In a spiral galaxy, the ratio of dark-to-light matter is about a factor of ten. That's probably a good number for the ratio of our ignorance-to-knowledge. We're out of kindergarten, but only in about third grade.
I try to do my science in a moral way, and, I believe that, ideally, science should be looked upon as something that helps us understand our role in the universe.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Science should be conducted ethically and seen as a tool for understanding our place in the universe.
Vera Rubin emphasizes the moral responsibility that comes with scientific inquiry, highlighting that science should not only seek to unveil the mysteries of the universe but should also guide us in understanding our ethical and existential positions within it. By elevating science beyond mere experimentation and observation, Rubin advocates for a perspective where scientific knowledge enriches our comprehension of life and our responsibilities as stewards of knowledge.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the ethical implications of scientific research during a science conference.
More from Vera Rubin
All quotes →We need senators who have studied physics and representatives who understand ecology.
Nobody ever told us all matter radiated. We just assumed it did.
There was just nothing as interesting in my life as watching the stars every night.
I had the usual friends who pointed out constellations of stars. But it really was watching the stars. It was getting some sense of the motion of the earth. I found it a remarkable thing.
I think the question is, are there women and have there been women who want to do science and could be doing great science, but they never really got the opportunity?
Similar quotes
As scientists, we step on the shoulders of science, building on the work that has come before us - aiming to inspire a new generation of young scientists to continue once we are gone.
To produce a really good biological theory one must try to see through the clutter produced by evolution to the basic mechanisms lying beneath them, realizing that they are likely to be overlaid by other, secondary mechanisms. What seems to physicists to be a hopelessly complicated process may have been what nature found simplest, because nature could only build on what was already there.
Science and technology revolutionize our lives, but memory, tradition and myth frame our response.
Science proceeds more by what it has learned to ignore than what it takes into account.
(On the energy radiated by the Sun) It's four hundred million million million million watts. That is a million times the power consumption of the United States every year, radiated in one second, and we worked that out by using some water, a thermometer, a tin, and an umbrella. And that's why I love physics.
Science fiction writers aren't fortune tellers. Fortune tellers are fakes.