“The best paradoxes raise questions about what kinds of contradictions can occur—what species of impossibilities are possible.”

— William Poundstone

Source: Labyrinths of Reason (1988), Chapter 1: "Paradox", p. 19

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "The best paradoxes raise questions about what kinds of contradictions can occur—what species of impossibilities are pos…" by William Poundstone?

William Poundstone 33

American writer 1955

Related quotes

“What I cannot do now is the sign of what I shall do hereafter. The sense of impossibility is the beginning of all possibilities. Because this temporal universe was a paradox and an impossibility, therefore the Eternal created it out of His being.”

Sri Aurobindo (1872–1950) Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru and poet

Thoughts and Glimpses (1916-17)
Thoughts and Glimpses (1916-17)

“We have to prepare for what life could become in 40 years. We need to outline what is possible and what is impossible with the non-renewable resources of the Earth. What role will technological improvement play? Taking all this into account, what kind of life can we produce in the best way for 10 billion people? That's a problem that needs to be solved.”

Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910–1997) French naval officer, explorer, conservationist, filmmaker, innovator, scientist, photographer, author and …

Interview (March 1996)

“A tautology's truth is certain, a proposition's possible, a contradiction's impossible.”

Ludwig Wittgenstein book Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus

Certain, possible, impossible: here we have the first indication of the scale that we need in the theory of probability.
4.464
Original German: Die Wahrheit der Tautologie ist gewiss, des Satzes möglich, der Kontradiktion unmöglich
Source: 1920s, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus (1922)

“I got what I needed instead of what I wanted and that's just about the best kind of luck you can have.”

Cormac McCarthy The Sunset Limited

Source: The Sunset Limited

“Here is the question: is a legitimization of the social bond, a just society, feasible in terms of a paradox analogous to that of scientific activity? What would such a paradox be?”

Jean-François Lyotard (1924–1998) French philosopher

Source: The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge (1977), p.xxv

“What is it, what can it possibly be about blowjobs and golf?”

Kurt Vonnegut book A Man Without a Country

Martian Visitor
A Man Without a Country (2005)

“What kind of dog is that?" I would always give the same answer: "She's a brown dog." Similarly, when the question is raised, "What kind of God do you believe in?" my answer is easy: "I believe in a magnificent God.”

Elizabeth Gilbert book Eat, Pray, Love

Source: Eat, Pray, Love

“The kind of problem that literature raises is not the kind that you ever 'solve'. Whether my answers are any good or not, they represent a fair amount of thinking about the questions.”

Northrop Frye (1912–1991) Canadian literary critic and literary theorist

"Quotes", The Educated Imagination (1963), Talk 1: The Motive For Metaphor http://northropfrye-theeducatedimagination.blogspot.ca/2009/08/1-motive-for-metaphor.html

“Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) Catholic saint and founder of the Franciscan Order

“With God's grace, you have to tackle and carry out the impossible, because anybody can do what is possible.”

Josemaría Escrivá (1902–1975) Spanish theologian

#216
The Forge (1987)

“The best paradoxes raise questions about what kinds of contradictions can occur—what species of impossibilities are possible.”

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

William Poundstone 33

Related quotes

Related topics