Crash programs fail because they are based on theory that, with nine women pregnant, you can get a baby in a month.
Wernher Von BraunRead
Basic research is what I am doing when I don't know what I am doing.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Basic research involves exploration and discovery without clear expectations or knowledge of the outcome.
This quote by Wernher Von Braun emphasizes the nature of basic research, which is often driven by curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge rather than a specific goal. It reflects the idea that significant breakthroughs often come from exploring the unknown, where researchers may be uncertain about their path but are open to discovering new insights.
Themes
ResearchDiscoveryCuriosityUnknownKnowledge
In practice
Example use cases
A speaker at a scientific conference might use this quote to highlight the value of exploratory research.
More from Wernher Von Braun
All quotes βI find it as difficult to understand a scientist who does not acknowledge the presence of a superior rationality behind the existence of the universe as it is to comprehend a theologian who would deny the advances of science.
Wernher Von BraunRead
I have learned to use the word 'impossible' with the greatest caution.
Wernher Von BraunRead
It will free man from the remaining chains, the chains of gravity which still tie him to this planet.
Wernher Von BraunRead
We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming.
Wernher Von BraunRead
Development of the space station is as inevitable as the rising of the sun; man has already poked his nose into space and he is not likely to pull it back . . . . There can be no thought of finishing, for aiming at the stars-both literally and figuratively-is the work of generations, and no matter how much progress one makes, there is always the thrill of just beginning.
Wernher Von BraunRead
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The bedrock nature of space and time and the unification of cosmos and quantum are surely among science's great 'open frontiers.' These are parts of the intellectual map where we're still groping for the truth - where, in the fashion of ancient cartographers, we must still inscribe 'here be dragons.'
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