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The Paradox of Buridan's Ass

The Paradox of Buridan's Ass

Identical Things Cannot Be Differentiated

Patterson in Pursuit

July 19, 20166m 34s

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Show Notes

Imagine a hungry donkey standing exactly between two identical bales of hay. Could it choose between them?

The paradox of Buridan's ass is an old, famous paradox going back thousands of years. I think it contains a mistaken premise, but if we're careful, we can formulate it in a way to paralyze our donkey.

The example helps us think clearly about what it means to be "identical" and "different."



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