Catherine Deneuve? Kathleen Turner? Francoise de la Renta? Carolina Herrera? Ida Jean Kain? Erma Bombeck? Elizabeth Taylor? Meryl Streep? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: It is common for an individual to gain weight while growing older. Yet, dieting to maintain a slim body can inadvertently produce a face that looks angular or gaunt. Here are …
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Quote Origin: The Programming Occupation Will Become Extinct
Herbert A. Simon? Eric Schmidt? Andrej Karpathy? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The capabilities of artificial intelligence systems continue to grow in 2025. Complex computer programs can now be generated from prompts uttered in English, Chinese, and other natural languages. Here are two predictions separated by sixty-five years: (1) It is far more likely that …
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Dialogue Origin: “When Will This Futuristic System Be Built?” “Ten Years After You’ve Stopped Laughing”
Arthur Kantrowitz? Gerard K. O’Neill? Timothy Leary? Arthur C. Clarke? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Grand futuristic projects such as the following four examples have been greeted with a mixture of hope, excitement, skepticism, and derision: (1) Laser propulsion systems for spacecraft(2) Space-based solar power systems(3) Space habitats with thousands or millions of people(4) Space …
Quote Origin: When You Are Up To Your Ass in Alligators, It Is Hard To Remember That Your Original Intention Was To Drain the Swamp
Kansas Cooperative Council? Lance Burr? Betty Hutton? Jim Briggs? John Rankin? Boris Yavitz? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: One encounters numerous obstacles when working toward the completion of an ambitious goal. It is necessary to keep the final objective in mind to make progress. A humorous statement highlights the troubles one must circumvent: When you …
Quote Origin: I Don’t Think I’ve Really Seen an Anti-War Film. Every Film About War Ends Up Being Pro-War
François Truffaut? Sam Mendes? Steven Spielberg? Gene Siskel? Roger Ebert? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The excitement, violence, and brutality of films about war often causes confusion in the minds of movie goers. Even when a director’s avowed stance is anti-war the visceral reaction of viewers might be very different. A prominent director once said something …
Quote Origin: The Genius, Wit, and Spirit of a Nation Are Discovered in Its Proverbs
Francis Bacon? Samuel Palmer? James Kelly? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Valuable insights into cultures may be obtained by studying popular proverbs. The English philosopher and statesman Francis Bacon has been credited with the following statement: The genius, wit, and spirit of a nation are discovered in its proverbs. I am skeptical of this attribution …
Adage Origin: Men Fear Women Will Laugh at Them; Women Fear Men Will Kill Them
Margaret Atwood? Ingrid Koenig? Naomi Wolf? Gavin de Becker? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Each of us experiences different fears. A popular feminist saying presents divergent dreads: Men are afraid women will laugh at them. Women are afraid men will kill them. This saying has been attributed to prominent Canadian novelist Margaret Atwood, U.S. feminist …
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Pun Origin: A Piece of Cod Which Passeth All Understanding
Edwin Lutyens? Arthur Wimperis? Geoffrey Willans? John Poole? Malcolm Sterling Mackinlay? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A wit at a restaurant was served a plate of cod which looked unappetizing. The rejected fish inspired this memorably hilarious pun: A piece of cod which passeth all understanding. The wordplay was based on a biblical verse: The …
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Dialogue Origin: “What Has Been the Impact of the French Revolution?” “It’s Too Early To Tell”
Mao Zedong? Zhou Enlai? Eduard Shevardnadze? Andre Malraux? Anonymous Official? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A popular anecdote claims that a high-level U.S. politician once met with a Chinese official during the 1970s, and they began to talk about the French Revolution. When the Chinese official was asked about the impact of this momentous historical …
Quip Origin: It’s Not the Fall That Hurts You; It’s the Sudden Stop at the End
Douglas Adams? Spike Milligan? Terry Pratchett? Charlie Bates? Harry Harrison? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Prominent humorists have been credited with statements from the following family of jokes about collisions. Here are three examples: (1) Falling doesn’t hurt you; it’s the sudden stop at the end.(2) It isn’t the speed that kills people; it’s the …
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