Tracing Quotations
St. Augustine of Hippo? Louis-Charles Fougeret de Monbron? Lord Byron? St. Austin? Stendhal? Richard Lassels? Question for Quote Investigator: The following popular saying about travel praises the knowledge gained from visiting multiple locations: The world is a book, and those who don’t travel read only one page. This statement is usually attributed to St. Augustine …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The World Is a Book, and Those Who Do Not Travel Read Only One Page”
Mark Twain? John W. Casto? Maturin M. Ballou? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Mark Twain traveled widely, and he wrote about his experiences in the books “The Innocents Abroad” and “Following the Equator”. Twain believed that travel broadened the mind and reduced prejudices. Would you please help me to find a quotation in which he …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Travel Is Fatal To Prejudice, Bigotry and Narrow-Mindedness”
Patrick O’Connor? Stella Adler? Edward Fuller? Elizabeth Hodgson? Irving Babbitt? Margaret Harford? Jed Harris? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Living authors are often viewed with a mixture of suspicion and aggravation. Here are three versions of a pertinent adage: (1) The only good author is a dead author.(2) All good authors are dead authors.(3) The …
Continue reading “Adage Origin: The Only Good Author Is a Dead Author”
Mark Twain? Punch magazine? James T. Fields? William P. Clyde? Walt Mason? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Apparently, an effusive admirer of Mark Twain once proclaimed that the famous humorist deserved membership in the pantheon of major writers. Twain’s comical response highlighted his mortality: I was sorry to have my name mentioned as one of …
B. F. Skinner? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A famous psychologist once contemplated the question of machine intelligence and presented a provocative counter question: The real question is not whether machines think but whether men do. This statement has been attributed to U.S. behaviorist B. F. Skinner. Would you please help me to find a …
IBM Motto? Richard Hamming? Sia Armajani? Howard Dimmig? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Machines can perform work which humans do not wish to perform because it is repetitive and dangerous. Yet, as we enter the age of advanced AI there are many humans who desire to continue to perform creative and engaging tasks. Here are …
Continue reading “Motto Origin: Machines Should Work. People Should Think”
Peter Ustinov? Frank A. Jones? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The British actor and raconteur Peter Ustinov once wrote about an inevitable balance between dreams and nightmares. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: In February 1989 Peter Ustinov published an article about Orson Welles in “The Independent” newspaper …
Charlie Munger? Warren Buffett? Andrew Kilpatrick? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A famous investor once wrote about strategies for achieving wealth. The key was not concocting brilliant strategies; instead, the successful long-term investor triumphed by being “consistently not stupid”. This notion has been attributed to U.S. businessman Charlie Munger. Would you please help me to …
Civis? Sapper? Scott Hurtt Paradise? H. O. A. Anne? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Warfare is horrific, but feelings of terror occur intermittently. Battlefield veterans developed the following saying: War consists of months of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror. Would you please explore the provenance of this saying? Reply from Quote Investigator: This …
Ignazio Silone? Gwenda David? Eric Mosbacher? William Weaver? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Thinkers have attempted to analyze and explain the rise of fascism in Germany and Italy. An Italian writer suggested that the failure of left-wing revolutionary movements catalyzed the emergence of fascism. Here is the pertinent quotation: Fascism is a counter-revolution against a …