# Analogy and Combinatorics Build Human Intelligence by Steven Pinker > “Human intelligence is a product of analogy and combinatorics. Analogy allows the mind to use a few innate ideas—space, force, essence, goal—to understand more abstract domains.” > **— Steven Pinker**, *2004 Edge Annual Question, response passage* ## Sources and Context - **Direct publication and locator:** [Pinker's Law — Steven Pinker](https://www.edge.org/response-detail/10152) — author's response, continuous passage. - **Exact original excerpt:** “Human intelligence is a product of analogy and combinatorics. Analogy allows the mind to use a few innate ideas—space, force, essence, goal—to understand more abstract domains. Combinatorics allows an a finite set of simple ideas to give rise to an infinite set of complex ones.” - **Context and editing:** The poster uses the first two continuous sentences of Pinker's First Law. The third sentence in the original contains the printed wording 'an a finite set' and is not needed for the proposition. - **Local Edge archive:** [[research/Edge 2004 Full Quotation Curation|Edge 2004 Full Quotation Curation]], response EDGE2004-143. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Edge|Edge]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Consciousness Continuity|Consciousness Continuity]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Greatest Transformation in Human History|The Greatest Transformation in Human History]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley|The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/Cognitive Architecture|Cognitive Architecture]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Cognitive Architecture|Cognitive Architecture]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “Human intelligence is a product of analogy and combinatorics. Analogy allows the mind to use a few innate ideas—space, force, essence, goal—to understand more abstract domains.” — Steven Pinker, 2004 Edge Annual Question, response passage https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-steven-pinker-analogy-combinatorics-build-human-intelligence ```