In a spiral galaxy, the ratio of dark-to-light matter is about a factor of ten. That's probably a good number for the ratio of our ignorance-to-knowledge. We're out of kindergarten, but only in about third grade.
Vera RubinRead
We know very little about the universe. I personally don't believe it's uniform and the same everywhere. That's like saying the earth is flat.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The universe is complex and diverse, not uniform like a flat Earth.
Vera Rubin emphasizes the vast unknowns of the universe and challenges the notion of uniformity across its expanse. By comparing the idea of a uniform universe to the outdated belief of a flat Earth, she highlights the necessity of questioning assumptions and recognizing the intricate, diverse nature of the cosmos.
Themes
UniverseComplexityDiversityKnowledgeQuestioning
In practice
Example use cases
In a science class discussing the nature of the universe.
More from Vera Rubin
All quotes βWe need senators who have studied physics and representatives who understand ecology.
Vera RubinRead
Nobody ever told us all matter radiated. We just assumed it did.
Vera RubinRead
There was just nothing as interesting in my life as watching the stars every night.
Vera RubinRead
I try to do my science in a moral way, and, I believe that, ideally, science should be looked upon as something that helps us understand our role in the universe.
Vera RubinRead
I had the usual friends who pointed out constellations of stars. But it really was watching the stars. It was getting some sense of the motion of the earth. I found it a remarkable thing.
Vera RubinRead
Similar quotes
As a theoretician, I am proud to be part of a counter revolution... discovering that quantum field theory language was not dead and finished but had not really been explored thoroughly enough.
Peter HiggsRead
In the development of antibiotics, the soil microbiological population has contributed more than its share. It is to the soil that the microbiologists came in search of new antibacterial agents.
Selman WaksmanRead
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.
W. H. AudenRead
There is no scientific reason to think that we, even with space travel, are going to survive as a species for ever, certainly not by biting off the hand that feeds us, which is exactly what we are doing.
Lynn MargulisRead
In a small lab, if you make a mistake, you can go in the next day and fix it. But here, when you are committed to spending a hundred thousand or a million dollars, you can't fix it later. You need to have a system of checks and balances internally. In particle physics, that's just part of the structure.
Barry BarishRead
We could call order by the name of God, but it would be an impersonal God. There's not much personal about the laws of physics.
Stephen HawkingRead