Mystery of the Quote: Who Said "Science is Everything We Understand?

  • Thread starter Thread starter 0rthodontist
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Mystery Quote
AI Thread Summary
The discussion centers around the attribution of a quote: "Science is everything we understand well enough to explain to a computer. Art is everything else." There is confusion regarding whether the quote is from David Knuth or Donald Knuth, with most sources attributing it to David, while some claim it is Donald, who is more widely recognized. Participants express uncertainty about the correct attribution and the significance of knowing who originally said it. One contributor mentions having read a book by D.E. Knuth, highlighting his contributions to computer science, particularly in algorithms. A link to a resource is shared to aid in clarifying the authorship of the quote.
0rthodontist
Science Advisor
Messages
1,229
Reaction score
0
I have found a quote I've been looking for. It's the lower one in my signature right now: "Science is everything we understand well enough to explain to a computer. Art is everything else."

However I don't know just who said it. Most web sources say David Knuth, but some say Donald Knuth. Of the two, Donald is a lot more famous, but I don't know if the quote is attributed to him by a minority of sources because Donald is famous, David said it, and some people were confused, or if the majority of sources unthinkingly quoted one original source that said David and it was really Donald who said it. There is a David Knuth who works in technology, according to Google. Anyone know who said this quote?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Does it really matter who said it...

i have read the book of D.E.Knuth..has great contribution in computer science,,especially Algorithms...dont know he is which one out of these two
 
I did...

...but I probably wasn't the first... :rolleyes:
 
Does this help?
http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~wilf/foreword.pdf
 
Last edited by a moderator:
jimmysnyder said:
Does this help?
http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~wilf/foreword.pdf
Yep, that helps a lot!:smile:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Thread 'RIP George F. Smoot III (1945-2025)'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Smoot https://physics.berkeley.edu/people/faculty/george-smoot-iii https://apc.u-paris.fr/fr/memory-george-fitzgerald-smoot-iii https://elements.lbl.gov/news/honoring-the-legacy-of-george-smoot/ https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2006/smoot/facts/ https://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/200611/nobel.cfm https://inspirehep.net/authors/988263 Structure in the COBE Differential Microwave Radiometer First-Year Maps (Astrophysical Journal...
Back
Top