containing k points, such that every pair of distinct points appears together in exactly λ blocks.^[67] A balanced incomplete block design (BIBD) refines this by requiring that each point appears in exactly r blocks, yielding the parameter relations b k = v r and λ(v-1) = r(k-1), which ensure balanced coverage without exhaustive pairing (k < v).^[68] These structures model partitions in experimental design and finite geometries; for instance, affine planes of order n yield BIBDs with v = n² points, k = n, λ = 1, and r = n+1, where blocks correspond to parallel classes of lines.^[69] Block matrices extend linear algebra by partitioning a matrix into rectangular submatrices, or blocks, to exploit structure for efficient operations like decomposition and inversion.^[70] In block LU decomposition, a matrix A factors as *A = L U* where L and U are block lower- and upper-triangular, respectively, with diagonal blocks invertible; this approach enhances parallelism and cache efficiency in solving A x = b, maintaining O(n³) asymptotic complexity but reducing wall-clock time on multiprocessors through concurrent block solves.^[71] For symmetric positive definite or diagonally dominant matrices, block LU preserves stability akin to standard Gaussian elimination, avoiding full pivoting in subblocks.^[70] In coding theory, block codes process data in fixed-length blocks of n symbols, appending n-k redundancy symbols to correct up to t = (n-k)/2 errors per block via algebraic decoding.^[72] Reed-Solomon codes, non-binary block codes over Galois fields GF(2^m), achieve this minimum distance bound and empirically lower bit error rates (BER) in noisy channels; for example, increasing code length n at fixed rate improves BER by orders of magnitude, as seen in simulations where RS codes yield 2-3 dB gains over uncoded transmission at BER=10^{-5}.^[73] These codes underpin error correction in storage (e.g., CDs correcting bursts) and communications, where block independence limits propagation of decoding failures.^[74]

Medicine

In medicine, a nerve block refers to the targeted injection of a local anesthetic, such as lidocaine, into or near a nerve to interrupt neural signal transmission and thereby block pain or motor function in a specific area. This technique causally disrupts sodium channel activity in nerve membranes, preventing action potential propagation, with clinical trials demonstrating high efficacy; for instance, 2% lidocaine achieves successful anesthesia in over 80% of inferior alveolar nerve blocks for dental procedures when compared to alternatives like articaine.^[75] The practice traces to 1884, when Carl Koller first applied cocaine topically for ocular anesthesia, establishing the foundation for regional blocks by confirming localized numbing without systemic effects.^[76] Nerve blocks are widely used in surgical and obstetric settings for precise analgesia. Epidural nerve blocks, involving catheter placement in the epidural space to deliver anesthetics like bupivacaine or lidocaine, are employed in over 70% of U.S. labor and deliveries to interrupt uterine and perineal pain signals.^[77] This localized approach reduces reliance on systemic opioids, minimizing respiratory depression risks, though procedural complications include infection at rates of 0.02-2.7% and hematoma formation in 0.4-4.2% of cases, underscoring the need for sterile technique over broader pharmacological interventions.^[78] Heart block, or atrioventricular (AV) block, denotes a physiological interruption in electrical conduction between the atria and ventricles, classified into degrees I (prolonged PR interval on ECG), II (intermittent dropped beats), and III (complete dissociation). Diagnosed primarily via electrocardiogram (ECG) showing delayed or absent QRS complexes following P waves, degrees II and III often necessitate permanent pacemaker implantation to restore synchronized ventricular depolarization and prevent hemodynamic instability.^[79] Pacemaker therapy causally addresses the conduction defect, with studies indicating resolution of symptoms and improved outcomes; for example, in immune-mediated cases, implantation trends toward enhanced survival (p=0.051), though overall procedural risks like lead infection remain low at under 1%.^[80] This targeted electrical restoration contrasts with pharmacological attempts, which lack equivalent precision in reestablishing causal signal flow.^[81]

