What is the deepest/most impactful statement that you have ever seen?

  • Thread starter Thread starter spaceWizard9000
  • Start date Start date
Click For Summary
The discussion centers around the mathematical expression e^(pi*i) + 1 = 0, which some participants find profoundly significant despite its complexity. The conversation touches on the nature of imaginary numbers, suggesting they are more applicable to real-world phenomena than traditional real numbers. Participants express a variety of philosophical reflections, including the importance of enjoying life rather than competing, and the significance of profound questions like "Where is everybody?" in the context of humanity's future. The dialogue shifts to the concept of randomness versus determinism, with participants debating whether true randomness exists in the universe. Some argue that randomness is a construct of human perception, while others assert that unpredictability does not negate the existence of randomness. The discussion emphasizes the need for empirical evidence in scientific discourse, contrasting philosophical arguments with scientific inquiry. Overall, the thread highlights the intersection of mathematics, philosophy, and science, showcasing diverse viewpoints on profound topics.
spaceWizard9000
Messages
0
Reaction score
1
For me:

e^(pi*i)+1=0 - I have no idea what it means, and I’m pretty sure no one else does, either, but it is the most profound thing that I have ever seen in my life.
 
  • Haha
  • Skeptical
Likes dextercioby and PeroK
Physics news on Phys.org
I think you would be less impressed if you knew what it meant.
Welcome to these forums!
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Likes vela and Hornbein
spaceWizard9000 said:
For me:

e^(pi*i)+1=0 - I have no idea what it means, and I’m pretty sure no one else does, either, but it is the most profound thing that I have ever seen in my life.
It basically means take 1 on the number line, circle it around the origin 180 degrees counterclockwise and you get -1.

I further opine that "imaginary" numbers are real while "real" numbers are imaginary. "Imaginary" numbers are quite useful for describing real things like electrical circuits and rotations while the infinite precision of "real" numbers is a fantasy.
 
Last edited:
  • Love
  • Like
  • Haha
Likes sbrothy, dextercioby and BWV
Mine is "It's Alive!", which may ring true in a few years .
 
"Where is everybody?" ... for me a profound question when wondering about humanity's chance for a long-term presence in the universe.
 
The Batman Trilogy line “Why do we fall Bruce?”
 
robotkid786 said:
The Batman Trilogy line “Why do we fall Bruce?”
If we are going Batman, then: "Some men just want to watch the world burn" has to be up there
 
jackjack2025 said:
If we are going Batman, then: "Some men just want to watch the world burn" has to be up there
Now's their chance!
 
  • Like
Likes Hornbein
PeroK said:
Now's their chance!
Big fan of Nolan films. So I will add

"You remind me of someone, a man I met in a half-remembered dream"
 
  • #10
An advice from a good friend of mine...
Used to be a school student who used to tear themselves apart trying to compete with others and do well on competitions, exams etc... but now just does physics because it's what they love :D

"Life is not about who does better and who does more. Just ENJOY"

e^(i pi) = -1 is pretty cool :)
 
  • Like
Likes DennisN
  • #11
Sorry, this thread needs to be paused for Moderation...
 
  • #12
Okay, it turns out that the OP is a sockpuppet of a banned member, so they are now gone. If you'all would like to continue this conversation, I'll unlock the thread now.
 
  • Like
Likes TensorCalculus
  • #13
"I beseech you, in the bowels of Christ: Think it possible, you may be mistaken."

via Jacob Bronowski's 'The Ascent of Man', which I first saw 50 years ago, at the age of 16, and just gets getting more important, every, single, day.

(ref)
 
  • #14
OK, seems I missed we are doing movies too and not just statements with real meaning spoken by real people :wink:
But even if movies can add a deep music score and an engaging backstory to enhance the feeling of profoundness of movie statements I still can't think of any movie statement that beats the sense of long lasting actual profoundness I still get from science in general and "where is everybody" in particular.
 
  • #15
Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution.
From: evolutionary biologist Theodosius Dobzhansky.
 
