Twelve Virtues of Rationality by Eliezer Yudkowsky. By Eliezer Yudkowsky The first virtue is curiosity. A burning itch to know is higher than a solemn vow to pursue truth. To feel the burning itch of curiosity requires both that you be ignorant, and that you desire to relinquish your ignorance. If in your heart you believe you already know, or if in your heart you do not wish to know, then your questioning will be purposeless and your skills without direction.
Curiosity seeks to annihilate itself; there is no curiosity that does not want an answer. The glory of glorious mystery is to be solved, after which it ceases to be mystery. The second virtue is relinquishment. The third virtue is lightness. The fourth virtue is evenness. The fifth virtue is argument. The sixth virtue is empiricism. The seventh virtue is simplicity. The eighth virtue is humility. The ninth virtue is perfectionism. The tenth virtue is precision. The eleventh virtue is scholarship. Before these eleven virtues is a virtue which is nameless. Awesome_life_quotes_1.jpg (640×427) 11 Most Important Philosophical Quotations.
1. “The unexamined life is not worth living” – Socrates (470-399 BCE) Socrates’ [wiki] belief that we must reflect upon the life we live was partly inspired by the famous phrase inscribed at the shrine of the oracle at Delphi, “Know thyself.” The key to finding value in the prophecies of the oracle was self-knowledge, not a decoder ring.
Socrates felt so passionately about the value of self-examination that he closely examined not only his own beliefs and values but those of others as well. 2. Commonly known as Ockham’s razor, the idea here is that in judging among competing philosophical or scientific theories, all other things being equal, we should prefer the simplest theory. The ultimate irony of Ockham’s razor may be that some have used it to prove God is unnecessary to the explanation of the universe, an idea Ockham the Franciscan priest would reject. 3. Referring to the original state of nature, a hypothetical past before civilization, Hobbes [wiki] saw no reason to be nostalgic. What is Zeno’s Dichotomy Paradox? - Colm Kelleher.
The Analysis of mind, by Bertrand Russell. Bertrand Russell Quote On The Paradox of Fools And Wise Men. 40 Belief-Shaking Remarks From a Ruthless Nonconformist. If there’s one thing Friedrich Nietzsche did well, it’s obliterate feel-good beliefs people have about themselves. He has been criticized for being a misanthrope, a subvert, a cynic and a pessimist, but I think these assessments are off the mark. I believe he only wanted human beings to be more honest with themselves. He did have a remarkable gift for aphorism — he once declared, “It is my ambition to say in ten sentences what others say in a whole book.” A hundred years after his death, Nietzsche retains his disturbing talent for turning a person’s worldview upside-down with one jarring remark.
Even today his words remain controversial. They hit nerves. Here are 40 unsympathetic statements from the man himself. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. More of Nietzsche’s genius here. Have a lot on your mind? 18 Rules of Living by the Dalai Lama.