---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I tried to develop some theories that…"
description: "\"I tried to develop some theories that took account of the uncertainty in the world and the complexity in the world.\" — Herbert A. Simon"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg"
---

#  I tried to develop some theories that took account of the…

![“I tried to develop some theories that took account of the uncertainty in the world and the complexity in the world.” quote by Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg)

> “I tried to develop some theories that took account of the uncertainty in the world and the complexity in the world.”

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He sought models that incorporate both unpredictable elements and intricate interconnections of real-world problems.

**In simple terms:** His theories blend uncertainty with complexity.

Key Takeaway

Embrace uncertainty in problem solving.

Themes

decision making uncertainty complexity

Mood

analytical thoughtful

Type

theoretical practical

When to use this quote

- business strategy
- policy planning
- research design

Key Concepts

systems theory bounded rationality

Questions to Reflect On

- How does uncertainty affect your decisions?
- What tools help manage complexity?

A Different Perspective

Complex models can be computationally demanding.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Complexity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complexity/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Uncertainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [Let's develop theories, patiently and honestly thinking them out, in order to promptly act against them – acting and justifying our actions with new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/let-s-develop-theories-patiently-and-honestly-thinking-them-out-in/)

[Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/)

> [“Act simple in a world of complexity, then people will understand and follow you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-brethouwer/act-simple-in-a-world-of-complexity-then-people-will-understand-and/)

Willem Brethouwer

> [“If he says something that isn’t true, he is bringing uncertainty into the world. He is blinding the people around him to a small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-carey/if-he-says-something-that-isn-t-true-he-is-bringing-uncertainty-into/)

[M.R. Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-carey/)

> [Read the news section of the newspaper and there is confusion and uncertainty, a world buffeted by large forces people neither understand nor control.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mandelbaum/read-the-news-section-of-the-newspaper-and-there-is-confusion-and/)

[Michael Mandelbaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mandelbaum/)

> [The complexity of the world is so overwhelming and so present to everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-choi/the-complexity-of-the-world-is-so-overwhelming-and-so-present-to/)

[Susan Choi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-choi/)

> [What is the alternative to understanding the complexity of the world?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atul-gawande/what-is-the-alternative-to-understanding-the-complexity-of-the-world/)

[Atul Gawande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atul-gawande/)

> [“We can see how our world is, in many ways, becoming more complex, fast-paced, and unpredictable. As a result, the problems we face are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-homer-dixon/we-can-see-how-our-world-is-in-many-ways-becoming-more-complex-fast/)

[Thomas Homer-Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-homer-dixon/)

> [I think we've got to understand the complexity of the world that we are facing and no place is more so than in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-think-we-ve-got-to-understand-the-complexity-of-the-world-that-we/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

> [I actually love Twitter and Instagram. I do think it's so strange to think that 20 years ago, people would never have known personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/i-actually-love-twitter-and-instagram-i-do-think-it-s-so-strange-to/)

[Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/)

> [“A strange heart. I myself can't account for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-strange-heart-i-myself-can-t-account-for-it/)

[Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/)

> [“this is not me it is a fake account”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-schaber/this-is-not-me-it-is-a-fake-account/)

Craig Schaber

> [Every job is a blessing. Everyone has to take into account what is available. Are you paying rent, who do you get to work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-foster/every-job-is-a-blessing-everyone-has-to-take-into-account-what-is/)

[Ben Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-foster/)

> [I might have added zeros to my bank balance and followers to my Instagram account, but apart from that, I still lead a middle-class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-massey/i-might-have-added-zeros-to-my-bank-balance-and-followers-to-my/)

[Vikrant Massey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-massey/)

> [I saw a report on the news: 'Peter Dinklage tweeted... ' What? You know, I don't need any of that stuff. I got an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dinklage/i-saw-a-report-on-the-news-peter-dinklage-tweeted-what-you-know-i-don/)

[Peter Dinklage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dinklage/)

> [I have a Twitter account; I have a fantastic Facebook page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angus-king/i-have-a-twitter-account-i-have-a-fantastic-facebook-page/)

[Angus King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angus-king/)

