Activity Quote by Edsger Dijkstra
“So-called "natural language" is wonderful for the purposes it was created for, such as to be rude in, to tell jokes in, to cheat or to make love in (and Theorists of Literary Criticism can even be content-free in it), but it is hopelessly inadequate when we have to deal unambiguously with situations of great intricacy, situations which unavoidably arise in such activities as legislation, arbitration, mathematics or programming.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: "On the Cruelty of Really Teaching Computing", 1972
Natural language is great for informal use but fails to handle complex, precise tasks like law, math, or code.
In simple terms: Casual speech works, but precise work needs formal language.
Key Takeaway
Use formal systems for complex, unambiguous tasks.
Themes
precision
language
complexity
formal systems
communication
Mood
analytical
critical
thoughtful
Type
advisory
philosophical
technical
When to use this quote
- legal drafting
- software development
- mathematical proof
- arbitration
- policy writing
Key Concepts
logic
semantics
syntax
ambiguity
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we bridge informal and formal communication?
- When is informal language acceptable in technical fields?
A Different Perspective
Formal languages can be rigid and inaccessible to non-experts.
![“Please don't fall into the trap of believing that I am terribly dogmatical about [the goto statement]. I have the uncomfortable feeling that others are making a religion out of it, as if the conceptual problems of programming could be solved by a single trick, by a simple form of coding discipline!” quote by Edsger Dijkstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/6ad/edsger-dijkstra-5102_believe_please-don-t-fall-into-the-trap-of-belie_167695.jpg)
