“Freedom isn't an illusion; it's perfectly real in the context of sequential consciousness. Within the context of simultaneous consciousness, freedom is not meaningful, but neither is coercion; it's simply a different context, no more or less valid than the other.… — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
“The physical universe was a language with a perfectly ambiguous grammar. Every physical event was an utterance that could be parsed in two entirely… — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
Women who work with animals hear this all the time: that their love for animals must arise out of a sublimated child-rearing urge. Ana's… — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
Contemplate the marvel that is existence, and rejoice that you are able to do so. — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
“Perhaps men were not meant to live in such a place. If their own natures restrained them from approaching heaven too closely, then men… — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
It is a misconception to think that during evolution humans sacrificed physical skill in exchange for intelligence: wielding one's body is a mental activity. — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
“And then there will be the times when I see you laughing. Like the time you’ll be playing with the neighbor’s puppy, poking your hands through the chain-link fence separating our back yards, and you’ll be laughing so hard you’ll start hiccupping. The puppy will run inside the neighbor’s house, and your laughter will gradually subside, letting you catch your… — Ted Chiang Copy Share
“When Arecibo is not listening to anything else, it hears the voice of creation.” — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
Similarly, knowledge of the future was incompatible with free will. What made it possible for me to exercise freedom of choice also made it impossible for me to know the future. Conversely, now that I know the future, I would never act contrary to that future, including telling others what I know: those who know the future don't talk about… — Ted Chiang Copy Share
“the ray of light has to know where it will ultimately end up before it can choose the direction to begin moving” — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
“Yet through their endeavor, men would glimpse the unimaginable artistry of Yahweh's work, in seeing how ingeniously the world had been constructed. By this… — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
“I would have liked to experience more of the heptapods' worldview, to feel the way they feel. Then, perhaps I could immerse myself fully… — Ted Chiang Copy Share Image