## More by Herbert A. Simon

> [My research career has been devoted to understanding human decision-making and problem-solving processes. The pursuit of this goal has led me into the fields…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/my-research-career-has-been-devoted-to-understanding-human-decision/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [By a combination of formal training and self study, the latter continuing systematically well into the 1940s, I was able to gain a broad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/by-a-combination-of-formal-training-and-self-study-the-latter/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [I think those who object to my characterizing man as simple want somehow to retain a deep mystery at his core.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-think-those-who-object-to-my-characterizing-man-as-simple-want/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [Among my European ancestors were piano builders, goldsmiths, and vintners but, to the best of my knowledge, no professionals of any kind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/among-my-european-ancestors-were-piano-builders-goldsmiths-and/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [The density of settlement of economists over the whole empire of economic science is very uneven, with a few areas of modest size holding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/the-density-of-settlement-of-economists-over-the-whole-empire-of/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [Viewed as a geometric figure, the ant's path is irregular, complex, and hard to describe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/viewed-as-a-geometric-figure-the-ant-s-path-is-irregular-complex-and/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [I like to think that since I was about 19, I have studied human decision-making and problem-solving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-like-to-think-that-since-i-was-about-19-i-have-studied-human/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/what-information-consumes-is-rather-obvious-it-consumes-the-attention-2/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [“In an information-rich world, the wealth of information means a dearth of something else: a scarcity of whatever it is that information consumes. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/in-an-information-rich-world-the-wealth-of-information-means-a-dearth/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [I was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on June 15, 1916. My father, an electrical engineer, had come to the United States in 1903 after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-was-born-in-milwaukee-wisconsin-on-june-15-1916-my-father-an/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [In arguing that machines think, we are in the same fix as Darwin when he argued that man shares common ancestors with monkeys, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/in-arguing-that-machines-think-we-are-in-the-same-fix-as-darwin-when/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [I started off thinking that maybe the social sciences ought to have the kinds of mathematics that the natural sciences had. That works a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-started-off-thinking-that-maybe-the-social-sciences-ought-to-have/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [The classical theory of omniscient rationality is strikingly simple and beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/the-classical-theory-of-omniscient-rationality-is-strikingly-simple/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [To deal with these problems - of world population and hunger, of peace, of energy and mineral resources, of environmental pollution, of poverty -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/to-deal-with-these-problems-of-world-population-and-hunger-of-peace/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

> [I realized that you could formulate theories about human and social phenomena in language and pictures and whatever you wanted on the computer, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-realized-that-you-could-formulate-theories-about-human-and-social/)

[Herbert A. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

[Explore all 26 Herbert A. Simon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/)

## More Account quotes

> [I have a Twitter account; I have a fantastic Facebook page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angus-king/i-have-a-twitter-account-i-have-a-fantastic-facebook-page/)

[Angus King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angus-king/)

> [I saw a report on the news: 'Peter Dinklage tweeted... ' What? You know, I don't need any of that stuff. I got an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dinklage/i-saw-a-report-on-the-news-peter-dinklage-tweeted-what-you-know-i-don/)

[Peter Dinklage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dinklage/)

> [I might have added zeros to my bank balance and followers to my Instagram account, but apart from that, I still lead a middle-class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-massey/i-might-have-added-zeros-to-my-bank-balance-and-followers-to-my/)

[Vikrant Massey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-massey/)

> [Every job is a blessing. Everyone has to take into account what is available. Are you paying rent, who do you get to work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-foster/every-job-is-a-blessing-everyone-has-to-take-into-account-what-is/)

[Ben Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-foster/)

> [“this is not me it is a fake account”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-schaber/this-is-not-me-it-is-a-fake-account/)

Craig Schaber

> [“A strange heart. I myself can't account for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-strange-heart-i-myself-can-t-account-for-it/)

[Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/)

> [I actually love Twitter and Instagram. I do think it's so strange to think that 20 years ago, people would never have known personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/i-actually-love-twitter-and-instagram-i-do-think-it-s-so-strange-to/)

[Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/)

> [I'm very excited about my new Spotify account, which gives me access to twenty gazillion songs any time, all the time. The day I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-m-very-excited-about-my-new-spotify-account-which-gives-me-access/)

[Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/)

> [Love is the strange bewilderment that overtakes one person on account of another person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thurber/love-is-the-strange-bewilderment-that-overtakes-one-person-on-account/)

[James Thurber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-thurber/)

> [It is also right that we continue to consult with front line workers and the public to ensure that targets are reasonable and achievable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hutton/it-is-also-right-that-we-continue-to-consult-with-front-line-workers/)

[John Hutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hutton/)

> [Life and families and babies are all joyous gifts. But if we do not begin to truly account for our numbers, we will surely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-alexander/life-and-families-and-babies-are-all-joyous-gifts-but-if-we-do-not/)

[Jason Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-alexander/)

> [BBM for Andriod is the new Google+ account. Everyone wanted it. Everyone got it. And no one has any idea what to do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tufail-mehraj/bbm-for-andriod-is-the-new-google-account-everyone-wanted-it-everyone/)

[Tufail Mehraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tufail-mehraj/)

> [At the outset of the creation of the euro in 1999, it was expected that the southern eurozone economies would behave like those in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-outset-of-the-creation-of-the-euro-in-1999-it-was-expected/)

[Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/)

> [There's no crying in Twitter, that's why you have a Facebook account.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-no-crying-in-twitter-that-s-why-you-have-a-facebook-account/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [There was a lot of playing by myself, wearing last year's Halloween costume and wandering around the yard talking to myself - which may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-mays/there-was-a-lot-of-playing-by-myself-wearing-last-year-s-halloween/)

[Jefferson Mays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-mays/)

Browse all 336 Account quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I tried to develop some theories that took account of the uncertainty in the world and the complexity in the world.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Herbert A. Simon"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-took-account-of-the-uncertainty/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Account"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-took-account-of-the-uncertainty/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/herbert-a-simon-23072_account_i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-to_716895.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I tried to develop some theories that took account of the uncertainty in the world and the complexity in the…” — Herbert A. Simon",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Herbert A. Simon",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-a-simon/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I tried to develop some theories...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-took-account-of-the-uncertainty/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-a-simon/i-tried-to-develop-some-theories-that-took-account-of-the-uncertainty/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
