That which is not measurable is not science. That which is not physics is stamp collecting.
Ernest RutherfordRead
Should a young scientist working with me come to me after two years of such work and ask me what to do next, I would advise him to get out of science. After two years of work, if a man does not know what to do next, he will never make a real scientist.
Interpretation
Persistence and clarity in purpose are essential for a successful scientific career.
This quote emphasizes the importance of having a clear direction and understanding of one's work in science. If a scientist has spent two years in research and still lacks a vision for their future, it suggests they may not possess the necessary drive or clarity of thought required to thrive in the scientific community. Success in science relies on both persistence and the ability to navigate one's path forward.
In practice
A mentor giving advice to a graduate student contemplating their future in academia.
That which is not measurable is not science. That which is not physics is stamp collecting.
The energy produced by the breaking down of the atom is a very poor kind of thing. Anyone who expects a source of power from the transformation of these atoms is talking moonshine.
I am a great believer in the simplicity of things and as you probably know I am inclined to hang on to broad & simple ideas like grim death until evidence is too strong for my tenacity.
All science is either physics or stamp collecting.
Now I know what the atom looks like.
If your result needs a statistician then you should design a better experiment.
C'este donc par l'étude des mathématiques, et seulement par elle, que l'on peut se faire une idée juste et approfondie de ce que c'est qu'une science.
One of the liberating effects of science fiction when I was a teenager was precisely its ability to tune me into all sorts of strange data and make me realize that I wasn’t as totally isolated in perceiving the world as being monstrous and crazy
It {Darwin's theory of evolution] was a concept of such stunning simplicity, but it gave rise, naturally, to all of the infinite and baffling complexity of life. The awe it inspired in me made the awe that people talk about in respect of religious experience seem, frankly, silly beside it. I'd take the awe of understanding over the awe of ignorance any day.
How lucky we are to live in this time / the first moment in human history / when we are in fact visiting other worlds
There is a reward structure in science that is very interesting: Our highest honors go to those who disprove the findings of the most revered among us. So Einstein is revered not just because he made so many fundamental contributions to science, but because he found an imperfection in the fundamental contribution of Isaac Newton.
'Goals' and 'caps' on carbon emissions are practically worthless, if coal emissions continue, because of the exceedingly long lifetime of carbon dioxide in the air.
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