Scientific Discovery Quotes

“I want to pause here and talk about this notion of consensus, and the rise of what has been called consensus science. I regard consensus science as an extremely pernicious development that ought to be stopped cold in its tracks. Historically, the claim of consensus has been the first refuge of scoundrels; it is a way to avoid debate by claiming that the matter is already settled. Whenever you hear the consensus of scientists agrees on something or other, reach for your wallet, because you're being had.

Let's be clear: the work of science has nothing whatever to do with consensus. Consensus is the business of politics. Science, on the contrary, requires only one investigator who happens to be right, which means that he or she has results that are verifiable by reference to the real world. In science consensus is irrelevant. What is relevant is reproducible results. The greatest scientists in history are great precisely because they broke with the consensus.

There is no such thing as consensus science. If it's consensus, it isn't science. If it's science, it isn't consensus. Period.”
― Michael Crichton

“It is not easy to convey, unless one has experienced it, the dramatic feeling of sudden enlightenment that floods the mind when the right idea finally clicks into place. One immediately sees how many previously puzzling facts are neatly explained by the new hypothesis. One could kick oneself for not having the idea earlier, it now seems so obvious. Yet before, everything was in a fog.”
― Francis Crick, What Mad Pursuit: A Personal View of Scientific Discovery

“I would remind you to notice where the claim of consensus is invoked. Consensus is invoked only in situations where the science is not solid enough. Nobody says the consensus of scientists agrees that E=mc2. Nobody says the consensus is that the sun is 93 million miles away. It would never occur to anyone to speak that way.”
― Michael Crichton

“Creation signifies, above all, emotion, and that not in literature or art alone. We all know the concentration and effort implied in scientific discovery. Genius has been defined as an infinite capacity for taking pains.”
― Henri Bergson

“Facts and fiction both are dreams. Facts are what fiction dreams to be, while fiction is the dream that facts have conquered.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iman Insaniyat, Mazhab Muhabbat: Pani, Agua, Water, It's All One

“Claiming sole credit for scientific discovery is like claiming sole credit for a movie. Just like you and everyone involved, I played my role.”
― Lashon Byrd

“Any substantially advanced truth is indistinguishable from delusion.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“Science doesn't make someone a better person, if it did, no physicist would help develop nuclear weapons, or no biologist would help develop biological weapons.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Tierra Carta: Naskar Charter of Earth

“Whole world is in our care, beyond all law and politics. We are capable, we are accountable - we are the scientists!”
― Abhijit Naskar, Rowdy Scientist: Handbook of Humanitarian Science

“SCIENCE means Sapient, Conscientious, Infinite Exploration, Never Compromising Empathy.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Insan Himalayanoğlu: It's Time to Defect

“You have a very special personal relationship with God, Mathieu. You’re the kind of atheist who can’t forgive God for NOT existing, and who gives the impression that in your eyes the only scientific discovery truly worthy of man’s genious would be the discovery of God.”
― Romain Gary, The Gasp

“Facts are a state of matter, truth is a state of mind.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Yaralardan Yangın Doğar: Explorers of Night are Emperors of Dawn

“Facts and fiction both are dreams. Facts are what fiction dreams to be, while fiction is the dream that facts have conquered. And the beauty of it all is that, at any given moment, both dreams are alive, just in different shape and strength.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iman Insaniyat, Mazhab Muhabbat: Pani, Agua, Water, It's All One

“How does the bird come and go
(Sufi Scientist Sonnet, 1300)

How does the bird come and go,
In and out of this bodily cage!
So long as you nourish it with love,
Who cares about some mythical fate!

Cages are born of dust,
In dust cages will wither.
Yet you sob in love of cage,
Oblivious to the endangered flier!

With all knowledge of cosmic building blocks,
How come you still cannot put an end to war!
With all your high and mighty technocracy,
How come children still starve and suffer!

I say, put your intellect aside for a change,
First unfold a human heart outside the cage.
Otherwise, your posterboys of superficiality,
Will turn this world into a wreck of cages.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iman Insaniyat, Mazhab Muhabbat: Pani, Agua, Water, It's All One

“The Thirty Meter Telescope atop Mauna Kea is arguably one of the most disliked projects in the history of scientific discovery.”
― Steven Magee

