limits of the possible
E469486
"Limits of the possible" is a concept popularized by science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke to explore the boundary between current scientific feasibility and future technological breakthroughs.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| limits of the possible canonical | 1 |
How this entity was disambiguated
This entity first appeared as the object of triple T4805337 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.
NED1
Entity disambiguation (via context triple)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: limits of the possible Context triple: [Profiles of the Future, subject, limits of the possible]
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A.
the limits of reason
The limits of reason refers to the idea that rational thought and logical analysis have boundaries beyond which they cannot fully explain, justify, or resolve human experiences, beliefs, or conflicts.
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B.
Beyond the Limits of Thought
Beyond the Limits of Thought is a seminal philosophical work by Graham Priest that explores logical paradoxes and the boundaries of rational thought, advancing his influential dialetheist view that some contradictions can be true.
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C.
The Limits of Control
The Limits of Control is a 2009 minimalist crime film directed by Jim Jarmusch, known for its meditative pacing, enigmatic narrative, and striking visual style.
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D.
the limits of my language mean the limits of my world
"The limits of my language mean the limits of my world" is Ludwig Wittgenstein’s famous aphorism expressing his view that our capacity to think, understand, and experience reality is bounded by the structure and scope of our language.
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E.
Forever Undecided
Forever Undecided is a logic puzzle book by Raymond Smullyan that playfully explores Gödel’s incompleteness theorems through self-referential riddles and dialogues.
- F. None of above. chosen
- G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.
NED2
Entity disambiguation (via description)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: limits of the possible Target entity description: "Limits of the possible" is a concept popularized by science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke to explore the boundary between current scientific feasibility and future technological breakthroughs.
-
A.
the limits of reason
The limits of reason refers to the idea that rational thought and logical analysis have boundaries beyond which they cannot fully explain, justify, or resolve human experiences, beliefs, or conflicts.
-
B.
Beyond the Limits of Thought
Beyond the Limits of Thought is a seminal philosophical work by Graham Priest that explores logical paradoxes and the boundaries of rational thought, advancing his influential dialetheist view that some contradictions can be true.
-
C.
The Limits of Control
The Limits of Control is a 2009 minimalist crime film directed by Jim Jarmusch, known for its meditative pacing, enigmatic narrative, and striking visual style.
-
D.
the limits of my language mean the limits of my world
"The limits of my language mean the limits of my world" is Ludwig Wittgenstein’s famous aphorism expressing his view that our capacity to think, understand, and experience reality is bounded by the structure and scope of our language.
-
E.
Forever Undecided
Forever Undecided is a logic puzzle book by Raymond Smullyan that playfully explores Gödel’s incompleteness theorems through self-referential riddles and dialogues.
- F. None of above. chosen
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
concept in philosophy of technology
ⓘ
philosophical concept ⓘ science fiction concept ⓘ |
| contrastsWith |
current technological capability
ⓘ
perceived impossibility ⓘ |
| describes | boundary between current scientific feasibility and future technological breakthroughs ⓘ |
| field |
philosophy of science
ⓘ
philosophy of technology ⓘ science fiction ⓘ |
| hasAspect |
current scientific understanding
ⓘ
engineering constraints ⓘ future scientific discovery ⓘ laws of physics ⓘ social and economic constraints on technology ⓘ |
| hasAssociatedPerson | Arthur C. Clarke ⓘ |
| hasPurpose |
to explore how future technology may transcend current limits
ⓘ
to question assumptions about what is impossible ⓘ |
| influencedBy |
advances in engineering
ⓘ
advances in science ⓘ historical technological revolutions ⓘ |
| influences |
ethical debates about future technology
ⓘ
science fiction worldbuilding ⓘ speculative scientific thinking ⓘ |
| popularizedBy | Arthur C. Clarke ⓘ |
| relatedConcept |
impossibility proofs
ⓘ
laws of nature ⓘ physical limits to computation ⓘ radical technological change ⓘ science fiction prototyping ⓘ technological determinism ⓘ technological singularity ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Clarke's Third Law
ⓘ
linked to:
Clarke's three laws
Clarke's three laws ⓘ boundary of the possible and impossible ⓘ future studies ⓘ futurism ⓘ impossibility in science ⓘ scientific feasibility ⓘ scientific prediction ⓘ scientific progress ⓘ speculative technology ⓘ technological breakthroughs ⓘ technological forecasting ⓘ technological progress ⓘ |
| usedInContext |
debates about technological optimism and pessimism
ⓘ
discussions of emerging technologies ⓘ science fiction literature ⓘ |
How these facts were elicited
The pipeline generated the facts above by prompting gpt-5.1 with this entity's name + description and the instruction below.
Instruction
You are a knowledge base construction expert. Given a subject entity and a description of it, return factual statements that you know for the subject as a JSON list of dictionaries(triples), where keys must be "subject", "predicate" and "object". The number of facts may be very high, between 25 to 50 or more, for very popular subjects. For less popular subjects, the number of facts can be very low, like 5 or 10. # Requirements - If you don't know the subject at all, return an empty list. - If the subject is not a named entity, return an empty list. - Include at least one triple where predicate is "instanceOf". - Do not get too wordy. - Separate several objects into multiple triples with one object.
Input
Subject: limits of the possible Description of subject: "Limits of the possible" is a concept popularized by science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke to explore the boundary between current scientific feasibility and future technological breakthroughs.
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.