I think, therefore I laugh: The humorous side of philosophy

Author: John Allen Paulos and Xu Xiangdong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-12-01
Features: Philosopher's Stone Series · Contemporary Science Thought Series. Philosophy + Humor = Language Therapy, a book that "is worth more than ten years of reading." This book is divided into 4 chapters: Two Pairs of Impossible Partners; Logic; Science; Characters. Through fictional dialogues between Wittgenstein and Carroll, and Groucho and Russell, the author explores the "humorous side of philosophy," "fallacious syllogisms" in logical reasoning, the Liar Paradox, vividly explaining G?del's Incompleteness Theorem, the Green-Blue – Blue-Green Paradox, and the Raven Paradox. From reductionism, fallibilism, and opportunism to randomness, complexity, and Bell's inequality, with the help of numerous allegories, stories, and puzzles, the book uncovers the deep resonance between analytical philosophy and humor, revealing the implications behind non-determinism, the Prisoner's Dilemma, and the Voting Paradox, ultimately concluding with "I think, therefore I laugh." Since its English publication in 1985, this book has been translated into Spanish, French, Dutch, German, Italian, Turkish, Japanese, and other languages.