  • Like
Likes symbolipoint
  • #16
TensorCalculus said:
An advice from a good friend of mine...
Used to be a school student who used to tear themselves apart trying to compete with others and do well on competitions, exams etc... but now just does physics because it's what they love :D

"Life is not about who does better and who does more. Just ENJOY"

e^(i pi) = -1 is pretty cool :)
One of these I heard somewhere and the other I made-up (I believe):
No matter how smart you are, there is always someone smarter.
No matter how stupid you may be, there is always someone more stupid.
 
  • Like
Likes TensorCalculus and DaveE
  • #17
One of many:

"The teaching is merely a vehicle to describe the truth. Don’t mistake it for the truth itself. A finger pointing at the moon is not the moon. The finger is needed to know where to look for the moon, but if you mistake the finger for the moon itself, you will never know the real moon." - Thich Nhat Hanh
 
  • Like
  • Agree
Likes gmax137, DennisN, BillTre and 1 other person
  • #18
The words of Franz Kafka from Der Prozess (The Trial), first published in 1925, exactly one hundred years ago, ring out a warning for us all:

Die Lüge wird zur Weltordnung gemacht. (The lie will become the new world order.)
 
  • Like
Likes BillTre
  • #19
"The hell of the living is not something that will be. If there is one, it is what is already here, the hell we live in every day, that we make by being together. There are two ways to scape suffering it. The first is easy for many: accept the hell, and become such a part of it that you can no longer see it.
The second is risky and demands constant vigilance and apprehension: seek and learn to recognize who and what, in the midst of hell, are not hell, then make them endure, give them space." (Italo Calvino)
 
  • Like
Likes TensorCalculus and BillTre
  • #20
Measure twice, cut once.
 
  • Like
Likes symbolipoint, BillTre and DaveE
  • #21
They hate us for our freedom.
 
  • #22
The film 'Deep Impact' was neither deep nor impactful.
 
  • Haha
Likes dextercioby, DennisN and PeroK
  • #23
“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.”
Picasso
 
  • Like
Likes DennisN and Borg
  • #24
If you understand, things are just as they are. If you do not understand, things are just as they are.
 
  • Like
Likes mcastillo356, Hornbein and BillTre
  • #25
I hope, when they die, cartoon characters have to answer for their sins.

Jack Handey, Deep Thoughts
 
  • Like
Likes hutchphd and Borg
  • #26
One statement I really like is "feed the right wolf", though you would have to know the short tale behind it:

which-wolf-do-you-feed.webp


More: Two Wolves
 
  • Like
  • Love
Likes PeroK, OmCheeto and symbolipoint
  • #27
berkeman said:
Sorry, this thread needs to be paused for Moderation...
Above the urinal at Uris Library:

"The future of America is in your hands"

There you go.....
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Likes Borg, OmCheeto, Hornbein and 2 others
  • #28
Main character in a motion picture called "Running Brave", had a fictional or I guess non-fictional conversation between young athlete main character and coach. I am trying to do a search for the quote but can not find it. It went something like this:

Main character say:
If I am half indian and half white, and enter a race and win, which half of me won the race?
 
  • Like
Likes DennisN
  • #29
This one: There is no evidence for randomness at all in the real world. Randomness is a made-up idea. It can exist in our minds as a concept, but it does not actually exist in the physical world we live in.
 
  • Skeptical
  • Like
Likes Gavran, DaveE, berkeman and 2 others
  • #30
“Whatever people say, there is right, there is wrong. There is nothing in between.”
- Hercule Poirot (Murder on the Orient Express)
 
  • Skeptical
  • Like
Likes FlorianR, BillTre and PeroK

Similar threads

Have you seen my glasses? [Found]
  • · Replies 34 ·
2
Replies
34
Views
2K
What was the most intellectually stimulating class you have ever taken?
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K
Can You Imagine Lockdown Without The Internet?
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
2K
What types of things do you get second opinions on in life?
  • · Replies 20 ·
Replies
20
Views
2K
What are the odds?
  • · Replies 56 ·
2
Replies
56
Views
4K
Finding Meaningful Work: Career Advice for Young Scientists
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
2K
COVID What impact has the COVID-19 pandemic had on your job?
  • · Replies 141 ·
5
Replies
141
Views
12K
Most unusual food you have ever eaten
  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
4K
Most Unforgettable thing you have ever done
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
3K
Most Massive Freely Moving Object Ever Built?
  • · Replies 26 ·
Replies
26
Views
3K