The mediocrity principle is the philosophical notion that "if an item is drawn at random from one of several sets or categories, it's likelier to come from the most numerous category than from any one of the less numerous categories" (Kukla 2009). The principle has been taken to suggest that there is nothing very unusual about the evolution of our solar system, the Earth, humans, or any one nation. It is a heuristic in the vein of the Copernican principle, and is sometimes used as a philosophical statement about the place of humanity. The idea is to assume mediocrity, rather than starting with the assumption that a phenomenon is special, privileged or exceptional.
Read more about Mediocrity Principle: Extraterrestrial Life, Other Uses of The Heuristic
Famous quotes containing the words mediocrity and/or principle:
“No wonder that all of us feel at home with mediocrity since it leaves us in peace; it gives us the comforting feeling as if one were in the company of one’s equals.”
—Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749–1832)
“Thanks to all. For the great republic—for the principle it lives by, and keeps alive—for man’s vast future,—thanks to all.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)