Human activities

Sports

In sports, blocking constitutes a defensive maneuver involving physical obstruction of an opponent to impede their progress or action, demanding biomechanical precision, leverage, and timing to optimize force application while mitigating injury risks. Empirical analyses of game footage reveal trade-offs between raw power and efficiency, where suboptimal technique correlates with higher strain on joints like the knee, as evidenced by kinematic studies emphasizing ground reaction forces and joint angles during contact.^[82] In American football, offensive linemen execute blocks such as the drive block, initiating with a short drive step (4-6 inches) followed by hand placement inside the defender's frame to generate upward and lateral force through hip drive and leg extension, enabling control without excessive helmet contact.^[83] Zone blocking schemes, refined by coaches like Alex Gibbs and implemented widely in the NFL from the mid-1990s onward— notably by Mike Shanahan's Denver Broncos—prioritize combo blocks and lateral slides to stretch defenses, fostering cutback lanes that have underpinned top rushing efficiencies, as seen in teams averaging over 150 yards per game in peak implementations.^[84]^[85] These schemes succeed by exploiting defensive reactions via rules-based assignments rather than man-to-man engagements, with video breakdowns showing 20-30% higher success rates in gap creation compared to traditional gap schemes in motion-captured drills.^[86] Basketball shot blocking relies on explosive vertical leap mechanics, where defenders synchronize approach, arm extension, and release timing to contest shots without fouling, with deeper knee flexion (below 90 degrees) enhancing countermovement jump height by storing elastic energy in tendons.^[87] Players like Rudy Gobert, with a 7-foot-9-inch wingspan, exemplify this through career averages exceeding 2 blocks per game—peaking at 2.7 in 2016-17—directly correlating to team defensive ratings under 100 points allowed per 100 possessions when on court, per advanced metrics linking wingspan differentials to altered shot probabilities.^[88]^[89] Across these sports, strategic blocking prioritizes technique over brute force to curb injuries; for instance, NFL offensive linemen face elevated ACL tear risks in interior positions due to cutting and pivoting demands, with reconstruction return-to-play rates at 64.3% but performance dips post-recovery, underscoring the need for form drills that distribute loads via core stability and staggered stances.^[90]^[91] Game data analytics confirm that efficient blockers sustain lower per-snap injury incidences by 15-20% through biomechanical adherence, balancing obstruction efficacy with longevity.^[92]

Transportation

In urban transportation planning, the concept of a block often refers to the grid-based city block, which influences routing algorithms for efficient navigation. The Manhattan distance metric, defined as the sum of absolute differences in coordinates (|x₂ - x₁| + |y₂ - y₁|), calculates the shortest path along grid lines, avoiding diagonal shortcuts unavailable in rectilinear street networks.^[93] This approach underpins GPS systems in dense urban environments, where it models realistic travel distances more accurately than Euclidean metrics, reducing estimated times by accounting for block constraints in logistics and routing software.^[94] In vehicular engineering, the engine block serves as the core structural component housing cylinders and coolant passages, with material choices impacting performance and efficiency. Cast iron blocks, traditionally used for their durability and heat retention, weigh significantly more than aluminum alternatives; switching to aluminum can reduce engine weight by approximately 30-50% for comparable displacement engines, as aluminum's density is about one-third that of iron.^[95] Such reductions contribute to 6-8% improvements in fuel economy per 10% vehicle weight loss, per U.S. Department of Energy assessments, though aluminum blocks require reinforcements to match iron's longevity under high loads.^[95] Urban traffic congestion frequently arises at block-level intersections due to fixed signal timing, which fails to adapt to variable flows and can impose delays comprising 20-30% of total travel time in modeled peak scenarios.^[96] Empirical studies indicate that rigid, regulation-driven signal cycles exacerbate bottlenecks by prioritizing equalized green times over real-time demand, leading to queuing propagation across blocks.^[97] In contrast, adaptive signal systems, which dynamically adjust timings using sensors and algorithms, reduce delays by 10-15% compared to fixed controls, as demonstrated in deployments analyzing network-wide flows.^[98] Market-based interventions like congestion pricing address these issues by imposing variable fees on entry to high-demand zones, incentivizing off-peak travel and cutting peak volumes by up to 15-20% without infrastructural overhauls, thereby harnessing price signals to ration road capacity more efficiently than command-style regulations.^[99]