“元首們走下真理祭壇，來到那些科學家面前，進行最後的努力。
法國總統說：「能不能這樣：把這事稍往後放一放，讓我陪大家去體驗另一種生活，讓我們放鬆自己，在黄昏的鳥鳴中看着夜幕降臨大地，在銀色的月光下聽着懷舊的音樂，喝着美酒想着你心愛的人⋯⋯這時你們就會發現，終極真理並不像你們想的那麼重要，與你們追求的虛無飄渺的宇宙和諧之美相比，這樣的美更讓人陶醉。」
一位物理學家冷冷地說：「所有的生活都是合理的，我們沒必要互相理解。」
法國元首還想說甚麼，美國總統已失去了耐心：「好了，不要對牛彈琴了！您還看不出來這是怎樣一群毫無責任心的人？還看不出這是怎樣一群騙子？他們聲稱為全人類的利益而研究，其實只是拿社會的財富滿足自己的慾望，滿足他們對那種玄虛的宇宙和諧美的變態慾望，這和拿公款嫖娼有甚麼區别？！」
丁儀擠上前來拍拍他的肩膀笑着說：「總統先生，科學發展到今天，終於有人對它的本質進行了比較準確的定義。
旁邊的松田誠一說：「我們早就承認這點，並反覆聲明，但一直沒人相信我們。」”
― Liu Cixin, 朝闻道

“The inherent patterns in reality are not rules to be followed. They are unavoidable. If you can figure out a way to get around one, it is not an inherent pattern.”
― George Hammond

“I can see no more reason for preferring the theories of fifty years ago than for preferring the observational data of fifty years ago.”
― Arthur Stanley Eddington, The Expanding Universe: Astronomy's 'Great Debate', 1900–1931 (Cambridge Science Classics)

“Truth is not an apple, that you can devour in a few bites - truth is an onion, peel off one layer, plenty more to peel alright.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“Paywall is a violation of knowledge.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Little Planet on The Prairie: Dunya Benim, Sorumluluk Benim

“What is Science, What is Holy (Sonnet)

There is no greater spiritual journey
than the rejection of prejudice,
there is no greater meditation
than self-imposed scrutiny.

Bringing a candle to a neighbor's
home who had their power cut off,
is far holier than lighting
a thousand candles in the church.

If you bring electricity to a marginalized
community with a simple solar power kit,
it's a far greater scientific achievement
than the gargantuan glories of the LHC.

There is no greater scientific achievement
than simple science solving big problems.
There is no greater holiness than trading
in the bible for a simple act of kindness.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Neurosonnets: The Naskar Art of Neuroscience

“If you bring electricity to a marginalized community with a simple solar power kit, it's a far greater scientific achievement than the gargantuan glories of the LHC.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Neurosonnets: The Naskar Art of Neuroscience

“Scriptures don't bear holiness, Facts don't bear science. These are mere records of human experience - they can do good only if applied with conscience.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“Eurocentrism - The First Global Catastrophe (Sonnet 2626)

Climate change is nothing,
the first humanly caused
global catastrophe was eurocentrism -

before colonials, science was rooted in society, and
philosophy was rooted in community, not snobbery,
medicine was centered on people, not profit,
religion was lived experience, not salesmanship -

farmland was family, not property,
innovation empowered life, not luxury -

psychology prioritized understanding
and healing, not analysis and isolation,
poetry was the everyday way of life,
not aristocratic escapism.

Sure, there was superstition back then as well,
but no superstition of the pre-colonial world
comes close in atrocity to the fancy superstitions
of the imperials marketed as progress.

Eurocentrism is the biggest impediment to education -
stand and burn the colonial syllabus, that's enlightenment!”
― Abhijit Naskar, With Love From A Blue Rock

“Before colonials, science was rooted in society, and
philosophy was rooted in community, not snobbery,
medicine was centered on people, not profit,
religion was lived experience, not salesmanship. Sure, there was superstition back then as well, but no superstition of the pre-colonial world comes close in atrocity to the fancy superstitions of the imperials marketed as progress. Eurocentrism is the biggest impediment to education - stand and burn the colonial syllabus, that's enlightenment!”
― Abhijit Naskar, With Love From A Blue Rock

“Character of a scientist does not depend on science, but character of science depends on the scientist.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Tierra Carta: Naskar Charter of Earth

“Science can produce vaccines or gas chambers.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Tierra Carta: Naskar Charter of Earth

“Science doesn't make someone a better person, if it did, no physicist would help develop nuclear weapons, or no biologist would help develop biological weapons. Science, like religion, follows the command of power, given enough incentive 99% of the world's scientists would gladly help wipe out half the world's population. Which is why, what's needed is that a good person becomes scientist, otherwise a scientist is of as much use to the world as a politician.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Tierra Carta: Naskar Charter of Earth

“Anybody can inspire the youth to become scientists, any trustfund white guy or even chatgpt can do that, the point of Naskar is to ignite Servant Scientists, because if a scientist does not burn with the fire of service, they are no better than religious fanatics.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Tierra Carta: Naskar Charter of Earth

“STEM counts for nothing, until you add the prefix of H - without that H, it's just more dogma, educated dogma, but dogma no less, because guess what - Humanity's greatest atrocities were all caused by educated people.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Tierra Carta: Naskar Charter of Earth