Peter Medawar (1915–1987) scientist
"Hypothesis and Imagination" (Times Literary Supplement, 25 Oct 1963)
1960s
“One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.”
— James D. Watson, book The Double Helix
The Double Helix (1968)
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James D. Watson47
American molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist. 1928Related quotes
John Cunningham McLennan (1867–1935) Canadian physicist
as quoted by Gordon Shrum. In an article by Robert Craig Brown, The life of Sir John Cunningham McLennan http://www.physics.utoronto.ca/overview/history/mclennan, Physics in Canada, March / April 2000.
Ryōji Noyori (1938) Japanese chemist
Ryōji Noyori (2018) cited in " Diverse culture, free environment keys for Nobel prizes: Nobel winner http://focustaiwan.tw/news/ast/201805090001.aspx" on Focus Taiwan, 9 May 2018.
Erwin Schrödinger (1887–1961) Austrian physicist
Source: What Is Life? with Mind and Matter and Autobiographical Sketches
“To make a huge success, a scientist must be prepared to get into deep trouble.”
James D. Watson (1928) American molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist.
Succeeding in Science: Some Rules of Thumb (1993)
Context: To make a huge success, a scientist must be prepared to get into deep trouble. Sometime or another, someone will tell you that you are not ready to do something. … If you are going to make a big jump in science, you will very likely be unqualified to succeed by definition. The truth, however, won't save you from criticism. Your very willingness to take on a very big goal will offend some people who will think that you are too big for your britches and crazy to boot.
“I am not a scientist. I am, rather, an impresario of scientists.”
Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910–1997) French naval officer, explorer, conservationist, filmmaker, innovator, scientist, photographer, author and …
Christian Science Monitor (24 July 1986)
“The scientist believes in proof without certainty, the bigot in certainty without proof.”
Ashley Montagu (1905–1999) British-American anthropologist
The second sentence is often misquoted as “Science has proof without any certainty. Creationists have certainty without any proof.” or “Religion gives us certainty without proof; science gives us proof without certainty.”
Context: Bigotry and science can have no communication with each other, for science begins where bigotry and absolute certainty end. The scientist believes in proof without certainty, the bigot in certainty without proof. Let us never forget that tyranny most often springs from a fanatical faith in the absoluteness of one’s beliefs.
“Tell me, scientist to scientist, do you honestly think it will work?”
Alastair Reynolds book Diamond Dogs
“We won’t know until we try,” Naqi said. Any other answer would have been politically hazardous: too much optimism and the politicians would have started asking just why the expensive project was needed in the first place. Too much pessimism and they would ask exactly the same question.
Turquoise Days, Chapter 2 (pp. 240-241)
Short fiction, Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days (2003)