Culture and media

Broadcasting

In broadcasting, a block denotes a contiguous time segment of thematically cohesive programming designed to sustain audience engagement, as evidenced by retention metrics from services like Nielsen for television and Nielsen Audio (formerly Arbitron) for radio. This structure optimizes economic outcomes by clustering content to minimize channel surfing and maximize ad impressions, with data showing higher average quarter-hour audiences in targeted slots correlating to elevated cost-per-thousand (CPM) rates for advertisers.^[100]^[100] Television blocks historically featured themed assortments, such as Saturday morning cartoons aired from the 1960s through the 1990s on major networks like ABC, CBS, and NBC. These blocks aggregated animated series for children, yielding peak audiences exceeding 20 million viewers per network during the 1970s and 1980s, according to Nielsen measurements that tracked household ratings and shares.^[101] The format's efficacy stemmed from genre familiarity driving sequential viewing, which supported premium ad slots amid limited alternatives to linear TV. Radio employs blocks in high-traffic periods known as drive times—typically 6:00-10:00 a.m. and 3:00-7:00 p.m.—to capture commuters, where listenership surges due to habitual tuning. Nielsen Portable People Meter data from spring 2025 recorded up to 19% growth in average audiences for these slots among persons 12+, reflecting sustained demand despite digital shifts.^[102] Monetization relies on elevated ad performance, with drive-time inventory commanding higher CPMs tied to verifiable listener metrics over non-peak hours. Block programming's dominance has waned amid streaming's fragmentation of viewership, causally linked to on-demand access eroding scheduled habits. Linear TV's share of total U.S. viewing fell below 50% by mid-2025, with streaming at 44.8% versus 44.2% for broadcast and cable combined, per Nielsen. Pay-TV household penetration dropped from roughly 80% in the early 2010s to 34.4% in 2025, as consumers shifted to fragmented platforms reducing reliance on fixed blocks.^[103]^[104]

Music

Block chords in jazz piano involve the simultaneous sounding of multiple notes in parallel motion, harmonizing the melody across both hands to produce dense, full voicings. This technique, known as locked-hands style, was popularized by British jazz pianist George Shearing starting in the late 1930s and gaining prominence in the 1940s through recordings like his 1949 Capitol Sessions arrangements.^[105] Shearing's approach doubles the melody in octaves between the hands while inserting chord tones (typically root, third, fifth, and seventh) in close position, enabling a single pianist to emulate a big band horn section's block voicings without requiring spread voicings that strain hand span.^[106] Harmonic analysis reveals these chords prioritize parallel motion over root position inversions, limiting voice leading flexibility but enhancing rhythmic drive and timbral thickness, as evidenced in Shearing's "Lullaby of Birdland" (1952), where block structures sustain momentum across 32-bar forms.^[107] Rhythm blocks appear in minimalist composition as fixed, repetitive ostinati that underpin extended structures through gradual phase shifts, a process pioneered by Steve Reich in tape pieces like "It's Gonna Rain" (1965).^[108] Reich's phasing technique—where identical rhythmic patterns offset incrementally—dissects pulse into emergent polyrhythms, as in "Piano Phase" (1967), where two pianists perform interlocking short motifs that evolve over 20 minutes via speed differentials of approximately 1-2 beats per cycle. Empirical neuroimaging studies confirm that such repetition fosters inter-subject neural correlation in listeners, with sustained engagement linked to predictable metric grids and minimal harmonic variation, contrasting romantic-era development by privileging perceptual causality over thematic transformation.^[109] In electronic music sequencing, MIDI protocols implement block-based processing for note events, grouping data into fixed buffers to minimize jitter during real-time playback. Optimized systems achieve round-trip latencies under 5 ms via low buffer sizes (e.g., 64-128 samples at 44.1 kHz) and ASIO drivers, enabling precise ostinato triggering without audible delay, as tested in DAW environments like Cubase.^[110] This facilitates performance of block chord sequences or phasing simulations, where sub-millisecond timing accuracy preserves phase relationships in polyphonic MIDI streams.^[111]

