Philip B. Crosby (1926–2001) Quality guru
Source: Quality Is Free, 1977, p. 13
Source: The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable
Philip B. Crosby (1926–2001) Quality guru
Source: Quality Is Free, 1977, p. 13
Michel Foucault (1926–1984) French philosopher
Source: Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason
Confucius (-551–-479 BC) Chinese teacher, editor, politician, and philosopher
As quoted in Walden (1854) by Henry David Thoreau, Ch. 1
Attributed
Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) Renaissance mathematician, Polish astronomer, physician
Confucius, as quoted in Walden (1854) by Henry David Thoreau, Ch. 1
Misattributed
“The most difficult thing is to know what we do know, and what we do not know.”
P. D. Ouspensky book Tertium Organum
Source: Tertium Organum (1912; 1922), Ch. I
Context: The most difficult thing is to know what we do know, and what we do not know.
Therefore, desiring to know anything, we shall before all else determine WHAT we accept as given, and WHAT as demanding definition and proof; that is, determine WHAT we know already, and WHAT we wish to know.
In relation to the knowledge of the world and of ourselves, the conditions would be ideal could we venture to accept nothing as given, and count all as demanding definition and proof. In other words, it would be best to assume that we know nothing, and make this our point of departure.
But unfortunately such conditions are impossible to create. Knowledge must start from some foundation, something must be recognized as known; otherwise we shall be obliged always to define one unknown by means of another.
“The problem with doing nothing is not knowing when you are finished.”
Nelson DeMille (1943) American writer
Variant: The problem with doing nothing is that you never know when you're finished.
“Far more crucial than what we know or do not know is what we do not want to know.”
Eric Hoffer (1898–1983) American philosopher