Nothing ever gets settled in this town. a seething debating society in which the debate never stops, in which people never give up, including me. And so that's the atmosphere in which you administer.
George P. ShultzRead
What we want is scientists who don't become part of the policy discussion: All they do is produce science. If someone becomes an advocate, then I won't pay as much attention to their science.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Scientists should remain impartial and focus on producing objective science rather than engaging in policy debates.
In this quote, George P. Shultz emphasizes the importance of maintaining the integrity and neutrality of scientific research. He argues that when scientists become advocates for specific policies, their objectivity can be compromised, making their scientific contributions less credible. The quote reflects a concern for the public perception of science and the role scientists should play in societal issues.
Themes
ScienceObjectivityPolicyIntegrityAdvocacy
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate on climate change, this quote could be used to remind policymakers of the need for unbiased scientific input.
More from George P. Shultz
All quotes →If they are too big to fail, make them smaller.
George P. ShultzRead
He who walks in the middle of the roads gets hit from both sides.
George P. ShultzRead
The minute you start talking about what you're going to do if you lose, you have lost.
George P. ShultzRead
I want my grandchildren to be proud of me. That's the main thing.
George P. ShultzRead
Increasingly, the state system has been eroding. Terrorists have exploited this weakness by burrowing into the state system in order to attack it.
George P. ShultzRead
Similar quotes
Considering their impact, you might expect mosquitoes to get more attention than they do. Sharks kill fewer than a dozen people every year, and in the U.S. they get a week dedicated to them on TV every year.
Bill GatesRead
A fundamental principle of information theory is that you can’t guarantee outcomes… in order for an experiment to yield knowledge, it has to be able to fail. If you have guaranteed experiments, you have zero knowledge
George GilderRead
My own experience of over 60 years in biomedical research amply demonstrated that without the use of animals and of human beings, it would have been impossible to acquire the important knowledge needed to prevent much suffering and premature death not only among humans but also among [other] animals.
Albert SabinRead
We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces.
Carl SaganRead
People who dismiss science in favor of religion sometimes confuse the challenge of rigorously understanding the world with a deliberate intellectual exclusion that leads them to mistrust scientists and, to their detriment, what they discover.
Lisa RandallRead
Evolution is an indispensable component of any satisfying explanation of our psychology.
Steven PinkerRead