Video games

In video games, block mechanics typically involve discrete, modular units that facilitate puzzle-solving, construction, or strategic placement, often leveraging algorithms for procedural content generation to ensure fairness and replayability through deterministic yet varied outcomes. These systems prioritize player agency by allowing manipulation of blocks within rule-bound environments, such as gravity, stacking limits, or collision detection, which promote skill-based decision-making over randomness.^[112] Minecraft employs cubic blocks measuring 1×1×1 meters as voxels for world-building and terrain simulation, with its alpha version first publicly released on May 17, 2009.^[113] The game's infinite procedural generation relies on layered Perlin noise functions to produce heightmaps and biomes, enabling seamless, seed-reproducible worlds that balance exploration with construction without favoring any player through paywalls in core modes.^[114] This approach uses multiple octaves of noise for fractal-like terrain variation, from flat plains to jagged mountains, fostering emergent gameplay where players mine, craft, and place over 1,000 block types.^[115] Tetris, invented by Soviet programmer Alexey Pajitnov and completed on June 6, 1984, for the Electronika 60 computer, centers on tetromino blocks—seven shapes composed of four squares—that fall and must be rotated to form complete horizontal lines for clearance.^[116] Scoring rewards efficiency, with a single line clear yielding 40 points multiplied by the current level, escalating to 1200 for a four-line "Tetris" at level 1, incentivizing spatial optimization and rapid adaptation to random piece sequences.^[117] The game's guideline-level rotations and fixed drop mechanics ensure algorithmic impartiality, teaching predictive planning without exploitable biases in piece distribution. In competitive block-placement modes, such as Minecraft's survival PvP or variants like Bedwars, symmetric starting resources and procedural symmetry aim for empirical balance, with design philosophies emphasizing skill parity over monetized advantages; deviations often stem from player exploits rather than inherent mechanics.^[118] Procedural fairness is maintained via hash-based seeds, allowing verifiable recreations of matches to audit for imbalances.

People and organizations

Individuals

Adriaen Block (c. 1560–1627) was a Dutch trader and explorer whose 1614 voyages along the North American coast produced the first European maps of the Connecticut River, Long Island Sound, and Narragansett Bay. Commissioned by Dutch merchants, Block's ship Onrust, built in America after his original vessel burned, facilitated early fur trade routes and contributed empirical geographic data that informed subsequent colonial claims.^[119] His charting efforts, documented in the 1614 Adriaen Block Chart, advanced knowledge of New England waterways despite lacking formal scientific training.^[120] Herbert Lawrence Block (1909–2001), professionally known as Herblock, was an American editorial cartoonist whose work spanned seven decades and critiqued political figures across ideologies, including government overreach during McCarthyism and Watergate. Born October 13, 1909, in Chicago, he joined The Washington Post in 1943, producing over 14,000 cartoons that earned three Pulitzer Prizes (1942, 1948, 1979) for their incisive commentary on power dynamics.^[121] Block's illustrations, grounded in observable policy outcomes rather than partisan loyalty, influenced public discourse on issues like civil liberties and executive accountability.^[122] Walter Edward Block (born August 21, 1941) is an American economist affiliated with the Austrian School, specializing in analyses of market processes, property rights, and the inefficiencies of state intervention. Holding a Ph.D. from Columbia University (1972), he serves as the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Chair in Economics at Loyola University New Orleans, where his research—encompassing over 700 peer-reviewed articles and books like Defending the Undefendable (1976)—employs deductive reasoning and historical data to advocate voluntary exchange over coercive policies.^[2] Block's contributions, including critiques of minimum wage laws via empirical labor market studies, emphasize causal links between incentives and economic outcomes.^[4] Kenneth Paul Block (1967–2023), known as Ken Block, was an American entrepreneur who co-founded DC Shoes in 1994, building it into a global action sports brand sold to Quiksilver for $230 million in 2004 through targeted marketing and product innovation in skateboarding footwear. Starting with custom T-shirt printing in California, Block scaled operations by identifying unmet demand in durable, performance-oriented apparel, achieving revenues exceeding $100 million annually by the early 2000s.^[123] His enterprise model, reliant on grassroots cultural trends and supply chain efficiencies, demonstrated scalable value creation in niche markets without heavy reliance on subsidies.^[124]

