I 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
Crash programs fail because they are based on theory that, with nine women pregnant, you can get a baby in a month.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that complex problems cannot be solved simply by increasing resources or manpower.
Wernher Von Braun's quote critiques the misconception that adding more people or resources to a complex task will accelerate its completion, much like the idea that nine pregnant women can produce a baby in a month. Instead, it highlights the importance of understanding the nature of tasks and the realities of project management, where certain processes cannot be expedited by simply multiplying efforts.
In practice
This quote can be used in a business meeting to emphasize the importance of planning over haste.
I 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.
Basic research is what I am doing when I don't know what I am doing.
I have learned to use the word 'impossible' with the greatest caution.
It will free man from the remaining chains, the chains of gravity which still tie him to this planet.
We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming.
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.
Climate Change is a national security issue. We found that climate instability will lead to instability in geopolitics and impact American military operations around the world. People are saying they want to be perfectly convinced about climate science projections. But speaking as a soldier, we never have 100 percent certainty. If you wait until you have 100 percent certainty, something bad is going to happen on the battlefield.
although science could pinpoint the exact spot in the brain that ignites rage, they had yet to identify the location that produces love.
Mathematics is the study of analogies between analogies. All science is. Scientists want to show that things that don't look alike are really the same. That is one of their innermost Freudian motivations. In fact, that is what we mean by understanding.
When I am in the company of scientists, I feel like a shabby curate who has strayed by mistake into a drawing room full of dukes.
The universe and the Laws of Physics seem to have been specifically designed for us. If any one of about 40 physical qualities had more than slightly different values, life as we know it could not exist: Either atoms would not be stable, or they wouldn't combine into molecules, or the stars wouldn't form heavier elements, or the universe would collapse before life could develop, and so on...
What's needed today, now, more than ever, is 'Star Peace' for there is an ominous, mutual threat to all science fiction. It's called 'Twilight'. And it is really, really bad.
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