I have the word "umkehren" tattooed on my arm. It is part of the above phrase, which is credited to the 19th century geometrist Jacobi, who apparently suggested inverting every geometrical theorem to better understand it. "Umkehren" means "to invert." There are some obvious reasons I did not want the English translation on my arm, as fitting as it my be. Like many others, I believe that Jocobi's phrase has a much broader application than the one he developed for geometry. It is important to always question assumptions and to turn some notions on their head to understand them from another perspective. As such, my tattoo serves as a reminder to challenge my assumptions when I do not immediately understand something.
In the place of such a corporeal reminder, feel free to watch this great short clip featuring musician and entrepreneur Derek Sivers, which cleverly explores this very notion.
No comments:
Post a Comment