--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Following Korzybski, I put things in…" description: "\"Following Korzybski, I put things in probabilities, not absolutes... My only originality lies in applying this zetetic attitude outside the hardest of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4b/robert-anton-wilson-1198_absolutes_following-korzybski-i-put-things-in-prob_895235.jpg" --- # Following Korzybski, I put things in probabilities, not… ![“Following Korzybski, I put things in probabilities, not absolutes... My only originality lies in applying this zetetic attitude outside the hardest of the hard sciences, physics, to softer sciences and then to non-sciences like politics, ideology, jury verdicts and, of course, conspiracy theory.” quote by Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4b/robert-anton-wilson-1198_absolutes_following-korzybski-i-put-things-in-prob_895235.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4b/robert-anton-wilson-1198_absolutes_following-korzybski-i-put-things-in-prob_895235.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4b/robert-anton-wilson-1198_absolutes_following-korzybski-i-put-things-in-prob_895235.jpg) > “Following Korzybski, I put things in probabilities, not absolutes... My only originality lies in applying this zetetic attitude outside the hardest of the hard sciences, physics, to softer sciences and then to non-sciences like politics, ideology, jury verdicts and, of course, conspiracy theory.” [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Adopting a probabilistic mindset, rather than absolute certainty, can be applied across disciplines, from hard science to politics and conspiracy theories. **In simple terms:** Use probabilities, not absolutes, in thinking. Key Takeaway Question certainty, embrace uncertainty. Themes philosophy critical thinking probability science politics Mood skeptical inquisitive Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - research analysis - policy debate - media literacy - personal belief systems Key Concepts zetetic method epistemology cognitive flexibility Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance probabilistic thinking with decisive action? - When might absolute truths be necessary? A Different Perspective Overreliance on probability can lead to indecision or relativism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absolutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutes/) [Absolutes Originality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutes-originality-1189140/) [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Conspiracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conspiracy/) [Conspiracy theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conspiracy-theory/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Following](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/following/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Hardest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardest/) [Ideology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideology/) [Jury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jury/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Originality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originality/) [Originality Lies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originality-lies-1189142/) [Physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physics/) [Physics Softer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physics-softer-1189143/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Probability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/probability/) [Science physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-physics/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Verdict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/verdict/) [Zetetic Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zetetic-attitude-1189141/) ## Related quotes > [You can believe in originals only if you just don't know their context within literature. 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Space then is a necessary representation a priori, which serves for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/natural-science-physics-contains-in-itself-synthetical-judgments-a/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology and yet have cleverly arranged things so that almost no one understands science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/we-live-in-a-society-exquisitely-dependent-on-science-and-technology/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [In science it often happens that scientists say, "You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken..."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/in-science-it-often-happens-that-scientists-say-you-know-that-s-a-2/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only a boy playing on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/i-do-not-know-what-i-may-appear-to-the-world-but-to-myself-i-seem-to-3/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [All of physics is either impossible or trivial. It is impossible until you understand it, and then it becomes trivial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-rutherford/all-of-physics-is-either-impossible-or-trivial-it-is-impossible-until/) [Ernest Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-rutherford/) > [It was absolutely marvelous working for Pauli. You could ask him anything. There was no worry that he would think a particular question was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-frederick-weisskopf/it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for-pauli-you-could-ask-him/) [Victor Frederick Weisskopf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-frederick-weisskopf/) > [All science is either physics or stamp collecting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-rutherford/all-science-is-either-physics-or-stamp-collecting/) [Ernest Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-rutherford/) > [Schools of science and physics replacing each other at a faster and faster rate. Just the nature of our world is constant revision, constant...negation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/schools-of-science-and-physics-replacing-each-other-at-a-faster-and/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Science is simply common sense at its best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/science-is-simply-common-sense-at-its-best/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [When I was 18, science, physics, and math were my favorite. I was a bit of a nerd - the only girl with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/when-i-was-18-science-physics-and-math-were-my-favorite-i-was-a-bit/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [When I began my career as a cosmologist some twenty years ago, I was a convinced atheist. I never in my wildest dreams imagined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-j-tipler/when-i-began-my-career-as-a-cosmologist-some-twenty-years-ago-i-was-a/) [Frank J. Tipler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-j-tipler/) > [When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/when-you-are-courting-a-nice-girl-an-hour-seems-like-a-second/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I hope I have helped to raise the profile of science and to show that physics is not a mystery but can be understood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-hope-i-have-helped-to-raise-the-profile-of-science-and-to-show-that/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I was already sort of mixing my science physics enthusiasm with entertainment and directing and puppetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-henson/i-was-already-sort-of-mixing-my-science-physics-enthusiasm-with/) [Brian Henson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-henson/) ## More by Robert Anton Wilson > [Every fact of science was once Damned. Every invention was considered impossible. Every discovery was a nervous shock to some orthodoxy. Every artistic innovation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/every-fact-of-science-was-once-damned-every-invention-was-considered/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [The only way to stave off boredom, in a complex domesticated