The first footfalls on Mars will mark a historic milestone, an enterprise that requires human tenacity matched with technology to anchor ourselves on another world.
Buzz AldrinRead
Every student of science, even if he cannot start his journey where his predecessors left off, can at least travel their beaten track more quickly than they could while they were clearing the way: and so before his race is run, he comes to virgin forest and becomes himself a pioneer.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Science builds upon the work of those before us, enabling faster progress for future learners.
In this quote, Theodore William Richards emphasizes the importance of foundational knowledge in science. He suggests that each new generation of scientists stands on the shoulders of their predecessors, allowing them to explore and discover more quickly than those who initially cleared the path. By navigating the established knowledge, they can pioneer new ideas and innovations, ultimately contributing to the vast expanse of scientific discovery.
Themes
ScienceDiscoveryLearningProgressInnovationEducation
In practice
Example use cases
During a science conference, one might quote this to highlight the importance of collaborative research.
Similar quotes
Cancer was not disorganized chromosomal chaos. It was organized chromosomal chaos
Siddhartha MukherjeeRead
If everything in chemistry is explained in a satisfactory manner without the help of phlogiston, it is by that reason alone infinitely probable that the principle does not exist; that it is a hypothetical body, a gratuitous supposition; indeed, it is in the principles of good logic, not to multiply bodies without necessity.
Antoine LavoisierRead
As a member of both the energy and environment committees, I am constantly astounded by how many of my colleagues prefer to focus on what the government can do for the nuclear or coal industries rather than why the government should support clean and sustainable energy.
Bernie SandersRead
What we eat has changed more in the last 40 years than in the previous 40,000. The survival of the current food system depends upon widespread ignorance of how it really operates.
Eric SchlosserRead
If Mars formed life, then life on Earth could have been seeded by life on Mars, making every life form on Earth descended from Martians.
Neil Degrasse TysonRead