--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We call things we don't understand…" description: "\"We call things we don't understand complex, but that means we haven't found a good way of thinking about them.\" — Tsutomu Shimomura" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6a/tsutomu-shimomura-284513_complexes_we-call-things-we-don-t-understand-compl_1232763.png" --- # We call things we don't understand complex, but that means… ![“We call things we don't understand complex, but that means we haven't found a good way of thinking about them.” quote by Tsutomu Shimomura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6a/tsutomu-shimomura-284513_complexes_we-call-things-we-don-t-understand-compl_1232763.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6a/tsutomu-shimomura-284513_complexes_we-call-things-we-don-t-understand-compl_1232763.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6a/tsutomu-shimomura-284513_complexes_we-call-things-we-don-t-understand-compl_1232763.png) > “We call things we don't understand complex, but that means we haven't found a good way of thinking about them.” Tsutomu Shimomura ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Complexity arises from limited understanding; finding better perspectives simplifies it. **In simple terms:** We call things complex when we lack good thinking methods. Key Takeaway Seek clearer thinking. Themes learning clarity complexity perspective Mood inquisitive analytical Type Complexes:1 Found:1 Good way:1 Havens:1 Mean:1 Thinking:1 Way:1 Way of thinking:1 Don Understand:1 Way Thinking:1 Understand Complex:1 Complex Means:1 When to use this quote - education - problem solving - innovation - critical thinking Key Concepts philosophy psychology cognitive science Questions to Reflect On - What new perspective can simplify this? - How do you approach complex problems? A Different Perspective Complexity can be inherent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Complexes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complexes/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Way of thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-thinking/) ## Related quotes > [People don't understand complex issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharad-pawar/people-don-t-understand-complex-issues/) [Sharad Pawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharad-pawar/) > [“Complex means simply difficult.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrmn/complex-means-simply-difficult/) Vikrmn > [I have spent 25 years battling to tell people that business is important. People aren't prepared to understand that it's a complex piece of machinery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-quest/i-have-spent-25-years-battling-to-tell-people-that-business-is/) [Richard Quest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-quest/) > [Humans need simplifications in order to understand almost anything complex. That's one of our basic biases!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-johnson/humans-need-simplifications-in-order-to-understand-almost-anything/) [Bryan Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-johnson/) > [But you cannot know a place without loving it and hating it and feeling everything in between. You cannot understand a complex people by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silas-house/but-you-cannot-know-a-place-without-loving-it-and-hating-it-and/) [Silas House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silas-house/) > [Some marriages are not easy to understand. They are as complex as madness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-marriages-are-not-easy-to-understand-they-are-as-complex-as/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/science-is-a-way-of-thinking-much-more-than-it-is-a-body-of-knowledge-2/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Music is another way of thinking, or maybe thinking is another kind of music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/music-is-another-way-of-thinking-or-maybe-thinking-is-another-kind-of/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“You got it all wrong in your way of thinking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/you-got-it-all-wrong-in-your-way-of-thinking/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“The second element of change is understanding. By understanding where your “way of thinking” originates, you can recognize that it has to come from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-harv-eker/the-second-element-of-change-is-understanding-by-understanding-where/) [T. Harv Eker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-harv-eker/) > [My way of thinking is very particular and concrete. It doesn't follow a continuous path.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-antin/my-way-of-thinking-is-very-particular-and-concrete-it-doesn-t-follow/) [David Antin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-antin/) > [There's definitely a way of thinking and a way of being in the South that has its advantages and disadvantages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-soderbergh/there-s-definitely-a-way-of-thinking-and-a-way-of-being-in-the-south/) [Steven Soderbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-soderbergh/) > [“Intelligence is a way of thinking, not a choice of words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/intelligence-is-a-way-of-thinking-not-a-choice-of-words/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“If you change your way of thinking and being, you will change your way of seeing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/if-you-change-your-way-of-thinking-and-being-you-will-change-your-way/) Comic Strip Mama > [“You cannot think your way into a new way of acting, but you can act your way into a new way of thinking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-cannot-think-your-way-into-a-new-way-of-acting-but-you-can-act/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Complexes quotes > [Being an artist is a totally godlike thing to do - and I have a god complex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-anderson/being-an-artist-is-a-totally-godlike-thing-to-do-and-i-have-a-god/) [Laurie Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-anderson/) > [UN peacekeeping operations are now increasingly complex and multi-dimensional, going beyond monitoring a ceasefire to actually bringing failed States back to life, often after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/un-peacekeeping-operations-are-now-increasingly-complex-and-multi/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [For many of us, work is the one place where we feel appreciated. 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