Silliness Is it elephants or turtles all the way down?

AprilHare · 11-29-2009, 04:14 AM

Is it elephants or turtles all the way down?

WT Sharpe · 11-29-2009, 06:49 AM

It's TURTLES!!!

From Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time, chapter 1:

A well-known scientist (some say it was Bertrand Russell) once gave a public lecture on astronomy. He described how the earth orbits around the sun and how the sun, in turn, orbits around the center of a vast collection of stars called our galaxy. At the end of the lecture, a little old lady at the back of the room got up and said: "What you have told us is rubbish. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant tortoise." The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, "What is the tortoise standing on?" "You're very clever, young man, very clever", said the old lady. "But it's turtles all the way down!"

Hawking said it, I believe it, and that settles it!

Blessed be the Name of Hawking.

GeoffC · 11-29-2009, 07:56 AM

it's both - one on top of the other .....

GraceKrispy · 11-29-2009, 02:48 PM

I voted elephants, just to be contrary.

Donnageddon · 11-29-2009, 04:09 PM

Wikipedia has an interesting article on this important philosophical dilemma.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turtles_all_the_way_down

I especially like the "In popular culture" section

Quote:

An alternative version of the phrase is used on the TV show The Office. In the Season 5 episode "New Boss", Pam Beesly is brainstorming potential birthday surprises for her boss, Michael Scott. She suggests "...and then, out of that cake, pops another stripper holding a smaller cake. And then an even smaller stripper pops out of that one." When questioned about what the smaller stripper will be holding, she responds, "A cupcake. It's strippers and cupcakes, all the way down."

Xiaopanda · 11-30-2009, 09:04 PM

Turtles, obviously! I just hope not Teenage Mutant Ninja ones......

carlobee · 11-30-2009, 09:39 PM

Yep! Turtles!! all the way down.

pholy · 11-30-2009, 10:07 PM

It's four elephants on the back of a space turtle. Sheesh! Don't you guys know anything?

beachwanderer · 12-01-2009, 05:42 AM

pholy is correct. obviously.

Take a look

ravenne · 12-01-2009, 06:20 AM

Where's the option 'turtle with horse power'?

FlorenceArt · 12-01-2009, 06:46 AM

Just as long as it's not a porcupine

pshrynk · 12-02-2009, 04:50 PM

What is it with always showing the elephants facing out? I always imagine them facing spinward and walking around the shell of A'Tuin to cause the rotation of the Disk.

vivaldirules · 12-02-2009, 06:53 PM

Sorry, but there's a snake at the bottom (and above!). It just figures that the poll is missing the correct answer.

NormHart · 12-02-2009, 07:02 PM

Professor Pratchett sez, and I quote, "the question 'what does the turtle stand on?' is asked, and gets the reply 'It's a turtle, for heaven's sake. It swims. That's what turtles are for.'"

So the correct answer is none of the above.

Q.E.D.

View Poll Results: Is it elephants or turtles all the way down?
Elephants	7	28.00%
Turtles	18	72.00%
Voters: 25. You may not vote on this poll

11-29-2009, 04:14 AM	#1
AprilHare Wizard Posts: 2,981 Karma: 11862367 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T2	Is it elephants or turtles all the way down? Is it elephants or turtles all the way down?

12-01-2009, 05:42 AM	#9
beachwanderer - Posts: 2,602 Karma: 16748808 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: At the Baltic Sea Device: Some	pholy is correct. obviously. Take a look Last edited by beachwanderer; 12-01-2009 at 06:48 AM. Reason: Imagelink

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11-29-2009, 06:49 AM	#2
WT Sharpe Bah, humbug! Posts: 39,073 Karma: 157049943 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Chesapeake, VA, USA Device: Kindle Oasis, iPad Pro, & a Samsung Galaxy S9.	It's TURTLES!!! From Stephen Hawking's *A Brief History of Time, chapter 1: A well-known scientist (some say it was Bertrand Russell) once gave a public lecture on astronomy. He described how the earth orbits around the sun and how the sun, in turn, orbits around the center of a vast collection of stars called our galaxy. At the end of the lecture, a little old lady at the back of the room got up and said: "What you have told us is rubbish. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant tortoise." The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, "What is the tortoise standing on?" "You're very clever, young man, very clever", said the old lady. "But it's turtles all the way down!" Hawking said it, I believe it, and that settles it!* Blessed be the Name of Hawking.

11-29-2009, 07:56 AM	#3
GeoffC Chocolate Grasshopper ... Posts: 27,600 Karma: 20821184 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Muse HD , Cybook Gen3 , Pocketbook 302 (Black) , Nexus 10: wife has PW	it's both - one on top of the other .....

11-29-2009, 02:48 PM	#4
GraceKrispy It's Dr. Penguin now! Posts: 3,909 Karma: 4705733 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: (USA) Device: iPad mini, Samsung Note 3, Sony PRS-650 (rarely used now)	I voted elephants, just to be contrary.

11-30-2009, 09:04 PM	#6
Xiaopanda Addict Posts: 230 Karma: 1290 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Brisbane Australia Device: Kindle Paperwhite	Turtles, obviously! I just hope not Teenage Mutant Ninja ones......

11-30-2009, 09:39 PM	#7
carlobee Fanatic Posts: 535 Karma: 972 Join Date: Jul 2009 Device: The new iPad	Yep! Turtles!! all the way down.

11-30-2009, 10:07 PM	#8
pholy Booklegger Posts: 1,801 Karma: 7999816 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Device: BeBook(1 & 2010), PEZ, PRS-505, Kobo BT, PRS-T1, Playbook, Kobo Touch	It's four elephants on the back of a space turtle. Sheesh! Don't you guys know anything?

12-01-2009, 06:20 AM	#10
ravenne Wizard Posts: 4,917 Karma: 1840619 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Munich, Germany Device: Kindle PW, PocketBook 360°, Cybook Gen3, iPad mini	Where's the option 'turtle with horse power'?

12-01-2009, 06:46 AM	#11
FlorenceArt High Priestess Posts: 5,761 Karma: 5042529 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Montreuil sous bois, France Device: iPad Pro 9.7, iPhone 6 Plus	Just as long as it's not a porcupine

12-02-2009, 04:50 PM	#12
pshrynk Beepbeep n beebeep, yeah! Posts: 11,726 Karma: 8255450 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: La Crosse, Wisconsin, aka America's IceBox Device: iThingie, KmkII, I miss Zelda!	What is it with always showing the elephants facing out? I always imagine them facing spinward and walking around the shell of A'Tuin to cause the rotation of the Disk.

12-02-2009, 06:53 PM	#13
vivaldirules When's Doughnut Day? Posts: 10,059 Karma: 13675475 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Houston, TX, US Device: Sony PRS-505, iPad	Sorry, but there's a snake at the bottom (and above!). It just figures that the poll is missing the correct answer.

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12-02-2009, 07:02 PM	#14
NormHart Semper Carpe Bufo Posts: 537 Karma: 21676 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Napa Valley, California Device: Kindle2 & Kindle3	Professor Pratchett sez, and I quote, "the question 'what does the turtle stand on?' is asked, and gets the reply 'It's a turtle, for heaven's sake. It swims. That's what turtles are for.'" So the correct answer is none of the above. Q.E.D.