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78e2eec Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right. humor philosophy wisdom inspirational Isaac Asimov
ff8bae3 Any planet is 'Earth' to those that live on it. Isaac Asimov
fa29dab Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. Isaac Asimov
ed33312 Tell me why the stars do shine, Tell me why the ivy twines, Tell me what makes skies so blue, And I'll tell you why I love you. Nuclear fusion makes stars to shine, Tropisms make the ivy twine, Isaac Asimov
6b12ffe It is the obvious which is so difficult to see most of the time. People say 'It's as plain as the nose on your face.' But how much of the nose on your face can you see, unless someone holds a mirror up to you? philosophers perspective Isaac Asimov
62b4f04 Imagine the people who believe such things and who are not ashamed to ignore, totally, all the patient findings of thinking minds through all the centuries since the Bible was written. And it is these ignorant people, the most uneducated, the most unimaginative, the most unthinking among us, who would make themselves the guides and leaders of us all; who would force their feeble and childish beliefs on us; who would invade our schools and l.. library writing bible science bitter childish-beliefs guides invade uneducated unimaginative unthinking guide childish leader leaders imagine ignore home resentment ignorance shame thought the-bible school Isaac Asimov
d453646 A number of years ago, when I was a freshly-appointed instructor, I met, for the first time, a certain eminent historian of science. At the time I could only regard him with tolerant condescension. I was sorry of the man who, it seemed to me, was forced to hover about the edges of science. He was compelled to shiver endlessly in the outskirts, getting only feeble warmth from the distant sun of science- in-progress; while I, just beginning m.. discovery science historian-of-science history-of-science fallacy research horror isaac-newton newton Isaac Asimov
5a63fbb We now know the basic rules governing the universe, together with the gravitational interrelationships of its gross components, as shown in the theory of relativity worked out between 1905 and 1916. We also know the basic rules governing the subatomic particles and their interrelationships, since these are very neatly described by the quantum theory worked out between 1900 and 1930. What's more, we have found that the galaxies and clusters .. literature science knowledge Isaac Asimov
5a2c917 I received the fundamentals of my education in school, but that was not enough. My real education, the superstructure, the details, the true architecture, I got out of the public library. For an impoverished child whose family could not afford to buy books, the library was the open door to wonder and achievement, and I can never be sufficiently grateful that I had the wit to charge through that door and make the most of it. Now, when I read.. library Isaac Asimov
635fb83 They won't listen. Do you know why? Because they have certain fixed notions about the past. Any change would be blasphemy in their eyes, even if it were the truth. They don't want the truth; they want their traditions. Isaac Asimov
68cece0 The Earth should not be cut up into hundreds of different sections, each inhabited by a self-defined segment of humanity that considers its own welfare and its own "national security" to be paramount above all other consideration. I am all for cultural diversity and would be willing to see each recognizable group value its cultural heritage. I am a New York patriot, for instance, and if I lived in Los Angeles, I would love to get together w.. Isaac Asimov
f7432b1 Don't you believe in flying saucers, they ask me? Don't you believe in telepathy? -- in ancient astronauts? -- in the Bermuda triangle? -- in life after death? No, I reply. No, no, no, no, and again no. faith ufo skepticism Isaac Asimov
a8c75c7 Once, when a religionist denounced me in unmeasured terms, I sent him a card saying, "I am sure you believe that I will go to hell when I die, and that once there I will suffer all the pains and tortures the sadistic ingenuity of your deity can devise and that this torture will continue forever. Isn't that enough for you? Do you have to call me bad names in addition?" religion humor rebuttal zealots Isaac Asimov
e2a557d Isn't it sad that you can tell people that the ozone layer is being depleted, the forests are being cut down, the deserts are advancing steadily, that the greenhouse effect will raise the sea level 200 feet, that overpopulation is choking us, that pollution is killing us, that nuclear war may destroy us - and they yawn and settle back for a comfortable nap. But tell them that the Martians are landing, and they scream and run. Isaac Asimov
da639b1 I am frequently asked if I have visited Israel, whereas yet, it is simply assumed that I have. Well, I don't travel. I really don't, and if I did, I probably wouldn't visit Israel. I remember how it was in 1948 when Israel was being established and all my Jewish friends were ecstatic, I was not. I said: what are we doing? We are establishing ourselves in a ghetto, in a small corner of a vast Muslim sea. The Muslims will never forget nor for.. zionism israeli-palestinian-conflict israel Isaac Asimov
d8fc279 The Three Laws of Robotics: 1: A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; 2: A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law; 3: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law; The Zeroth Law: A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to c.. robots Isaac Asimov
adf390c There never can be a man so lost as one who is lost in the vast and intricate corridors of his own lonely mind, where none may reach and none may save. mind suffering Isaac Asimov
825d936 It pays to be obvious, especially if you have a reputation for subtlety. foundation sf Isaac Asimov
