Cognition Quote by Steven Pinker
““Take space. It has to be either finite or infinite, yet neither possibility sits well with our intuitions. When I try to imagine a finite universe, I get Marcel Marceau miming on an invisible wall with his hands. Or, after reading about manifolds in books on physics, I see ants creeping over a sphere, or people trapped in a huge inner tube unaware of all the exposure around them. But in all these cases the volume is stubbornly suspended in a larger space, which shouldn't be there at all, but which my minds eye can't help but peek at.””
About This Quote
Source Lecture: MIT Cognitive Science, 2018
He illustrates the difficulty of visualizing finite versus infinite space, using vivid analogies.
In simple terms: Hard to grasp space limits.
Key Takeaway
Seek concrete models for abstract ideas.
Themes
space
infinity
intuition
Mood
curious
thoughtful
Type
educational
philosophical
When to use this quote
- education
- science communication
- design thinking
Key Concepts
Cognitive limits
visualization techniques
Questions to Reflect On
- How can you better imagine abstract spaces?
- What tools aid your spatial reasoning?
A Different Perspective
Analogies may oversimplify complex concepts.
![“[Mood allocates] investments of time, effort, resources, and risk taking to maximize Darwinian fitness in situations of varying propitiousness. High and low moods adjust cognition and behavior to cope with propitious and unpropitious situations.” quote by Randolph M. Nesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/6d0/randolph-m-nesse-24802_behavior_mood-allocates-investments-of-time-effor_87538.jpg)
