--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The variables vary too much and the…" description: "\"The variables vary too much and the constants aren't as constant as they seem.\" — Robert Anton Wilson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg" --- # The variables vary too much and the constants aren't as… ![“The variables vary too much and the constants aren't as constant as they seem.” quote by Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg) > “The variables vary too much and the constants aren't as constant as they seem.” [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. Constants change and variables fluctuate, challenging certainty. **In simple terms:** Nothing stays truly constant. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty. Themes uncertainty science philosophy change Mood curious analytical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - scientific research - financial markets - personal decisions Key Concepts relativity systems thinking skepticism Questions to Reflect On - How do you decide when to trust a constant? - What variables do you monitor most? A Different Perspective Too much uncertainty can paralyze action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Constants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constants/) ## Related quotes > [They're constants, aren't they?" ... "Books are. That's why we like them so much. They seem immutable. They're not, of course. Not from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-e-murphy/they-re-constants-aren-t-they-books-are-that-s-why-we-like-them-so/) [C.E. Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-e-murphy/) > [If anything runs deeper than a mathematician’s love of variables, it’s a scientist’s love of constants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-kean/if-anything-runs-deeper-than-a-mathematician-s-love-of-variables-it-s/) [Sam Kean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-kean/) > [“I’d just always assumed those constants, so basic, would never change. I hadn’t even realized they were anything special at the time. And now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-matson/i-d-just-always-assumed-those-constants-so-basic-would-never-change-i/) [Morgan Matson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-matson/) > [“there are no arbitrary constants ... nature is so constituted that it is possible logically to lay down such strongly determined laws that within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/there-are-no-arbitrary-constants-nature-is-so-constituted-that-it-is/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [“Only three constants are significant for star formation: the gravitational constant, the fine structure constant, and a constant that governs nuclear reaction rates.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-stewart/only-three-constants-are-significant-for-star-formation-the/) [Ian Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-stewart/) > [Constants are widely known for the detestable practice of changing their values; we should prepare ourselves against the consequences of such fickleness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-meyer/constants-are-widely-known-for-the-detestable-practice-of-changing/) [Bertrand Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-meyer/) > [... that, in a few years, all great physical constants will have been approximately estimated, and that the only occupation which will be left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-in-a-few-years-all-great-physical-constants-will-have-been/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There are three constants in existence... change with almost everything,choice and principles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krystal-volney/there-are-three-constants-in-existence-change-with-almost-everything/) [Krystal Volney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krystal-volney/) > [“Constants are few in this every changing world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/constants-are-few-in-this-every-changing-world/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [“According to the anthropic principle proponents, if the universal constants (e.g. gravitation, the strong force, etc.) were just a nose-hair off, the universe as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-m-jackson/according-to-the-anthropic-principle-proponents-if-the-universal/) [G.M. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-m-jackson/) > [“The uncertainty of life got me thinking about the importance of constants in our lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-scott/the-uncertainty-of-life-got-me-thinking-about-the-importance-of/) Michele Scott > [There are three constants in life... change, choice and principles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/there-are-three-constants-in-life-change-choice-and-principles/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [“One of the great constants in life is change.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-great-constants-in-life-is-change/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Science is entirely dependent on constants. Anything that is not constant (natural disasters, poor construction, or other human factors) is nearly impossible to include…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-and-tiffany-domena/science-is-entirely-dependent-on-constants-anything-that-is-not/) [Stephen and Tiffany Domena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-and-tiffany-domena/) > [The gravitation constant is the same always. But the economic constants-these elasticities of demand and supply-depending, as they do, upon human consciousness, are liable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-cecil-pigou/the-gravitation-constant-is-the-same-always-but-the-economic/) Arthur Cecil Pigou ## 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 Constant quotes > [Because after you've crossed some lines, you just keep crossing them. And there's no escaping from constant escape. Distracting ourselves. Avoiding confrontation. Getting past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/because-after-you-ve-crossed-some-lines-you-just-keep-crossing-them/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [This is, for an accomplished Latino, an accomplished African American, an accomplished anyone who disproves stereotypes, it's a constant battle in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/this-is-for-an-accomplished-latino-an-accomplished-african-american/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [Me mum used to always have the radio on - even now she has it on in every room. Me girlfriend sort of blames…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/me-mum-used-to-always-have-the-radio-on-even-now-she-has-it-on-in/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [The Only cure for nihilism is for liberal democratic societies - their electorates, their judiciary, and their political leadership- to insist that force is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/the-only-cure-for-nihilism-is-for-liberal-democratic-societies-their/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of civilization has done nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/the-invention-of-gunpowder-and-the-constant-improvement-of-firearms/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [As I grow through love, so grows my joy, ever more present, ever more constant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/as-i-grow-through-love-so-grows-my-joy-ever-more-present-ever-more/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Life and death are illusions. We are in a constant state of transformation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/life-and-death-are-illusions-we-are-in-a-constant-state-of/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [People don't need sudden revelations. They get what they need when they need it, thought by thought by thought. It's a constant thing when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-katie/people-don-t-need-sudden-revelations-they-get-what-they-need-when/) [Byron Katie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-katie/) > [Fishing is a constant reminder of the democracy of life, of humility, and of human frailty. The forces of nature discriminate for no man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/fishing-is-a-constant-reminder-of-the-democracy-of-life-of-humility/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [It's a constant man-ego-check going on in the streets, in this world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/it-s-a-constant-man-ego-check-going-on-in-the-streets-in-this-world/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [Research is an organized method of trying to find out what you are going to do after you cannot do what you are doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kettering/research-is-an-organized-method-of-trying-to-find-out-what-you-are/) [Charles Kettering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kettering/) > [I believe it's true that there's good and evil in everyone and it's a constant struggle to have your better angels prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-friedkin/i-believe-it-s-true-that-there-s-good-and-evil-in-everyone-and-it-s-a/) [William Friedkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-friedkin/) > [You're a constant student, as a musician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-bell/you-re-a-constant-student-as-a-musician/) [Joshua Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-bell/) > [Intimacy requires an ability to both merge and be separate, to come together and be apart, like oscillating on a giant swing from oneness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-sophia-kasl/intimacy-requires-an-ability-to-both-merge-and-be-separate-to-come/) [Charlotte Sophia Kasl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-sophia-kasl/) Browse all 3,025 Constant quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The variables vary too much and the constants aren't as constant as they seem.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Anton Wilson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-constants-aren-t-as-constant-as/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Constant" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-constants-aren-t-as-constant-as/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6c/robert-anton-wilson-1198_constant_the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-cons_1636576.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The variables vary too much and the constants aren't as constant as they seem.” — Robert Anton Wilson", "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": "Robert Anton Wilson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The variables vary too much and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-constants-aren-t-as-constant-as/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-variables-vary-too-much-and-the-constants-aren-t-as-constant-as/#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 } } ] } ```