Norbert Wiener quotes

Norbert Wiener was an American mathematician and philosopher, widely known for his groundbreaking work in the field of cybernetics. Born in Columbia, Missouri in 1894, Wiener showed exceptional talent in mathematics from a young age. He obtained his PhD from Harvard University and went on to become a professor at various prestigious institutions, including MIT. Wiener's research focused on the study of communication and control systems, leading to the development of cybernetics, a field that explores the interaction between humans and machines. His influential book, "Cybernetics: Or Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine," revolutionized multiple disciplines, including engineering, computer science, and psychology. Norbert Wiener's contributions laid the foundation for modern technologies like artificial intelligence and robotics. His visionary ideas continue to shape the way we understand and interact with technology today. Explore more about Norbert Wiener's remarkable life and groundbreaking discoveries here.

Again and again I have heard the statement that learning machines cannot subject us to any new dangers, because we can turn them off when we feel like it. But can we? To turn a machine off effectively, we must be in possession of information as to whether the danger point has come. The mere fact that we have made the machine does not guarantee that we shall have the proper information to do this. This is already implicit in the statement that the checker-playing machine can defeat the man who has programmed it, and this after a very limited time of working in.

- Norbert Wiener

One of the chief duties of the mathematician in acting as an advisor is to discourage from expecting too much from mathematics.

- Norbert Wiener

In all important respects, the man who has nothing but his physical power to sell has nothing to sell which it is worth anyone's money to buy.

- Norbert Wiener

We are in the position of the man who has only two ambitions in life. One is to invent the universal solvent which will dissolve any solid substance, and the second is to invent the universal container which will hold any liquid. Whatever this inventor does, he will be frustrated.

- Norbert Wiener

Let us remember that the automatic machine is the precise economic equivalent of slave labor. Any labor which competes with slave labor must accept the economic consequences of slave labor.

- Norbert Wiener

In a very real sense, we are shipwrecked passengers on a doomed planet. Yet, even in a shipwreck, human decencies and human values do not necessarily vanish, and we must make the most of them. We shall go down, but let it be in a manner to which we may look forward as worthy of our dignity.

- Norbert Wiener