I've read plenty of amazing science pieces where the writers don't hang out in labs. I just have fun doing it. And I get rewarded for it; I get gushy, especially when kids tell me they expected to be bored by my books, but weren't.
Mary RoachRead
In my experience, the most staunchly held views are based on ignorance or accepted dogma, not carefully considered accumulations of facts. The more you expose the intricacies and realtities of the situation, the less clear-cut things become.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Strong beliefs often stem from a lack of understanding rather than from a thoughtful analysis of facts.
Mary Roach's quote emphasizes that deeply entrenched beliefs are frequently rooted in ignorance or conventional wisdom rather than in a reflective assessment of facts. As one delves deeper into complex issues, the simplicity of one's views tends to unravel, revealing the nuanced and multifaceted nature of reality, which often contradicts black-and-white perspectives.
Themes
IgnoranceDogmaFactsComplexityUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
During a debate on scientific topics, this quote can be used to highlight the importance of informed discussion.
More from Mary Roach
All quotes →Follow your instincts. Do the kind of writing you love to do and do best. 'Stiff' was an oddball book - I mean, a funny book about cadavers? - and I worried that it would be too unconventional. In the end, that's what has made it a success, I think.
Mary RoachRead
I don't fear death so much as I fear its prologues: loneliness, decrepitude, pain, debilitation, depression, senility. After a few years of those, I imagine death presents like a holiday at the beach.
Mary RoachRead
I'm drawn to the taboos that surround the human body. I find it fascinating that we are repelled by many of the acts and processes that keep us alive.
Mary RoachRead
I began thinking about my skeleton, this solid, beautiful thing inside me that I would never see.
Mary RoachRead
I walk up and down the rows. The heads look like rubber halloween masks. They also look like human heads, but my brain has no precedent for human heads on tables or in roasting pans or anywhere other than on top of a human bodies, and so I think it has chosen to interpret the sight in a more comforting manner. - Here we are at the rubber mask factory. Look at the nice men and woman working on the masks.
Mary RoachRead
Similar quotes
I was able to see faith as more than just a comfort to the weary or a hedge against death; rather, it was an active, palpable agent in the world.
Barack ObamaRead
Knowledge is only potential power.
Napoleon HillRead
I shall ask no more than that you agree with Dean Inge that even though counting heads is not an ideal way to govern, at least it is better than breaking them.
Learned HandRead
It is better to be looked over than overlooked.
Mae WestRead
People often confuse a growth mindset with being flexible or open-minded or with having a positive outlook - qualities they believe they've simply always had. My colleagues and I call this a false growth mindset.
Carol S. DweckRead
Soon madness has worn you down. It’s easier to do what it says than argue. In this way, it takes over your mind. You no longer know where it ends and you begin. You believe anything it says. You do what it tells you, no matter how extreme or absurd. If it says you’re worthless, you agree. You plead for it to stop. You promise to behave. You are on your knees before it, and it laughs.
Marya HornbacherRead