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Ahmadov
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 Thu Mar 06, 2008 14:24 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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I think it means it can only be 'as simple' if it is possible.
Think of the famous phrase 'as soon as possible'. If your boss told you to hand in a report as soon as possible, then it can only be 'as soon', if it is possible, but it cannot be sooner. I think.
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NinaZara
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 14:57 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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| Ahmadov wrote: | But this reply hardly helps me to understand the separating line between simple and simpler  |
The original quote did not use only the word 'simple'. It used 'as simple as possible'. And that was my point. If something is already 'as simple as possible', then it seems logical to me that it is impossible to make it any simpler.
If you want to write an affirmative answer to a closed-ended question, and you want the answer to be 'as simple as possible', you might decide that writing "Yes" is 'as simple as possible'. Is it possible to write a simpler affirmative answer?
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Amy
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Yankee
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 15:49 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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| Yankee wrote: | If you want to write an affirmative answer to a closed-ended question, and you want the answer to be 'as simple as possible', you might decide that writing "Yes" is 'as simple as possible'. Is it possible to write a simpler affirmative answer?
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I will need to check dictionaries to answer this question... I will post a reply to this when I find a proper dictionary that can help me
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Ahmadov
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 15:57 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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Hello Nina, how are you? It is nice to meet you here again.
| NinaZara wrote: | | Be a good person and good things will come to you. |
I think being a good person should not be conditional on anything, including expecting good things coming to you, i.e. one should not become a good person to expect that he/she will have adequate reciprocation. I understand that this is not what you meant in that statement though...
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Ahmadov
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Location: Azerbaijan
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NinaZara
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 17:47 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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Hi Zahir and Nina,
This is quite an interesting question: do you think positive because you want to attract good things to you or do you attract good things because you think positive?
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Torsten
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 17:50 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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As Mies van der Rohe said, God is in the details.
So while it's good to be as simple as possible, one should not be so simple that he leaves out the necessary details. IE, be simple but (still) complete -- don't leave out any pertinent info, necessary steps/processes, etc.
(maybe that's what Einstein meant, sort of) |
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prezbucky
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 21:18 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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| prezbucky wrote: | | (maybe that's what Einstein meant, sort of) |
How can we possibly figure out what Einstein meant when the quote isn't what Einstein actually said? What if the person who paraphrased Einstein over-simplified? 
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Amy
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ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English |
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Yankee
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| Thu Mar 06, 2008 21:53 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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hahaha
I'll quote Einstein:
"I'm hungry."
Einstein said that at least once, surely! hehe |
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prezbucky
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Location: Nashville, TN (USA)
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| Fri Mar 07, 2008 10:18 am Can you think like Einstein? |
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| Torsten wrote: | Hi Zahir and Nina,
This is quite an interesting question: do you think positive because you want to attract good things to you or do you attract good things because you think positive? |
Hello Torsten,
As a native English speaker you seem to have an advantage in expressing your opinions more clearly as this was exactly what I meant in my previous post. I think good things come to a good person because he/she is good.
This is like some people arguing about the Quran. They say Allah bribes people by promising them heaven for their good deeds, but in reality the Quran says that good people will be awarded with heaven, which are two different things...
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Learning is a sacred engagement. |
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Ahmadov
I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 23 Dec 2005
Posts: 287
Location: Azerbaijan
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Ahmadov
I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 23 Dec 2005
Posts: 287
Location: Azerbaijan
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| Fri Mar 07, 2008 13:47 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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| Ahmadov wrote: | Hello Torsten,
As a native English speaker you seem to have an advantage in expressing your opinions more clearly as this was exactly what I meant in my previous post. I think good things come to a good person because he/she is good. |
Torsten is not a native English speaker. He is German. |
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Jamie (K)
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| Fri Mar 07, 2008 14:15 pm Can you think like Einstein? |
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| prezbucky wrote: | hahaha
I'll quote Einstein:
"I'm hungry."
Einstein said that at least once, surely! hehe |
How about "I'm randy"?  I bet he said that too. hehe
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lost_soul
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