In more than one respect, the exploring of the Solar System and homesteading other worlds constitutes the beginning, much more than the end, of history.
Carl SaganRead
Science is a way to not fool ourselves.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Science helps us understand reality and prevents self-deception.
In this quote, Carl Sagan emphasizes the importance of science as a tool for gaining an accurate understanding of the world around us. It serves as a safeguard against our own biases and misconceptions, encouraging us to seek truth through empirical evidence and rational thinking rather than being misled by unfounded beliefs or assumptions.
Themes
ScienceTruthKnowledgeUnderstandingRealitySelf-Deception
In practice
Example use cases
During a science presentation, one might use this quote to highlight the importance of empirical evidence.
More from Carl Sagan
All quotes βHow smart does a chimpanzee have to be before killing him constitutes murder?
Carl SaganRead
The hole in the ozone layer is a kind of skywriting. At first it seemed to spell out our continuing complacency before a witch's brew of deadly perils. But perhaps it really tells of a newfound talent to work together to protect the global environment.
Carl SaganRead
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.
Carl SaganRead
The simplest thought, like the concept of the number one, has an elaborate logical underpinning.
Carl SaganRead
One of the reasons for its success is that science has a built-in, error-correcting machinery at its very heart. Some may consider this an overbroad characterization, but to me every time we exercise self-criticism, every time we test our ideas against the outside world, we are doing science. When we are self-indulgent and uncritical, when we confuse hopes and facts, we slide into pseudoscience and superstition.
Carl SaganRead
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