Businesses

Block, Inc., originally founded in 2009 as Square, Inc. by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey, rebranded to Block in December 2021 to reflect its expanded focus on ecosystem-building technologies beyond payments processing.^[125]^[126] The company, headquartered in Oakland, California, operates as a financial technology firm with a market capitalization of approximately $47 billion as of October 2025 and reported $24.12 billion in revenue for fiscal year 2024, marking a 10% increase from the prior year driven primarily by growth in its Square and Cash App segments.^[127]^[128] Block's core offerings include Square's point-of-sale hardware and software, which enables small merchants to accept card payments via mobile devices, and the acquisition of Afterpay in 2021, integrating buy-now-pay-later financing to facilitate installment purchases without traditional credit checks.^[129]^[130] Cash App, Block's peer-to-peer payment platform, further embeds Bitcoin functionality, allowing users to buy, sell, hold, and withdraw the cryptocurrency with options for custom orders and varying transaction speeds, aligning with the company's advocacy for Bitcoin as a decentralized alternative to centralized banking systems.^[131] This integration supports empirical evidence of Bitcoin's utility in real-world transactions, contrasting opaque legacy financial infrastructures with blockchain's verifiable ledgers, as promoted by Block's leadership in pushing for broader merchant acceptance of cryptocurrency payments.^[132] Growth metrics underscore adoption among small businesses, where Square holds a dominant position in the U.S. mobile point-of-sale market, processing billions in gross payment volume annually through simplified hardware that reduces barriers for independent sellers.^[133] Regulatory challenges have included a January 2025 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau order requiring Block to pay $175 million in penalties and consumer redress for alleged deficiencies in Cash App's fraud prevention and customer service, highlighting tensions between rapid fintech scaling and compliance demands.^[134] Additional scrutiny arose from a $40 million New York settlement in April 2025 over anti-money-laundering program weaknesses, though Block maintains that its blockchain-oriented tools enhance transparency over traditional banking's centralized risks.^[135] These incidents reflect broader causal pressures on fintech firms to balance innovation with oversight, yet Block's revenue trajectory—fueled by over 50 million monthly Cash App users and sustained merchant uptake—demonstrates resilience in decentralizing economic access.^[129]

