--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is absurd to suppose we can think of…" description: "\"It is absurd to suppose we can think of nature as a system apart from knowledge, for it is knowledge that is increasingly determining the course of nat..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/kenneth-e-boulding-3728_absurd_it-is-absurd-to-suppose-we-can-think-of_995117.jpg" --- # It is absurd to suppose we can think of nature as a system… ![“It is absurd to suppose we can think of nature as a system apart from knowledge, for it is knowledge that is increasingly determining the course of nature.” quote by Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/kenneth-e-boulding-3728_absurd_it-is-absurd-to-suppose-we-can-think-of_995117.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/kenneth-e-boulding-3728_absurd_it-is-absurd-to-suppose-we-can-think-of_995117.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/kenneth-e-boulding-3728_absurd_it-is-absurd-to-suppose-we-can-think-of_995117.jpg) > “It is absurd to suppose we can think of nature as a system apart from knowledge, for it is knowledge that is increasingly determining the course of nature.” [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Nature and knowledge are intertwined; knowledge shapes nature and vice‑versa. **In simple terms:** Knowledge and nature influence each other. Key Takeaway Recognize knowledge’s impact on the world. Themes science philosophy environment Mood analytical thought‑provoking Type philosophical scientific When to use this quote - research - policy development - education - technology design Key Concepts epistemology systems theory human‑nature interaction Questions to Reflect On - How does our knowledge change ecosystems? - What responsibilities arise from this influence? A Different Perspective Complex feedback loops can be hard to predict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Though knowledge itself increasingly ignores boundaries between fields, professors are apt to organize their pedagogy around the methods and history of their academic subculture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/though-knowledge-itself-increasingly-ignores-boundaries-between/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [Humans are a part of nature, not apart from nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-bekoff/humans-are-a-part-of-nature-not-apart-from-nature/) [Marc Bekoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-bekoff/) > [Everything is natural and nature is the whole of everything of which I am apart of and so are you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-kest/everything-is-natural-and-nature-is-the-whole-of-everything-of-which/) [Bryan Kest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-kest/) > [I think the most common meme is that it's too difficult to change. It's too risky to change. My nature doesn't allow me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/i-think-the-most-common-meme-is-that-it-s-too-difficult-to-change-it/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [We have, of course, long since ceased to think of Nature as the sympathetic mirror of our moods, or to imagine that she has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-le-gallienne/we-have-of-course-long-since-ceased-to-think-of-nature-as-the/) [Richard Le Gallienne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-le-gallienne/) > [“If you think about it, everyone is behind someone and in front of someone. The nature of the sphere, right? No one gets left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-olin-unferth/if-you-think-about-it-everyone-is-behind-someone-and-in-front-of/) [Deb Olin Unferth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-olin-unferth/) > [“HUMANS THINK THAT NATURE GIVES SERVICE TO HIM SO IT IS SERVANT OF HIS, BUT HE DOES'NT UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE CHILDREN'S OF NATURE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omkar-patil/humans-think-that-nature-gives-service-to-him-so-it-is-servant-of-his/) Omkar Patil > [You know, I think that nature has such a powerful message about moving from dark to light, and bitterness to sweetness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corinne-bailey-rae/you-know-i-think-that-nature-has-such-a-powerful-message-about-moving/) [Corinne Bailey Rae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corinne-bailey-rae/) > [“There are moments when we think nature happens just for us, and there are other moments when the ridiculousness of that notion is revealed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/there-are-moments-when-we-think-nature-happens-just-for-us-and-there/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“In this image-driven age, wildlife filmmakers carry a heavy responsibility. They can influence how we think and behave when we’re in nature. They can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-palmer/in-this-image-driven-age-wildlife-filmmakers-carry-a-heavy/) Chris Palmer > [Let us think of Nature as a builder, making all that we see out of atoms of a limited number of kinds, just as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-bragg/let-us-think-of-nature-as-a-builder-making-all-that-we-see-out-of/) [William Henry Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-henry-bragg/) > [“It is extremely Sad to think that while nature is talking,humankind is not listening.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jd-masterson/it-is-extremely-sad-to-think-that-while-nature-is-talking-humankind/) Jd Masterson > [I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we only will tune…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington-carver/i-love-to-think-of-nature-as-an-unlimited-broadcasting-station/) [George Washington Carver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington-carver/) > [I think it's my nature to engage in things that are more difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mackaye/i-think-it-s-my-nature-to-engage-in-things-that-are-more-difficult/) [Ian MacKaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mackaye/) > [I think it's in our nature to try to get beyond that next horizon. I think that when we as a species are scratching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-howard/i-think-it-s-in-our-nature-to-try-to-get-beyond-that-next-horizon-i/) [Ron Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-howard/) ## More by Kenneth E. Boulding > [ \[In science any model depends on a pre-chosen taxonomy\] a set of classifications into which we divide the enormous complexity of the real world...… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/in-science-any-model-depends-on-a-pre-chosen-taxonomy-a-set-of/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [If we saw tomorrow's newspaper today, tomorrow would never happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/if-we-saw-tomorrow-s-newspaper-today-tomorrow-would-never-happen/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [It is clear that the building of models is not a purely mechanical process but requires skill of a high order - not merely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/it-is-clear-that-the-building-of-models-is-not-a-purely-mechanical/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Even personal tastes are learned, in the matrix of a culture or a subculture in which we grow up, by very much the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/even-personal-tastes-are-learned-in-the-matrix-of-a-culture-or-a/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [In view of the importance of philanthropy in our society, it is surprising that so little attention has been given to it by economic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/in-view-of-the-importance-of-philanthropy-in-our-society-it-is/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Humble, honest, ignorance is one of the finest flowers of the human spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/humble-honest-ignorance-is-one-of-the-finest-flowers-of-the-human/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [ \[The question for the behavioral disciplines is simply\] what is better, and how do we get there? ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/the-question-for-the-behavioral-disciplines-is-simply-what-is-better/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [ \[Even the mechanism can be endowed with an image. Thus\] the thermostat has an image of the outside world in the shape of information… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/even-the-mechanism-can-be-endowed-with-an-image-thus-the-thermostat/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Economic problems have no sharp edges. They shade off imperceptibly into politics, sociology, and ethics. Indeed, it is hardly an exaggeration to say that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/economic-problems-have-no-sharp-edges-they-shade-off-imperceptibly/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [The world moves into the future as a result of decisions, not as a result of plans. Plans are significant only insofar as they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/the-world-moves-into-the-future-as-a-result-of-decisions-not-as-a/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Mathematicians themselves set up standards of generality and elegance in their exposition which are a bar to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/mathematicians-themselves-set-up-standards-of-generality-and-elegance/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [The concept of need is often looked upon rather unfavorably by economists, in contrast with the concept of demand. Both, however, have their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/the-concept-of-need-is-often-looked-upon-rather-unfavorably-by/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Conventions of generality and mathematical elegance may be just as much barriers to the attainment and diffusion of knowledge as may contentment with particularity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/conventions-of-generality-and-mathematical-elegance-may-be-just-as/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Nothing fails like success, because we do not learn anything from it. We only learn from failure, but we do not always learn the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/nothing-fails-like-success-because-we-do-not-learn-anything-from-it/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [At the opposite pole from the gift is tribute - that is, a grant made out of fear and under threat. A threat is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/at-the-opposite-pole-from-the-gift-is-tribute-that-is-a-grant-made/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) [Explore all 123 Kenneth E. Boulding quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) ## More Absurd quotes > [“It seem absurd to me that they don't know, haven't felt any change or tremor, even as my life has been completely turned upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-seem-absurd-to-me-that-they-don-t-know-haven-t-felt-any-change-or/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [When a person’s tongue is extensively wrong, it is absurd, no less than unscriptural, to say that their heart is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryle/when-a-person-s-tongue-is-extensively-wrong-it-is-absurd-no-less-than/) [J. C. Ryle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryle/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is human nature to think wisely and to act in an absurd fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/it-is-human-nature-to-think-wisely-and-to-act-in-an-absurd-fashion/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I thought to myself: if it’s true that every person has a star in the sky, mine must be distant, dim, and absurd. Perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadegh-hedayat/i-thought-to-myself-if-it-s-true-that-every-person-has-a-star-in-the/) [Sadegh Hedayat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadegh-hedayat/) > [If, indeed, a firearm were more dangerous to its possessors than to potential aggressors, would it not make sense for the government to arm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/if-indeed-a-firearm-were-more-dangerous-to-its-possessors-than-to/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“You were torturing a cat," she says. "With a freaking prod." "A prod I built myself in metal shop," he says. "But of course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/you-were-torturing-a-cat-she-says-with-a-freaking-prod-a-prod-i-built/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [I have never heard enough classical music to be able to enjoy it; & the simple truth is, I detest it. Not mildly, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-have-never-heard-enough-classical-music-to-be-able-to-enjoy-it-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [To deprecate human reason by saying that none of us is or can be omniscient is absurd, for it takes an impossible standard as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/to-deprecate-human-reason-by-saying-that-none-of-us-is-or-can-be/) [Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/) > [“Rachel got up and did this happy little shuffle, like she was some cheerful farmer chick who'd just stepped outside to find the hick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/rachel-got-up-and-did-this-happy-little-shuffle-like-she-was-some/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [The absurd duty, too often inculcated, of obeying a parent only on account of his being a parent, shackles the mind, and prepares it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/the-absurd-duty-too-often-inculcated-of-obeying-a-parent-only-on/) [Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/) > [The workman of today works every day in his life at the same tasks, and this fate is no less absurd. But it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-workman-of-today-works-every-day-in-his-life-at-the-same-tasks/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I was once part of a Christmas cabaret. I sang 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.' I tap-danced. I had a ten-gallon hat. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dinklage/i-was-once-part-of-a-christmas-cabaret-i-sang-i-saw-mommy-kissing/) [Peter Dinklage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dinklage/) > [Solitude produces originality, bold and astonishing beauty, poetry. But solitude also produces perverseness, the disproportianate, the absurd and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mann/solitude-produces-originality-bold-and-astonishing-beauty-poetry-but/) [Thomas Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mann/) [Browse all 1,644 Absurd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is absurd to suppose we can think of nature as a system apart from knowledge, for it is knowledge that is increasingly determining the course of nature.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kenneth E. 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