Karl Sigmund > Quotes

“This term serves to contrast our worldview with philosophy in its usual sense, as a doctrine about the world that claims to stand side by side with the scientific disciplines, or possibly even above them. In our opinion, anything that can be sensibly said at all is a proposition of science, and doing philosophy just means examining critically the propositions of science to check whether they are or are not pseudo-propositions (that is, whether they really have the clarity and significance ascribed to them by the practitioners of the science in question); and it means, further, exposing as pseudo-propositions those propositions that lay claim to another type, and a higher degree, of significance than the propositions of science.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“Morality, Schlick was convinced, is not tied to self-denial: “It does not come dressed in a nun’s habit.” Quite the contrary: “Moral behavior springs from pleasure and pain; if one acts nobly, it is because one enjoys doing so…. Values are not dictated from above, but lie within; it is human nature to be good.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“To make matters even worse, Schlick had the cheek to write an essay called “The Meaning of Life.” He even gave a simple answer to the question. The meaning of life does not reside in a higher purpose, but can be expressed in just one word, said Moritz Schlick: “The meaning of life is youth.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“we have considered games between two specific players trying to guess each other’s strategy and find a best reply. Let us now shift perspective, and consider a population of players, each with a given strategy.”
― Karl Sigmund, The Calculus of Selfishness

“Philosophies turned away from the world were not to Hahn’s taste. According to him, however, they could still be found in the systems of German idealism—and how could it be otherwise? The Germans are known, after all, as the nation of thinkers and poets. But a new day is slowly breaking, and the liberation is coming from the same land that gave birth to political liberation—namely, England: the English, after all, are known as the nation of shopkeepers. And it is surely no accident that one and the same nation gave the world both democracy, on the one hand, and the rebirth of a philosophy turned toward the world, on the other; nor is it an accident that the same land that saw the beheading of a king also witnessed the execution of metaphysics. Yet the weapons of a philosophy that is turned toward the world are not the executioner’s sword and axe—it is not as bloodthirsty a beast as that—though its weapons are sharp enough. And today I want to talk about one of these weapons—namely, Occam’s razor.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“And this led Schlick to formulate a succinct moral principle: “Sei glücksbereit! ” or, rendered literally in English, “Be ready for happiness!” The spirit of the remark, however, is perhaps more accurately caught by the less compact phrase “Always be ready to give happiness a chance!”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“The Scientific Worldview meant to make things as clear as possible, since that is the purpose of any manifesto. And indeed, as a summary of the Vienna Circle, the text is still unsurpassed. In just a few pages it neatly described the group’s historical background and its highest mission—a collective crusade against all metaphysical and theological doctrines. Only the results of experimentation and logical analysis were admitted—nothing else. The manifesto listed the names of the Circle’s members, and the problems to be tackled: namely the foundations of mathematics, physics, geometry, biology, psychology, and the social sciences. An encyclopedia could not have done better.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“Where is the invisible hand? “It is often invisible because it is not here,” according to economist Joseph Stiglitz.”
― Karl Sigmund, The Calculus of Selfishness

“Although he was barely four years older than Gödel, Menger had become a sort of mentor to Gödel, and an almost fatherly friend. When he returned to Vienna, he and Gödel slowly drifted away from the Vienna Circle. To their taste, it had taken on too much of the flavor of Wittgenstein and of Neurath; there was too much of a cult about the former, and too much politics in the latter.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“Mauritius,”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“Reputation mechanisms have also played an important role in the emergence of long-distance trade.”
― Karl Sigmund, The Calculus of Selfishness

“and”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“most of the strategies will be eliminated from the population. In general, only three out of the initial set of strategies will play a role: those closest to AllD, TFT, and GTFT. We shall denote these approximations by “AllD”, “TFT”, and “GTFT”, respectively. What one observes at first is a strong tendency towards “AllD.” The other strategies seem hopelessly outclassed. But then, it frequently happens (for instance if “TFT” is below the line from “AllD” to TFT) that “TFT” experiences an upsurge, and displaces “AllD.” But this is not the end of the story. The population has reached the cooperation-rewarding zone, and strategies that have higher p and q values can return. In particular, the more tolerant “GTFT” supersedes the stern “TFT,” and becomes fixed in the population. The striking point is that “GTFT” on its own can never beat “AllD.” It needs the catalytic action of “TFT.” It seems almost like the succession of three social phases: first the “dog-eat-dog” world of AllD, then the “law of the talion” represented by TFT and finally the age of the tolerant, but not too tolerant GTFT.”
― Karl Sigmund, The Calculus of Selfishness

“Popper wrote that it ought to be seen as a mark of respect that he had devoted most of his first book to criticizing the Vienna Circle. “The Vienna Circle,” he added, by way of obituary, “was an admirable institution. Indeed, it was a unique seminar of philosophers working in close cooperation with first-rate mathematicians and scientists. Its dissolution was a most serious loss.” It was a body blow not only to philosophy but also, it might be added, to the town of Vienna.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science

“Thus not only Schlick was surprised by the manifesto’s content, but others were as well. For instance, Karl Menger, after reading the manifesto, made it clear that he did not wish to be identified as a member of the Vienna Circle, but only as someone “associated with the Circle.” As a matter of fact, the brochure’s authors had taken pains to distinguish between Circle members and mere “associates.” After Menger’s expression of reticence, other members of the Circle, including Kurt Gödel and Viktor Kraft, also asked to be downgraded.”
― Karl Sigmund, Exact Thinking in Demented Times: The Vienna Circle and the Epic Quest for the Foundations of Science