Schrödinger's Cat
A cat sealed in a box, neither alive nor dead until somebody looks. The story was invented to show the idea was absurd.
193514 min read
Nature
Thought experiment
Not a proof but a probe. Its value is in the disagreement it reveals about concepts like identity, personhood, or responsibility.
A constructed scenario that exposes a conceptual tension.
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The Ship of Theseus
Replace a ship's planks one at a time until not one original piece is left. Is it still the same ship?
c. 75 CE (Plutarch's report of an older dispute)20 min read
Buridan's Ass
A donkey stands exactly halfway between two identical bales of hay. With no reason on earth to prefer either, does it starve?
c. 1340 (the attribution; the example is far older)14 min read