I have just gone over my comet computations again, and it is humiliating to perceive how very little more I know than I did seven years ago when I first did this kind of work.
Maria MitchellRead
To read a book, to think it over, and to write out notes is a useful exercise; a book which will not repay some hard thought is not worth publishing.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Engaging deeply with a book through reading, reflection, and note-taking is essential for meaningful learning.
Maria Mitchell emphasizes the importance of thoughtful engagement with literature. She suggests that merely reading isn't enough; one should reflect on what is read and take notes, as this process enriches understanding and validates the book's worth. A book that fails to provoke thoughtful analysis doesn't merit publication, as meaningful content should inspire deeper considerations from its readers.
Themes
ReadingBooksEducationThoughtNotes
In practice
Example use cases
In a book club discussion about the importance of engaging with literature.
More from Maria Mitchell
All quotes βThe best that can be said of my life so far is that it has been industrious, and the best that can be said of me is that I have not pretended to what I was not.
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There is no cosmetic for beauty like happiness.
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Study as if you were going to live forever; live as if you were going to die tomorrow.
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I am just learning to notice the different colors of the stars, and already begin to have a new enjoyment.
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We travel to learn; and I have never been in any country where they did not do something better than we do it, think some thoughts better than we think, catch some inspiration from heights above our own.
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Without the concepts, methods and results found and developed by previous generations right down to Greek antiquity one cannot understand either the aims or achievements of mathematics in the last 50 years. [Said in 1950]
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Language is an art, like brewing or baking.... It certainly is not a true instinct, for every language has to be learnt.
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What we want... is for students to get more interested in things, more involved in them, more engaged in wanting to know; to have projects that they can get excited about and work on over long periods of time, to be stimulated to find things out on their own.
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Learning is like a cow of desire. It, like her, yields in all seasons. Like a mother, it feeds you on your journey. Therefore learning is a hidden treasure.
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