Would you like a Paradox?

Paradoxes are a fun thing to ponder upon when you have nothing else to think about. Simply put, a paradox is a statement or logic that is inconsistent with itself. These paradoxes have been a subject of discussion among the intellectual as well as the bored minds since time immaterial. We have been quoting statements that turn out to be paradox long before we knew the meaning of this word! Statements like, “I know that I know nothing” make perfect sense to us but upon further reflection, we realize that this statement does not make perfect sense!

There exist a lot of paradoxes but few really capture your attention. Consider this. A crocodile steals a child and promises to return it to his father only if the father can accurately guess what the crocodile intends to do, and the father, being a smartass, says that the crocodile won’t return the child! Now if the crocodile doesn’t return the child, didn’t the father guess right? Food for thought!

So yeah, there are many more such situations, which come in really handy when you wish to leave the other person clueless. One more such paradox is the Pinocchio paradox. Remember Pinocchio? The guy whose nose got longer each time he told a lie? I have told a few harmless lies too but thankfully, my nose is still the same!

So consider this, what if Pinocchio said, “my nose will grow now.” NOW what? If he’s telling the truth, then according to him, his nose should grow. But Pinocchio’s nose doesn’t grow when he’s telling the truth! So he’s just as stumped as our poor crocodile!

One thing that must be noted that paradoxes have no ‘conclusive’ solution. Usually a solution is given which is then widely accepted because it seems feasible. So a solution can always be improved upon or a new one can be proposed altogether. So I’ll try to provide some “feasible sounding” solutions to this paradox!

This one sounds a little far fetched but whatever. Let’s give it a go! Pinocchio’s nose grows only when he tells a lie, not what he believes to be a lie, so it basically depends on what he knows will happen! If he actually expects his nose to grow, then he’s telling a truth, and it won’t grow! If he expects it to not grow, it will. Being wrong about something is not lying. This logic would continue on indefinitely, meaning that he can’t determine if his nose will grow or not, & so he won’t know. Since he doesn’t know, he can’t lie about it, so it won’t grow!

Another, relatively simpler explanation is there too. You can’t lie about something that will happen in the future, only make predictions. Since Pinocchio’s nose only grows when he tells a lie, it won’t grow! If Pinocchio had said, “My nose just grew” when it hadn’t then that would be a lie and would cause his nose to grow!

Now, chances are you don’t agree with me. And you might be absolutely right too. But hey, give me some credit! Minds much smarter than mine have brooded over this paradox too. So you’re welcome to expound on my theory. And do tell me if you think you’ve found a “conclusive solution” to this problem! Take care!