Dichotomy paradox
E264818
The Dichotomy paradox is one of Zeno of Elea’s famous philosophical puzzles that argues motion is impossible because any journey requires completing an infinite number of smaller steps.
All labels observed (3)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Dichotomy paradox canonical | 5 |
| Zeno's dichotomy | 1 |
| Zeno's paradoxes | 1 |
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Zeno's paradox
ⓘ
philosophical paradox ⓘ thought experiment ⓘ |
| assumes |
space is infinitely divisible
ⓘ
time is infinitely divisible ⓘ |
| challengesConcept | completion of an infinite number of tasks in finite time ⓘ |
| concludes | the traveler can never reach the destination in a finite time ⓘ |
| describesScenario |
a moving object must first travel half the remaining distance to its goal
ⓘ
after each step the object must travel half of the remaining distance again ⓘ |
| hasAlternativeName |
Dichotomy paradox
ⓘ
surface form:
Zeno's dichotomy
race course paradox ⓘ |
| hasAuthor | Zeno of Elea ⓘ |
| hasField |
calculus
ⓘ
mathematics ⓘ metaphysics ⓘ philosophy ⓘ philosophy of motion ⓘ philosophy of space and time ⓘ |
| hasHistoricalPeriod | 5th century BCE ⓘ |
| hasMainClaim | motion is impossible ⓘ |
| hasMainTheme |
continuum
ⓘ
convergence of series ⓘ infinite divisibility ⓘ infinity ⓘ motion ⓘ |
| hasModernInterpretation | a confusion between physical processes and mathematical idealizations ⓘ |
| hasOriginPlace |
Greek Antiquity
ⓘ
surface form:
Ancient Greece
|
| hasPhilosophicalContext | Eleatic school ⓘ |
| hasPurpose | to defend Parmenides' doctrine that change and motion are illusory ⓘ |
| hasResolutionIn |
calculus
ⓘ
real analysis ⓘ the concept of convergent infinite series ⓘ |
| implies | the traveler must complete infinitely many steps to reach the goal ⓘ |
| influenced |
debates about the nature of space and time
ⓘ
development of the concept of limit ⓘ philosophical discussions of supertasks ⓘ |
| isDiscussedIn |
introductory calculus education
ⓘ
logic and paradox literature ⓘ philosophy of mathematics ⓘ |
| isIllustratedBy | the geometric series 1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 + ... ⓘ |
| isRelatedTo |
Achilles and the tortoise
ⓘ
surface form:
Achilles and the tortoise paradox
Arrow paradox ⓘ paradox of plurality ⓘ |
| partOf |
Dichotomy paradox
self-linksurface differs
ⓘ
surface form:
Zeno's paradoxes
|
| usesConcept |
infinite sequence of tasks
ⓘ
infinite series ⓘ infinite subdivision of distance ⓘ limit ⓘ |
Referenced by (7)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Zeno's dichotomy
this entity surface form:
Zeno's paradoxes