As life forms, viruses are just inherently interesting. It's the microworld - this universe of life too small for us to see - but it's profoundly complicated, and immensely powerful. Ebola is like a beautiful and frightening predator. There is a wonder in the operations of nature that can't be denied, even when we're the losers.
Interpretation
The complexity of viruses reveals the wonders and challenges of nature that are often beyond our perception.
This quote by Richard Preston reflects on the fascinating and complex nature of viruses, highlighting their dual role as both beautiful entities and dangerous predators. It emphasizes the intricate balance of life in the microworld, where even the tiniest organisms can have a profound impact on our lives, eliciting both wonder and fear in humanity as we grapple with their potential consequences.
In practice
A scientist discussing the significance of viruses in a public health seminar.
Scientific facts are often described in textbooks as if they just sort of exist, like nickels someone picked up on the street. But science at the cutting edge, conducted by sharp minds probing deep into nature, is not about self-evident facts. It is about mystery and not knowing. It is about taking huge risks.
Species evolve exactly as if they were adapting as best they could to a changing world, and not at all as if they were moving toward a set goal.
I just try to stuff my brain with everything that I can read on what is going on in science at a very high level, and sometimes I see connections of what might need to be done.
It used to be thought that our genes were historically immutable and that it was not possible to imagine a conversation between culture and genetics.
Venus has a runaway greenhouse effect. I kind of want to know what happened there because we're twirling knobs here on Earth without knowing the consequences of it. Mars once had running water. It's bone dry today. Something bad happened there as well.
Every formula which expresses a law of nature is a hymn of praise to God.
As our own species is in the process of proving, one cannot have superior science and inferior morals. The combination is unstable and self-destroying.
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