Definition
Plain language
The smallest unit of information — one bit is a single yes-or-no, a coin flip's worth of surprise.
As stated in the literature
The fundamental unit of information; one bit corresponds to a halving of probability, so a surprise of n bits means an event was 2^-n as likely.
Also called: bits
Why it matters: It gives us a precise, shared way to measure information and surprise, so we can compare how much any message, answer, or event actually tells us.
For example, learning whether a flipped coin came up heads or tails gives you exactly one bit of information.
Heard on the show
“The optical control space the system is working in — the spatial light modulator has more than two million pixels, each one capable of ten bits of phase control.”Episode 002 — An AI Ran a Real Optics Lab for 21 Hours and Found a Transformer-Shaped Pattern in Light