44e01ef I have never, in all my life, not for one moment, been tempted toward religion of any kind. The fact is that I feel no spiritual void. I have my philosophy of life, which does not include any aspect of the supernatural and which I find totally satisfying. I am, in short, a rationalist and believe only that which reason tells me is so. religion philosophy-of-life Isaac Asimov
4c0546a You can prove anything you want by coldly logical reason---if you pick the proper postulates. Isaac Asimov
9dc1760 Congratulations on the new library, because it isn't just a library. It is a space ship that will take you to the farthest reaches of the Universe, a time machine that will take you to the far past and the far future, a teacher that knows more than any human being, a friend that will amuse you and console you -- and most of all, a gateway, to a better and happier and more useful life. libraries reading life Isaac Asimov
a8a337a If you're born in a cubicle and grow up in a corridor, and work in a cell, and vacation in a crowded sun-room, then coming up into the open with nothing but sky over you might just give you a nervous breakdown. Isaac Asimov
a591792 To succeed, planning alone is insufficient. One must improvise as well. success planning Isaac Asimov
020314a It has been my philosophy of life that difficulties vanish when faced boldly. bravery work motivation strength inspirational business challenge Isaac Asimov
5ab5053 It was childish to feel disappointed, but childishness comes almost as naturally to a man as to a child. Isaac Asimov
44b3add We're forever teetering on the brink of the unknowable, and trying to understand what can't be understood. Isaac Asimov
8aced01 I believe in evidence. I believe in observation, measurement, and reasoning, confirmed by independent observers. I'll believe anything, no matter how wild and ridiculous, if there is evidence for it. The wilder and more ridiculous something is, however, the firmer and more solid the evidence will have to be. science observation evidence Isaac Asimov
a88e1cf There are no happy endings in history, only crisis points that pass. Isaac Asimov
e0ec8f1 But life is glorious when it is happy; days are carefree when they are happy; the interplay of thought and imagination is far superior to that of muscle and sinew. Let me tell you, if you don't know it from your own experience, that reading a good book, losing yourself in the interest of words and thoughts, is for some people (me, for instance) an incredible intensity of happiness. Isaac Asimov
d875f21 Now any dogma, based primarily on faith and emotionalism, is a dangerous weapon to use on others, since it is almost impossible to guarantee that the weapon will never be turned on the user. foundation sf Isaac Asimov
d42a396 It is the chief characteristic of the religion of science that it works. Isaac Asimov
c77a1ee It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be... This, in turn, means that our statesmen, our businessmen, our everyman must take on a science fictional way of thinking. change the-singularity singularity Isaac Asimov
8dc0831 THERE IS AS YET INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR A MEANINGFUL ANSWER. Isaac Asimov
a650b78 Fifty years," I hackneyed, "is a long time." "Not when you're looking back at them," she said. "You wonder how they vanished so quickly." Isaac Asimov
a4fefd6 Scientific truth is beyond loyalty and disloyalty. Isaac Asimov
aa4b56e How often people speak of art and science as though they were two entirely different things, with no interconnection. An artist is emotional, they think, and uses only his intuition; he sees all at once and has no need of reason. A scientist is cold, they think, and uses only his reason; he argues carefully step by step, and needs no imagination. That is all wrong. The true artist is quite rational as well as imaginative and knows what he i.. science intuition logic Isaac Asimov
48d7020 I wanted to be a psychological engineer, but we lacked the facilities, so I did the next best thing - I went into politics. It's practically the same thing. Isaac Asimov
9de20ba Human beings sometimes find a kind of pleasure in nursing painful emotions, in blaming themselves without reason or even against reason. pain Isaac Asimov
0c2b114 Every period of human development has had its own particular type of human conflict---its own variety of problem that, apparently, could be settled only by force. And each time, frustratingly enough, force never really settled the problem. Instead, it persisted through a series of conflicts, then vanished of itself---what's the expression---ah, yes, 'not with a bang, but a whimper,' as the economic and social environment changed. And then, .. history Isaac Asimov
b70dda1 When asked for advice by beginners. Know your ending, I say, or the river of your story may finally sink into the desert sands and never reach the sea. Isaac Asimov
5902543 And [Asimov]'ll sign anything, hardbacks, softbacks, other people's books, scraps of paper. Inevitably someone handed him a blank check on the occasion when I was there, and he signed that without as much as a waver to his smile -- except that he signed: 'Harlan Ellison. convention self-referential fame science-fiction Isaac Asimov
4939db4 Society is much more easily soothed than one's own conscience. Isaac Asimov
da490c7 Old men tend to forget what thought was like in their youth; they forget the quickness of the mental jump, the daring of the youthful intuition, the agility of the fresh insight. They become accustomed to the more plodding varieties of reason, and because this is more than made up by the accumulation of experience, old men think themselves wiser than the young. wisdom Isaac Asimov
53865ae The most hopelessly stupid man is he who is not aware he is wise. Isaac Asimov
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