Portrait of Alan Turing

Alan Turing

Computer science, codebreaking

Modern influential 192 sayings

Sayings by Alan Turing

The story of how it all came to be found out is a long and fascinating one, which I shall have to make into a short story one day, but haven't the time to tell you now.

1952 — From a letter to Norman Routledge about his impending legal troubles.
Wisdom Unverifiable

The story of how it all came to be found out is a long and fascinating one, which I shall have to make into a short story one day, but haven't the time to tell you now.

1952 — From a letter to Norman Routledge about his impending legal troubles.
Wisdom Confirmed

The activity of the intuition consists in making spontaneous judgements which are not the result of conscious trains of reasoning. These judgments are often but by no means invariably correct…

c. 1939 — On mathematical intuition and ingenuity, discussed in his 1939 doctoral thesis.
Nature & World Unverifiable

The activity of the intuition consists in making spontaneous judgements which are not the result of conscious trains of reasoning. These judgments are often but by no means invariably correct…

c. 1939 — On mathematical intuition and ingenuity, discussed in his 1939 doctoral thesis.
Nature & World Confirmed

The idea of a 'thinking machine' has been considered by many, but the time for such a possibility is still far off.

1947 — Lecture to the London Mathematical Society
Power & Leadership Unverifiable

Instead of trying to produce a programme to simulate the adult mind, why not rather try to produce one which simulates the child's?

1950 — Computing Machinery and Intelligence
Wisdom Unverifiable

We can only see a short distance ahead, but we can see plenty there that needs to be done.

1950 — Computing Machinery and Intelligence
Wisdom Confirmed

A computer would deserve to be called intelligent if it could deceive a human into believing that it was human.

1950 — Computing Machinery and Intelligence
Wisdom Unverifiable

Mathematical reasoning may be regarded rather schematically as the exercise of a combination of two facilities, which we may call intuition and ingenuity.

1939 — Systems of Logic Based on Ordinals
Educational Unverifiable

The machine has a definite state at any moment, which is determined by the instructions it has received and by the results of its previous operations.

1936 — On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem
Wisdom Unverifiable

It seems probable that once the machine thinking method had started, it would not take long to outstrip our feeble powers and would take control.

1947 — Lecture to the London Mathematical Society
Power & Leadership Unverifiable

No, I'm not interested in developing a powerful brain. All I'm interested in is a moderately trained brain. The kind that would be useful in daily life.

Unknown — Attributed, often cited in discussions about his practical approach to AI.
Nature & World Unverifiable

The extent to which we regard thinking as a function of the brain rather than the entire body is very much a matter of taste.

1950 — Computing Machinery and Intelligence
Nature & World Unverifiable

The power of the human mind is limited, but the power of the machine is infinite.

Unknown — Attributed, common theme in his discussions on AI.
Power & Leadership Unverifiable

A computer is a universal machine, capable of carrying out any calculation that can be performed by a human.

1936 — On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem
Art & Creativity Unverifiable

The main problem with artificial intelligence is that it is too easy to make a machine that can do what we want it to do, but too hard to make a machine that can do what we don't want it to do.

Unknown — Attributed, often cited in discussions of AI control and ethics.
Wisdom Unverifiable

The true nature of intelligence is not to be found in the ability to solve problems, but in the ability to ask the right questions.

Unknown — Attributed, philosophical musing.
Nature & World Unverifiable

Machines take me by surprise very often.

1950 — Computing Machinery and Intelligence
Wisdom Unverifiable

The computer is a tool, and like any tool, it can be used for good or for evil.

Unknown — Attributed, general statement on technology.
Life & Death Unverifiable

The human brain is a very complex machine, but it is still a machine.

Unknown — Attributed, often cited in discussions of computational neuroscience.
Nature & World Unverifiable
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