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
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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Haldane emphasizes the importance of a rational and evidence-based approach in science, asserting that assumptions of divine interference would undermine intellectual honesty.
In this quote, John B. S. Haldane reflects on the methodology of science, highlighting that successful experimentation requires a framework that does not account for supernatural interference. This perspective not only guides his scientific endeavors but also shapes his worldview, suggesting that maintaining an atheistic stance in understanding the world around us is crucial for intellectual integrity. Haldane advocates for courage in expressing one's beliefs, particularly when those beliefs challenge mainstream thought.
Themes
ScienceAtheismIntellectual HonestyExperimentationCourage
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on scientific methodology, I could quote Haldane to illustrate the importance of a rational approach.
More from John B. S. Haldane
All quotes →An 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.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
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.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
A time will however come (as I believe) when physiology will invade and destroy mathematical physics, as the latter has destroyed geometry.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
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
It wasn't until I had performed by first autopsy that I realized that even the drabest human exteriors could contain the most beautiful viscera. After that, I would console myself for the plainness of my fellow bus-riders by dissecting them in my imagination.
John B. S. HaldaneRead
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