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Exponential growth
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===Water lily=== French children are offered a riddle, which appears to be an aspect of exponential growth: "the apparent suddenness with which an exponentially growing quantity approaches a fixed limit". The riddle imagines a water lily plant growing in a pond. The plant doubles in size every day and, if left alone, it would smother the pond in 30 days killing all the other living things in the water. Day after day, the plant's growth is small, so it is decided that it won't be a concern until it covers half of the pond. Which day will that be? The 29th day, leaving only one day to save the pond.<ref name=Meadows-2004>{{cite book| last=Meadows| first=Donella|title=The Limits to Growth: The 30-Year Update|year=2004|publisher=Chelsea Green Publishing|isbn=9781603581554| page=21}}</ref><ref name=Porritt-2005/>
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