Behind every beautiful thing, there's been some kind of pain.
Quote of the Week 21 “Behind every beautiful thing, there's been some kind of pain. ” ― Bob Dylan (" Not Dark Yet ", song lyrics)
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The map is not the territory.
Quote of the Week 20 “ The map is not the territory. ” ― Alfred Korzybski Triggered b y the growing gap between how things are described and how they actually are . Well, actually triggered by a road trip through the alps. See also: various quotes on perception vs. reality . Quote of the Week 6/2020 " All models are wrong, but some models are useful. " ― George Box
Doubt everything.
Quote of the Week 19 “ Doubt everything. ” ― Karl Marx (his motto : " De omnibus dubitandum " by René Descartes ) “ An allem ist zu zweifeln. ” Triggered by the i nscription on the sidewalk of my & his native town across the street of his birthplace .
Dear Stone, I win.
Quote of the Week 18 “ Dear Stone, I win. ” ― Paper Triggered by the use of the quote in Ronen Steinke‘s book „ Meinungsfreiheit “. Original wording: “ Dear Rock, I win. ” ― Paper
The future's uncertain, and the end is always near.
Quote of the Week 17 “ The future's uncertain, and the end is always near.” ― The Doors , Roadhouse Blues (Lyrics) “Let it roll, baby, roll, Let it roll, baby, roll, Let it roll, baby, roll, Let it roll, all night long.”
Nothing is swifter than rumor.
Quote of the Week 16 “ Nothing is swifter than rumor.” ― Titus Livius ( Livy ) Inspired by A. Paul Weber's Das Gerücht - interpreted in Keith Haring style: Related: “ A lie can run around the world before the truth has got its boots on. ”
You can see AI everywhere but in the productivity statistics.
Quote of the Week 15 “ You can see AI everywhere but in the productivity statistics.” ― inspired by Robert Solow ( Productivity Paradox rephrased) Triggered by Jon Hartley 's tweet : It also seems to be the case that AI adoption, while causing significant productivity changes in certain sectors, isn't showing up in macro productivity numbers yet. To rephrase Bob Solow: "You can see AI everywhere but in the productivity statistics." https://t.co/eUFx77EL1G — Jon Hartley (@Jon_Hartley_) March 27, 2026 Original quote: “ You can see the computer age everywhere but in the productivity statistics.” ― Robert Solow
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Quote of the Week 14 “ Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” ― Leonard Thiessen Triggered by the mentioning of the Apple ad Apple II: Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication in Apple: The First 50 Years by David Pogue: Sometimes misattributed to Leonardo da Vinci . Related: Quote of the Week 29/2024 "Simple can be harder than complex." ― Steve Jobs Quote of the Week 4/2015 "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." ― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
The prompt doesn’t make the image; the eye for the extraordinary in the ordinary does.
Quote of the Week 13 “ The prompt doesn’t make the image; the eye for the extraordinary in the ordinary does.” ― Alan Bipe Original German quote : “ Nicht der Prompt macht das Bild, sondern die Fähigkeit, das Besondere im Beliebigen zu erkennen. ” ― Gemini AI
The 'yes' needs the 'no' in order to hold up against the 'no'.
Quote of the Week 12 “ The 'yes' needs the 'no' in order to hold up against the 'no'.” ― Jürgen Habermas (paraphrased) Original German paraphrase : “ Das Ja braucht das Nein, um gegen das Nein bestehen zu können. ” The Power of the Productive "No" At first glance, this quote by the influential German philosopher Jürgen Habermas might sound like a riddle. However, it captures the heartbeat of a healthy democracy and meaningful conversation. For Habermas, a "Yes" (agreement) only has value if the person saying it had the genuine freedom to say "No" (dissent). If you aren't allowed to disagree, your agreement isn't a choice—it’s just submission. In his theory of Communicative Action , Habermas argues that: True Consensus must be "stress-tested" by counter-arguments. The "No" acts as a filter that strains out weak ideas. The "Yes" that emerges is stronger because it "held up...
