The significant chemicals of living tissue are rickety and unstable, which is exactly what is needed for life.
Interpretation
Life's complexity arises from the instability of its foundational components.
In this quote, Isaac Asimov emphasizes that the very nature of life is rooted in the unstable and unpredictable behavior of the chemicals that compose living tissues. This instability allows for the diversity and adaptability of life, suggesting that imperfection is an essential ingredient for biological existence and thriving.
In practice
In a science class discussing the fundamentals of biology and the nature of life.
Democracy cannot survive overpopulation. Human dignity cannot survive it. Convenience and decency cannot survive it. As you put more and more people into the world, the value of life not only declines, but it disappears. It doesn't matter if someone dies.
Science does not promise absolute truth, nor does it consider that such a thing necessarily exists. Science does not even promise that everything in the Universe is amenable to the scientific process.
Democracy cannot survive overpopulation.
Although the time of death is approaching me, I am not afraid of dying and going to Hell or (what would be considerably worse) going to the popularized version of Heaven. I expect death to be nothingness and, for removing me from all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism.
A subtle thought that is in error may yet give rise to fruitful inquiry that can establish truths of great value.
During the century after Newton, it was still possible for a man of unusual attainments to master all fields of scientific knowledge. But by 1800, this had become entirely impracticable.
Innovation is everyones responsibility, not just R&Ds.
Testing shows the presence, not the absence of bugs.
There is no great invention, from fire to flying, which has not been hailed as an insult to some god.
If you canβt program it, you havenβt understood it.
Necessity is the mother of all invention.
Many people have the impression that there is significant scientific disagreement about global climate change. It's time to lay that misapprehension to rest. There is a scientific consensus on the fact that Earth's climate is heating up and human activities are part of the reason. We need to stop repeating nonsense about the uncertainty of global warming and start talking seriously about the right approach to address it.
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