
Episode 59: The Principle of Optimism (Round Table Discussion)
The Theory of Anything
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The Rhetorical Element of Learning That a Problem Is Unsolvable
To learn that a problem is unsolvable is in some sense a solution to the problem, right? Absolutely. And so it's only those who insist on trying to get around a law of physics or a law of computation. But if you take a rational mindset, once you find out that something is impossible like induction or perfect proportional representation, then that's when you change your tactics and change what you're working on. So it's only maybe a problem for the stubborn or the dogmatic, but not the open minded and rational. I think it might be a question in me about when he's saying that every problem has a solution... Is there maybe just a rhetorical element to it?
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