I know that in certain woodworking circles, people believe an edge produced by an Arkansas stone will last longer than one produced by a synthetic waterstone.

And I remember that in the so-called "big experiment," thebigspendur (I think it was him) said that Coticule-finished edges lasted longer than Norton 8K ones.

I'm curious if anyone believes that natural stones generally produce more durable edges? If so, what on earth would the reason be for this? Metal fatigue from fast-cutting synthetic stones?

Also, would the notion apply only to the last stone used, or every stone along the way?