primate like humankind, is to increase one's intelligence. This is not appealing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-only-way-to-stave-off-boredom-in-a-complex-domesticated-primate/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Disobedience was man's Original Virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/disobedience-was-man-s-original-virtue/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [In every state of the Union, Fundamentalists still fight to ban all the science they dislike and prosecute all who teach it. To them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/in-every-state-of-the-union-fundamentalists-still-fight-to-ban-all/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [It is a great privilege to be conscious in this universe. Those who understand, shine like stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/it-is-a-great-privilege-to-be-conscious-in-this-universe-those-who/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [I will do anything, including highway robbery and murder, to avoid leaving my children in poverty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/i-will-do-anything-including-highway-robbery-and-murder-to-avoid/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [I see anarchism as the theoretical ideal to which we are all gradually evolving to a point where everybody can tell the truth to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/i-see-anarchism-as-the-theoretical-ideal-to-which-we-are-all/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [“Masturbation is not the happiest form of sexuality, but the most advisable for him who wants to be alone and think. I detect the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/masturbation-is-not-the-happiest-form-of-sexuality-but-the-most/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [I like pacifists and people who have a heavy emotional identification with deathism and war would probably call me a pacifist, but I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/i-like-pacifists-and-people-who-have-a-heavy-emotional-identification/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Cynics regarded everybody as equally corrupt... Idealists regarded everybody as equally corrupt, except themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/cynics-regarded-everybody-as-equally-corrupt-idealists-regarded/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [The most important truths always appear first as blasphemies or obscenities. That's why every great innovator is persecuted. And the sacraments look obscene, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-most-important-truths-always-appear-first-as-blasphemies-or/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [“When you're dealing with these forces or powers in a philosophic and scientific way, contemplating them from an armchair, that rationalistic approach is useful.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/when-you-re-dealing-with-these-forces-or-powers-in-a-philosophic-and/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [“And Spaceship Earth, that glorious and bloody circus, continued its four-billion-year-long spiral orbit about the Sun; the engineering, I must admit, was so exquisite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/and-spaceship-earth-that-glorious-and-bloody-circus-continued-its/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Existence is larger than any model that is not itself the exact size of existence (which has no size).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/existence-is-larger-than-any-model-that-is-not-itself-the-exact-size/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [The totally convinced and the totally stupid have too much in common for the resemblance to be accidental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-totally-convinced-and-the-totally-stupid-have-too-much-in-common/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) [Explore all 274 Robert Anton Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) ## More Absolutes quotes > [At the centre of the human heart is the longing for an absolute good, a longing which is always there and is never appeased…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/at-the-centre-of-the-human-heart-is-the-longing-for-an-absolute-good/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [There is no perfect justice, just as there is no absolute in ethics. But there is perfect injustice, and we know it when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/there-is-no-perfect-justice-just-as-there-is-no-absolute-in-ethics/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [If you live in a material universe where acquiring things is very important to you, then family is an absolute deterrent to maintaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/if-you-live-in-a-material-universe-where-acquiring-things-is-very/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [ Their \[the U.S.’s\] defense budget in absolute figures is almost 25 times bigger than Russia’s. This is what in defense is referred to as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/their-the-u-s-s-defense-budget-in-absolute-figures-is-almost-25-times/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Conservative political opinion in America cleaves to the tradition of the judge as passive interpreter, believing that his absolute loyalty to authoritative law is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/conservative-political-opinion-in-america-cleaves-to-the-tradition-of/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) > [So many times we come to Jesus in worship and ask Him for things that He already IS and has already done... What a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-nockels/so-many-times-we-come-to-jesus-in-worship-and-ask-him-for-things-that/) [Christy Nockels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-nockels/) > [Those are decisions only the Lord will make. I believe the love of God is absolute. He said he gave his son for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/those-are-decisions-only-the-lord-will-make-i-believe-the-love-of-god/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [“The Gods know what it is to be eternal, and they love to toy with mortals who use absolutes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/the-gods-know-what-it-is-to-be-eternal-and-they-love-to-toy-with/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [Anarchy is the stepping stone to absolute power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/anarchy-is-the-stepping-stone-to-absolute-power/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [I was asked the other day if I would be interested in the Nobel Prize, but I think that for me it would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/i-was-asked-the-other-day-if-i-would-be-interested-in-the-nobel-prize/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [The only "definitive truth" for Buddhism is the absolute negation of any one truth as the Definitive Truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/the-only-definitive-truth-for-buddhism-is-the-absolute-negation-of/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [The nature of the Absolute is neither perceptible nor imperceptible; and with phenomena it is just the same. But to one who has discovered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huangbo-xiyun/the-nature-of-the-absolute-is-neither-perceptible-nor-imperceptible/) [Huangbo Xiyun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huangbo-xiyun/) > [Joining a company is an act that calls for absolute loyalty in big matters and little ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-watson/joining-a-company-is-an-act-that-calls-for-absolute-loyalty-in-big/) [Thomas Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-watson/) > [In fine, a life of good or evil, the hope of Heaven or the despair of Hell, Faustus stands as a reminder that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-fine-a-life-of-good-or-evil-the-hope-of-heaven-or-the-despair-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 2,016 Absolutes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Following Korzybski, I put things in probabilities, not absolutes... 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