“When a constraint exists advantage can usually be taken of it.”

—  W. Ross Ashby

Source: An Introduction to Cybernetics (1956), Part 2: Variety, p. 130

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 "When a constraint exists advantage can usually be taken of it." by W. Ross Ashby?
W. Ross Ashby photo
W. Ross Ashby 26
British psychiatrist 1903–1972

Related quotes

“When the unreal is taken for the real, then the real becomes unreal;
Where non-existence is taken for existence, then existence becomes non-existence.”

Wang Chi-chen (1899–2001)

Source: Dream of the Red Chamber (1958), p. 7

“[Constraint] is a relation between two sets, and occurs when the variety that exists under one condition is less than the variety that exists under another.”

W. Ross Ashby (1903–1972) British psychiatrist

Source: An Introduction to Cybernetics (1956), Part 2: Variety, p. 127

“Further, as every law of nature implies the existence of an invariant, it follows that every law of nature is a constraint.”

W. Ross Ashby (1903–1972) British psychiatrist

Source: An Introduction to Cybernetics (1956), Part 2: Variety, p. 130

“Note the situation is different when the player is permitted to vary his stakes. In this case there exist advantageous strategies, and the game depends on the strategy.”

William Feller (1906–1970) Croatian-American mathematician

Source: An Introduction To Probability Theory And Its Applications (Third Edition), Chapter VIII, Unlimited Sequences Of Bernoulli Trials, p. 200

David Levithan photo

“I have taken advantage of other people's weaknesses in order to cover my own.”

David Levithan The Realm of Possibility

Source: The Realm of Possibility

Marcus Tullius Cicero photo

“What is morally wrong can never be advantageous, even when it enables you to make some gain that you believe to be to your advantage. The mere act of believing that some wrongful course of action constitutes an advantage is pernicious.”

Marcus Tullius Cicero (-106–-43 BC) Roman philosopher and statesman
Thomas Love Peacock photo

“When Scythrop grew up, he was sent, as usual, to a public school, where a little learning was painfully beaten into him, and from thence to the university, where it was carefully taken out of him.”

Thomas Love Peacock book Nightmare Abbey

Nightmare Abbey, chapter I (1818).

“Q: Does the creation of Design admit constraint?
Design depends largely on constraints.
Q: What constraints?
The sum of all constraints. Here is one of the few effective keys to the Design problem: the ability of the Designer to recognize as many of the constraints as possible; his willingness and enthusiasm for working within these constraints. Constraints of price, of size, of strength, of balance, of surface, of time, and so forth. Each problem has its own peculiar list.”

Charles Eames (1907–1978) American designer, half of duo the Eames

Another part of the interview: Also cited at: Mark Wunsch. "[http://markwunsch.com/blog/2008/09/27/design-q-a-with-charles-eames.html A software engineer and technologist: Design Q&A with Charles Eames". at markwunsch.com/blog, 2008/09/27
Design Q & A with Charles Eames, 1972

David Mitchell photo

“As long as you can Houdini your way out of the Sisyphean constraints then originality happens.”

David Mitchell (1969) English novelist

Interview "David Mitchell at Writers and Readers week, New Zealand" at ABC.net (30 March 2008) http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bookshow/stories/2008/2201562.htm

Related topics