References

[1]
Bernie Sanders and Walter Block share a common background
May 13, 2016 · Walter Block and Bernie Sanders were born less than one month apart, Walter coming first on August 21, 1941, with Bernie following on ...
[2]
Walter Block | College of Business
Walter Block is the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Chair in Economics in the College of Business at Loyola University, New Orleans.
[3]
Walter Block - Bio | NAS - National Association of Scholars
He earned a B.A. in philosophy from Brooklyn College (C.U.N.Y.) in 1964 and a Ph.D. degree in economics from Columbia University in 1972. He is an author, ...
[4]
Walter Block - AIER
Mar 13, 2024 · He earned his Ph.D in economics at Columbia University in 1972, and is the author of more than 700 refereed articles in professional journals, ...
[5]
Walter Block | Libertarianism.org
Walter Block. Biography. Walter Block is a professor of economics at Loyola University New Orleans and a Senior Scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute.
[6]
The Attack on Walter Block - Econlib
Dec 22, 2021 · Walter is the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair and Professor of Economics at Loyola, and a contributor here at Econlib.
[7]
Loyola NOLA saddles professor with repeated investigations ... - FIRE
Nov 29, 2022 · One complaint alleged Block “expressed his racism, homophobia, transphobia, and sexism publicly in classes, in his writings, and in his emails” ...Missing: achievements | Show results with:achievements
[8]
Clashing petitions call for Walter Block to be fired, given a raise over ...
Jun 17, 2020 · A petition urging the firing of economic professor Walter Block on the basis of “racist and sexist beliefs” has sparked a debate about his ...
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What is a Concrete Block and What is it Used For?
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How Did Egyptians Build the Pyramids? Ancient Ramp ... - History.com
Nov 2, 2018 · Researchers in Egypt discovered a 4,500-year-old ramp system used to haul alabaster stones out of a quarry, and reports have suggested that ...<|separator|>
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In 2014, ASTM C90 was revised to increase the minimum compressive strength of a unit from 1900 psi (13.1 MPa) to 2000 psi (13.8 MPa) that is reflected in C90–22 ...
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Specifying Masonry Component Strength - Structure Magazine
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Concrete Blocks - CMU - RCP Block & Brick
Concrete blocks (CMU) are core masonry material, available in various styles, sizes, and colors. Structural blocks follow ASTM C90, non-structural C129. Custom ...<|separator|>
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Froebel's Gifts
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Froebel's Gifts - 99% Invisible
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In 1949, the first primitive plastic bricks are marketed under the name Automatic Binding Bricks – the forerunner of the LEGO® brick we know today.
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Associations of 3-year-olds' block-building complexity with later ...
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Block play could improve your child's math skills, executive functioning
Semi-structured block play among preschool-age children has the potential to improve two skills – mathematics and executive functioning – critical to ...
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The 1811 Plan - Greatest Grid - Museum of the City of New York
The grid is simple but astonishing, structured but flexible, and embodies the forward thinking that prepared Manhattan for its unimaginably great future.
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Apr 15, 2011 · With the Commissioners Plan of 1811, uniform blocks were created without regards to hills and streams or even to the owners of the property!
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The perceived standard design of a city block, understood as a rectangular space bounded by streets, is largely a product of western urban development. This ...
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The unit of measurement is commonplace in the planning profession and is often represented by a radius measuring ¼ of a mile.
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The Model T's one-piece engine block, with its four cylinders cast as a single unit, was cutting-edge when Ford introduced the car in 1908.
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Fatigue of an aluminium cast alloy used in the manufacture of ...
Fatigue was studied on samples from aluminium cast engine blocks. •. Fatigue and mechanical properties depend on microstructural refining and heat treating.
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The Engine That Put America On Wheels: 1909-27 Model T Ford
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A Development of the Fretting Fatigue Analysis Techniques for ...
Oct 8, 2025 · In place of cast iron, aluminum alloy is used as the material of engine cylinder blocks to meet the continuous demands for better fuel ...
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RAMAC - IBM
