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Robert Walker
No, but it might be useful if some of the really long answers had part of them collapsed with a "more" button, like the main feed.

This is one of my answers, which I think most would agree is "crazy long".  It's over 9,000 words, with many illustrations as well making it even longer. It's 47 pages on an HD screen reading it in Google Chrome just now.

But it is also my most popular answer in my all time stats, just short of a quarter of a million views. And also has a thousand upvotes, 40 comments and 291 shares.

So, it's obviously an answer that's liked by many readers here. And if you go the comments (after scrolling and scrolling and scrolling endlessly if you aren't interested in this topic) - you'll see how it's appreciated by its intended audience.

Is it possible that an alien civilization has completely different mathematics than ours? Is mathematics absolute?

But - it means all the other answers disappear to the bottom of the page, when a long answer like this is upvoted. And for those who want a shorter answer, it is just far too long.

So what's the solution there? I don't know, but  more button might help. I'm not going to stop writing long answers, when the question requires it (mixed in with shorter answers on other occasions), because there are people who appreciate them, as you see. And I appreciate other people's long answers also.

About the Author

Robert Walker

Robert Walker

Writer of articles on Mars and Space issues - Software Developer of Tune Smithy, Bounce Metronome etc.
Studied at Wolfson College, Oxford
Lives in Isle of Mull
4.8m answer views110.3k this month
Top Writer2017, 2016, and 2015
Published WriterHuffPost, Slate, and 4 more