To define is to limit.
Quote of the Week 11 “ To define is to limit.” ― Oscar Wilde , The Picture of Dorian Gray Full quote : “What are you?" "To define is to limit.”
To explain is to jam people's thinking.
Quote of the Week 10 “ To explain is to jam people's thinking.” ― Etel Adnan , Shifting the Silence Triggered by the exibition " Shifting the Silence. Die Stille verschieben " at the Lenbachhaus, Munich.
Lies run sprints, but the truth runs marathons.
Quote of the Week 9 “ Lies run sprints, but the truth runs marathons.” ― Michael Jackson Related: Quote of the Week 50 / 2020 " Falsehood flies, and the truth comes limping after it. " ― Jonathan Swift Full quote :
I may not always be right, but I’m never wrong.
Quote of the Week 8 “ I may not always be right, but I’m never wrong.” ― attributed to Samuel Goldwyn Triggered by a recent QuoteInvestigator review.
Don’t believe everything you think.
Quote of the Week 7 “ Don’t believe everything you think. ” ― Sidney K. Bennett Triggered by a recent QuoteInvestigator review. Variants: “ Don’t believe everything you think, especially today. ” “ Don’t believe anything you think and only half what you know. ” Related : “ Believe nothing you hear, and only one half that you see.” ― Edgar Allan Poe (Short story “ The System of Dr. Tarr and Prof. Fether ”)
A solution looking for a problem has found an artificial problem looking for a solution.
Quote of the Week 6 “ A solution looking for a problem has found an artificial problem looking for a solution. ” ― Alan Bipe On the use of blockchain technology for Agentic AI .
Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence.
Quote of the Week 5 “ Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence.” ― Charles de Gaulle Triggered by the recent Quote Investigator research.
We both step and do not step into the same river, we both are and are not.
Quote of the Week 4 “ We both step and do not step into the same river, we both are and are not.” ― Heraclitus Triggered by the reference to a variation of the quote in WDR 5 - Das philosophische Radio Podcast with Heinz-Michael Bartling: Weisheit und Wandel (01/05/2026) . Related (see Wikipedia for details): You cannot step into the same river twice Since Plato, Heraclitus's theory of flux has been associated with the metaphor of a flowing river, which cannot be stepped into twice. [ 57 ] [ as ] This fragment from Heraclitus's writings has survived in three different forms: [ 56 ] "On those who step into the same rivers, different and different waters flow" – Arius Didymus , quoted in Stobaeus [ at ] "We both step and do not step into the same river, we both are and are not" – Heraclitus Homericus , Homeric Allegories [ au ] "It is not possible to step into the same river twice" – Plutarch , On the E at Delphi [ av ] The classicis...
Aging is an extraordinary process whereby you become the person you always should have been.
Quote of the Week 3 " Aging is an extraordinary process whereby you become the person you always should have been. " ― David Bowie (8 January 1947 – 10 January 2016 ) Related : "Age doesn't bother me. It's the lack of years left that weighs far heavier on me than the age that I am."
You can't always get what you want...
Quote of the Week 2 " You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometime you'll find You get what you need. " ― The Rolling Stones ( Keith Richards / Mick Jagger) , " You Can't Always Get What You Want " Lyrics Related: Quote of the Week 28, 2024 " I've learned that what we want is seldom what we need, and what we need is almost never what we want." ― James Norbury You Can't Always Get What You Want Song by The Rolling Stones ‧ 1969 Übersicht Text Weitere Aufnahmen Lyrics I saw her today at the reception A glass of wine in her hand I knew she would meet her connection At her feet was her footloose man No, you can't always get what you want You can't always get what you want You can't always get what you want But if you try sometime you'll find You get what you need I saw her today at the reception A glass of wine in her hand I knew she was gonna meet her connection At her feet was her footloose man Y...