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Many existing hardware and software components were designed around 512-byte sector (or block) sizes and expect data to be sent and received in 512-byte ...<|separator|>
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HDD specs: Assess SATA vs SAS, sustained data rates and block size
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Lecture 2: Introduction to Filesystems
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Jan 3, 2009 · The Bitcoin Genesis block was mined on January 3, 2009, by Satoshi Nakamato, creating the network. The 50 bitcoin reward is unredeemable.
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Aug 17, 2022 · Bitcoin's block size is limited to 1 MB, but this small amount of data is enough to store over 2000 transactions.
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[PDF] A brief introduction to design theory
1 BALANCED INCOMPLETE BLOCK DESIGNS. A balanced incomplete block design (BIBD) with parameters (v,b,r,k,λ) is a pair (X,A) that satisfies the following ...
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[PDF] Tutorial on Reed-Solomon Error Correction Coding
BLOCK. ERROR. CORRECTION. CODING. SYSTEM ........ A. PERFECT. (3,1). BLOCK. CODE ............. LINEAR. BLOCK. CODES ... Block diagram of a Reed-Solomon encoder ..
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This document presents the basics of error detection and correction (EDAC) using. Reed-Solomon codes. It addresses the following questions:.
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Prospective Observational Study on the Accuracy of Predictors of ...
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Complete heart block is a significant predictor of mortality in immune ...
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Lower pacemaker implantation rates for atrioventricular block during ...
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May 9, 2012 · The Base Drive block consists of 3 main steps. The first is the drive step, shown above, which is a quick 4-6 inch step directly ahead and ...
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Dec 23, 2019 · As the zone-blocking scheme developed, it grew beautiful in its simplicity and effectiveness. It boiled the running game down to two essential ...
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How the late, great Alex Gibbs perfected zone blocking in the NFL
Jul 13, 2021 · The Godfather of zone blocking in the NFL is unquestionably Alex Gibbs -- Gibbs took the idea of option blocking to an entirely new level, but he definitely ...
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Alex Gibbs, the godfather of the modern zone blocking scheme
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Rudy Gobert Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft Status and more
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Defensive Metrics Don't Ever Agree … Except On Rudy Gobert's ...
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Return to Sport and Performance After Anterior Cruciate Ligament ...
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Lightweight Materials for Cars and Trucks - Department of Energy
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Nielsen Spring 2025 Portable People Meter AM/FM Radio ...
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Streaming Reaches Historic TV Milestone, Eclipses Combined ...
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May 25, 2023 · The locked hands jazz piano technique is a voicing approach that uses both hands to accomplish a unique 5-note harmonization of the melody.
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Traditional Locked Hands - Jazz Piano Skills Podcast
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Minimalist composer Steve Reich conceived of phase shifting in his early work in tape music, noting that tape loops of slightly differing lengths containing ...Missing: ostinati | Show results with:ostinati
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Phasing was popularized by composer Steve Reich, who composed tape music where several copies of the same tape loop are played simultaneously on different ...Missing: blocks ostinati
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Inter-subject Correlation While Listening to Minimalist Music
Musical minimalism utilizes the temporal manipulation of restricted collections of rhythmic, melodic, and/or harmonic materials. One example, Steve Reich's ...Missing: ostinati | Show results with:ostinati
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The Truth About Latency: Part 1
If for example you set a 12ms buffer in Cubase 5.1, your MIDI-to-audio latency might theoretically vary from 12ms to 24ms while playing in real time or ...
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Sample accurate MIDI timing in AUv3 plugins - cp3.io
Apr 28, 2023 · To obtain sample-accurate MIDI timing, calculations should be performed in a realtime context: on the audio thread.
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Sep 24, 2017 · Perlin noise is a type of Gradient Noise algorithm, which smooths out visual artifacts compared to Value Noise. Both of these types of fractal ...How is a 3d perlin noise function used to generate terrain?How to randomly generate biome with perlin noise?More results from gamedev.stackexchange.com
