<P> The question `` How many angels can dance on the head of a pin ? '' ( alternatively `` How many angels can stand on the point of a pin ? '' ) is a reductio ad absurdum of medieval scholasticism in general , and its angelology in particular , as represented by figures such as Duns Scotus and Thomas Aquinas . It is first recorded in the 17th century , in the context of Protestant apologetics . The question has also been linked to the fall of Constantinople , with the imagery of scholars debating about minutiae while the Turks besieged the city . In modern usage , it therefore has been used as a metaphor for wasting time debating topics of no practical value , or questions whose answers hold no intellectual consequence , while more urgent concerns pile up . </P>
<P> The question `` How many angels can dance on the head of a pin ? '' ( alternatively `` How many angels can stand on the point of a pin ? '' ) is a reductio ad absurdum of medieval scholasticism in general , and its angelology in particular , as represented by figures such as Duns Scotus and Thomas Aquinas . It is first recorded in the 17th century , in the context of Protestant apologetics . The question has also been linked to the fall of Constantinople , with the imagery of scholars debating about minutiae while the Turks besieged the city . In modern usage , it therefore has been used as a metaphor for wasting time debating topics of no practical value , or questions whose answers hold no intellectual consequence , while more urgent concerns pile up . </P>
dance on the head of a pin meaning
dance on the head of a pin meaning
a metaphor for wasting time debating topics of no practical value , or questions whose answers hold no intellectual consequence , while more urgent concerns pile up
a metaphor for wasting time debating topics of no practical value , or questions whose answers hold no intellectual consequence , while more urgent concerns pile up