Information is not knowledge. Knowledge is not wisdom.
Genuine
Yes. In Bob Marshall, Frank Zappa interview, 21–22 October 1988.
Checked against Bob Marshall, Frank Zappa interview, 21–22 October 1988, in the text of a page scan, not the image.
- Where
- Bob Marshall interview, 21–22 October 1988, opening answer; further explanation later in the interview
- Source
- Bob Marshall, Frank Zappa interview, 21–22 October 1988
- Checked
- In the text of a page scan, not the image
Researched by AI. Entry updated 27 October 2026. Editorial review: pending. How we check
About this quote
The scene
Marshall opens by asking about the short manifesto associated with Joe’s Garage. Zappa recites it, separating information, knowledge, wisdom, truth, beauty, love and music, and invites listeners to supply their own idea of music. Later he explains that data can be false, and that possessing facts does not guarantee using them wisely.
What it means
Receiving data is not the same as knowing something, and knowing facts does not guarantee wise judgment.
Often misread
These clauses are not the whole manifesto. The sequence ends by celebrating music; presenting the excerpt as a complete technical theory of information discards that playful artistic setting.
Topics
Related quotes
- The only way to have a friend is to be one. Ralph Waldo Emerson
- Virtue is a mean state; but in reference to the chief good and to excellence it is the highest state possible. Aristotle
- we are enquiring not merely that we may know what virtue is but that we may become virtuous Aristotle
- What is food to one, is to others bitter poison. Lucretius
- It is impossible to live a pleasant life without living wisely and well and justly, and it is impossible to live wisely and well and justly without living pleasantly. Epicurus
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People who checked this entry against its source, under their own names. Their checks do not change the verdict: an editor reviews every entry.
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