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During the Alpha phase, Minecraft was updated very frequently due to Notch working full-time on Minecraft since June 1, 2010, and having a small company made ...Alpha v1.0.1 · Alpha v1.2.0 · Alpha v1.1.0 · Alpha v1.0.4
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How Minecraft generates Worlds you want to explore
Jan 15, 2023 · Perlin Noise however creates a smooth gradient between its high values (shown as white) and low values.
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When did Pajitnov first create Tetris? - Tetrisconcept
May 24, 2009 · Alexey Pajitnov was 29 and working for the Moscow Academy of Sciences when he completed Tetris on June 6, 1984, for a Soviet computer system called the ...
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[PDF] Beginnings of America in Colonial New Netherland
When Block returned to the Netherlands in 1614, his travels were mapped on a manuscript chart referred to as the “Adriaen Block Chart.” At the time of its ...
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[PDF] DUTCH TRADING NETWORKS IN EARLY NORTH AMERICA, 1624 ...
explorer Adriaen Block left the Sound and charted Block Island, which is named after him, and Narragansett Bay. Block's activities in the Hudson River area ...
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Biography | The Herb Block Foundation
Herb Block is among the world's best known and most admired political cartoonists. Born on October 13, 1909, the native Chicagoan spent his 72-year career ...
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Herbert Lawrence Block, known to the world as "Herblock" from his famous cartoon signature, was born in Chicago, Illinois, on October 13, 1909.
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Ken Block Was an Entrepreneur and Pro Rally Driver, But His ...
Jan 5, 2023 · Along with Damon Way, he launched several skateboarding and snowboarding companies. In 1994, he and Way turned to footwear and DC Shoes.Missing: biography | Show results with:biography
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Ken Block - Visionaries on Innovation - The Henry Ford
An entrepreneur and artist at heart, Block formed his own printing business and sold hand-screened T-shirts to local skate shops.
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What is Block, Inc.? - Bitstamp
Nov 1, 2024 · Block, Inc. was originally founded in 2009 as Square Inc. Co-founders Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey aimed to make a cost-effective and accessible ...
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Square, Inc. Changes Name to Block
Dec 1, 2021 · The legal name “Square, Inc.” is expected to be legally changed to “Block, Inc.” on or about December 10, 2021, upon satisfying all applicable ...
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Block Market Cap 2013-2025 | XYZ - Macrotrends
Block market cap as of October 23, 2025 is $47.38B. Market capitalization (or market value) is the most commonly used method of measuring the size of a ...
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Block Revenue 2013-2025 | XYZ - Macrotrends
Block annual revenue for 2024 was $24.121B, a 10.06% increase from 2023. Block annual revenue for 2023 was $21.916B, a 25.01% increase from 2022.
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Block, Inc.: What It Is, How It Works, Products and Services
In 2009, entrepreneurs Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey created Square, Inc. · In December 2021, Square, Inc. · Block received seven rounds of private funding before ...
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Square, Inc. Announces Plans to Acquire Afterpay, Strengthening ...
Aug 1, 2021 · Square has agreed to acquire all of the issued shares in Afterpay by way of a recommended court-approved Scheme of Arrangement.<|separator|>
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A Look into Cash App's Bitcoin Operations
You can even choose the speed of your withdrawal. With options for Standard, Rush, and Priority speed, you can move your bitcoin at a speed that works for you.
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Block CEO Jack Dorsey Invites Businesses Using Square PoS ...
Sep 16, 2025 · Jack Dorsey, co-founder and CEO of Block Inc. (NYSE:XYZ), on Monday encouraged merchants using the company's Square platform to test Bitcoin ...
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Square vs. PayPal Statistics 2025: Fees, Hardware & Global Reach
Jul 30, 2025 · Square's share of the US mobile POS market reached 68% in 2025, continuing to lead among micro and small businesses. PayPal's Zettle has gained ...
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CFPB Orders Operator of Cash App to Pay $175 Million and Fix Its ...
Jan 16, 2025 · The CFPB ordered Block, the operator of the peer-to-peer payments app Cash App, to refund consumers $120 million and pay a penalty of $55 ...Missing: 2022 | Show results with:2022
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Block agrees to pay $40M New York penalty | Payments Dive
Apr 11, 2025 · Payments technology company Block agreed to pay a $40 million civil monetary fine Thursday as part of an agreement to resolve claims brought by the New York ...