Pollution
If a city transitioned from fresh air to polluted air overnight, there might be outrage at the cause. When this transition occurs over decades, opposition might potentially be muted.Quality of Life
If a university system doubled fees overnight, there would likely be opposition. If they gradually double fees over five years, it may be accepted.Health
Dramatic increases in the prevalence of diseases such as diabetes that occur over decades might be taken more seriously if they occurred instantaneously.Notes
It is not true that frogs will not escape being slowly boiled. They tend to jump out around 25° Celsius or 77° Fahrenheit. The story may originate with a 1869 experiment by Friedrich Goltz in which a frog didn't jump out of slowly boiled water. The important detail omitted from the story is that the frog in the experiment had its brain removed.| Overview: Boil The Frog | ||
Type | ||
Definition (1) | A metaphor for creeping normality based on a story about a frog who will not jump out of boiling water if it is heated slowly. | |
Definition (2) | A strategy that involves doing something slowly that would never be accepted if it were done quickly. | |
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