> (Relativity isn't a problem here, though it is a tempting distraction. All of humanity's current computing systems share a close enough frame of reference to make relativistic differences in the perception of time immaterial).

GPS clocks take special and general relativity into account. I'm no expert, just something I thought I'd read.

I'd never heard of the FLP result before and it seems mostly a theoretical concern with distributed systems which do have time bounds etc so it doesn't apply (unlike CAP which always does).

Edit: I like the details that are presented, but not the way it's done. If organized as reference material could be more useful for this volume of info. As long as we're digging in the weeds, I'd like to hear about how there is no absolute/universal "same time" for spatially separated events.