And if we must educate our poets and artists in science, we must educate our masters, labour and capital, in art.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
So many new ideas are at first strange and horrible though ultimately valuable that a very heavy responsibility rests upon those who would prevent their dissemination.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Innovative ideas often seem odd or alarming initially, yet they hold significant value.
This quote emphasizes the importance of embracing new and unconventional ideas, which may initially be met with resistance or fear. It highlights the responsibility of individuals to allow the flow of innovative thought, as these ideas can lead to meaningful advancements and understanding, despite their strange or unsettling appearance at first.
Themes
InnovationIdeasResponsibilityDisseminationValue
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about entrepreneurship, one might say, 'Remember, so many new ideas are at first strange and horrible; we must embrace them.'
More from John B. S. Haldane
All quotes βAn attempt to study the evolution of living organisms without reference to cytology would be as futile as an account of stellar evolution which ignored spectroscopy.
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Until politics are a branch of science, we shall do well to regard political and social reforms as experiments rather than short-cuts to the millennium.
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A time will however come (as I believe) when physiology will invade and destroy mathematical physics, as the latter has destroyed geometry.
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My final word, before I'm done, Is "Cancer can be rather fun"- Provided one confronts the tumour with a sufficient sense of humour. I know that cancer often kills, But so do cars and sleeping pills; And it can hurt till one sweats, So can bad teeth and unpaid debts. A spot of laughter, I am sure, Often accelerates one's cure; So let us patients do our bit To help the surgeons make us fit.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
My practise as a scientist is atheistic. That is to say, when I set up an experiment I assume that no god, angel, or devil is going to interfere with its course; and this assumption has been justified by such success as I have achieved in my professional career. I should therefore be intellectually dishonest if I were not also atheistic in the affairs of the world. And I should be a coward if I did not state my theoretical views in public.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
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