Sturgeon's law
Sturgeon's law is an adage derived from a quote by science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon:
- Ninety percent of everything is crud.
Specifically, Sturgeon once said in reply to a fan who wondered why he wrote that science fiction stuff when he was so skilled a writer in other fields as well, "Sure, ninety percent of science fiction is crud. That's because ninety percent of everything is crud." Oddly, when Sturgeon's law is cited, the final word is almost invariably changed to "crap". Another (common) account of this incident, uses another, still less elegant word, instead of "crud".
Sturgeon's law might be regarded as an instance of the Pareto principle.
O'Toole's commentary on Murphy's law is: "Murphy was an optimist!" This is also often applied to Sturgeon's law.
See also
