44 books
—
9 voters
“It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old, they grow old because they stop pursuing dreams.”
―
―
“We may be only one of millions of advanced civilizations. Unfortunately, space being spacious, the average distance between any two of these civilizations is reckoned to be at least two hundred light-years, which is a great deal more than merely saying it makes it sound. It means for a start that even if these beings know we are here and are somehow able to see us in their telescopes, they're watching light that left Earth two hundred years ago. So, they're not seeing you and me. They're watching the French Revolution and Thomas Jefferson and people in silk stockings and powdered wigs--people who don't know what an atom is, or a gene, and who make their electricity by rubbing a rod of amber with a piece of fur and think that's quite a trick. Any message we receive from them is likely to begin "Dear Sire," and congratulate us on the handsomness of our horses and our mastery of whale oil. Two hundred light-years is a distance so far beyond us as to be, well, just beyond us.”
― A Short History of Nearly Everything
― A Short History of Nearly Everything
“Disassemble the cells of a sponge (by passing them through a sieve, for instance), then dump them into a solution, and they will find their way back together and build themselves into a sponge again. You can do this to them over and over, and they will doggedly reassemble because, like you and me and every other living thing, they have one overwhelming impulse: to continue to be.”
― A Short History of Nearly Everything
― A Short History of Nearly Everything
UNH Culture & Sustainability
— 18 members
— last activity May 27, 2014 05:11PM
A group started by students and faculty at the University of New Hampshire, in partnership with our Sustainability Institute. We hope to deepen our un ...more
The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910
— 3717 members
— last activity 1 hour, 49 min ago
This is a group for discerning readers looking to discover, explore, and critically discuss some of the World’s literature, with a primary emphasis on ...more
Jeff’s 2024 Year in Books
Take a look at Jeff’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
Favorite Genres
Polls voted on by Jeff
Lists liked by Jeff

























