Hi guys Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Here is a nice paradox I have found... Bertrand Russell's Barber Paradox Consider all of the men in a small town as members of a set. Now imagine that a barber puts up a sign in his shop that reads I shave all those men, and only those men, who do not shave themselves. Obviously, we can further divide the set of men in this town into two further sets, those who shave themselves, and those who are shaved by the barber. To which set does the barber himself belong? Any views / comments?
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....No... Couldn't the barber just get shaved at a different barber, or have someone else shave him, or just shave himself with the slogan being stricltly business?
I move forward and backward at THE VERY SAME TIME (and I am not standing still). Can this be considered a paradox? If not, why?
The barber paradox was also debated in the thread "The shape of language" in the human science section. Unfortunately, I don't remember anymore where exactly it is, so you'll have to use the search option and type in "barber". I tried for pages 1, 3 and 5 -- it's not on these, but it is somewhere there. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
There is no answer. As I understand it this is the paradox that brought Russell and Whitehead's grand mathematical system tumbling down. It's the colloquial version of the 'set of all sets that don't contain themselves' problem.
in regard to the motion question, no it isn't. suppose you are on the subway. you move toward the back of the car. now you are moving backward in relation to the car. however, the car itself is moving forward in relation to the ground. so you can move forward and backward at the same time. :m: maybe the barber isn't human, and therefore doesn't need to shave.
The barber could be a *gasp* woman. Or if he is a man, a woman could shave him. You never mentioned the women's set. edit: nah, I guess that last one doesn't work. Then he'd be in the doesn't shave himself set, so he would have to be the shaver, which is paradox. So either a female, bearded, or non-beard grower. Maybe a robot. edit again: with only two set's to choose from those who shave themselves and those who don't shave themselves, he must shave. You also say what set is HE in, so... unsolvable. once more Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!p): you don't say HE, so it's a woman or a robot or maybe a well-trained chimpanzee. Damnit: you say HIMSELF. Paradox or a chimpanzee.
He does not shave because he has a beard but if needed a shave he'd do it himself as he doesn't usually shavePlease Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Thats my take anyway?
(a) the guy doesn't need to shave, he likes to grow facial hair. (b) the guy is a girl. (c) the guy shaves himself, and really doesn't care what the hell Bertrand Russell has to say about it; he's gotta shave!
it depends on your definition of liar i suppose. whether lying occasionally makes one a liar, or lying with every sentence makes one a liar. the probability is high that every person in that town has lied at some point in their lives. the mere fact that the man might be lying most of the time, does not mean that he is lying now. or does this man lie all of the time? [in which case, this would just be another lie, and means that he is a member of the town who lies, but not that the entire town lies.] or, finally, the man is not a part of the town, or is not in the town, in which case there is no paradox, but then his evaluation of the inhabitants of the town may be premature and flawed.
