In science, paradox (TR=171), from the Greek para- ‘contrary to’ + doxa ‘opinion’, is a proposition going against accepted ideas, or whose logical consequences generate a contradiction; a statement seemingly absurd yet really true. [1]
Quotes
The following are relevant quotes:
“The thinker without paradox is like the lover without passion.”
— Soren Kierkegaard (c.1830), Publication
“As the circle of science grows larger, it touches paradox at more places.”
— Friedrich Nietzsche (c.1880) [5]
“Such a principle [relativity] resulted from a paradox upon which I had already hit at the age of sixteen: If I pursue a beam of light with a velocity c (velocity of light in a vacuum), I should observe such a beam of light … at rest. However, there seems to be no such thing, whether on the basis of experience or according to Maxwell’s equations.”
— Albert Einstein (c.1930), retrospect reflection on relativity theory [3]
“How wonderful that we have met with paradox. Now we have some hope of making progress.”
— Niels Bohr (c.1930), stated, supposedly, during a debate about quantum mechanics [4]
“The solution to this paradox is that an organism inherits rules that spell out the progression. The rules are, or are like, time-based differential equations which have the ability to encode complex sequences with high efficiency. Thus on hast to regard development as an integration through space and time, the genome providing the equivalent of the differential equations.”
— Paul Green (c.1990) (Ѻ) [2]
See also
● A Paradoxical Ode
● Beauty-brains paradox | Beckhap’s law
● Bridgman paradox
● Drive-thru paradox
● Equatorial paradox | see: Philip Parker
● Fermi’s paradox | see: William Sidis
● Loschmidt’s paradox
● Philosopher’s paradox
● Szilard’s paradox
● Zermelo’s paradox
References
1. (a) Perrot, Pierre. (1998). A to Z of Thermodynamics (pg. 220). Oxford University Press.
(b) Paradox – Online Etymology Dictionary.
2. Harrison, Lionel G. (2011). The Shaping of Life: the Generation of Biological Pattern (pg. 11). Cambridge University Press.
3. Kaku, Michio. (2005). Einstein’s Cosmos: How Albert Einstein’s Vision Transformed Our Understanding of Space and Time (pg. 44). W.W. Norton & Co.
4. (a) Moore, Ruth. (1966). Niels Bohr: the Man, His Science, & the World They Changed (pg. 196). Publisher.
(b) Briggs, (1988) (pg. 108). (Ѻ)
(c) Dozier, Rush W. (1992). Codes of Evolution: the Synaptic Language Revealing the Secrets of Matter, Life, and Thought (pg. 23). Crown Publishers.
5. Holt, Jim. (2012). “Physicists, Stop the Churlishness” (Ѻ), New York Times, Jun 8.
Further reading
● Costa de Beauregard, Olivier. (1970). Is there a Paradox in the Theory of Time Anistorpy, in A Critical Review of Thermodynamics, edited by E.B. Stuart, B. Gal-Or and A.J. Brainard. Baltimore: Mono Book Corps, pgs. 463-72; see also: Studium Generale, 54, 10 (1971).
● Anderson, Craig A., & Anderson, K.B. (1998). “Temperature and Aggression: Paradox, Controversy, and a (fairly) Clear Picture.” Chapter in R. Geen & E. Donnerstein (Eds.) Human aggression: Theories, Research and Implications for Policy. (pp. 247-298). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
External links
● Paradox – Wikipedia.
