Dr. Carl Sagan

You have to know the past to understand the present.

You have to know the past to understand the present.

When Kepler found his long-cherished belief did not agree with the most precise observation, he accepted the uncomfortable fact. He read more

When Kepler found his long-cherished belief did not agree with the most precise observation, he accepted the uncomfortable fact. He preferred the hard truth to his dearest illusions; that is the heart of science.

There are many hypotheses in science which are wrong. That's perfectly all right; they're the aperture to finding out what's read more

There are many hypotheses in science which are wrong. That's perfectly all right; they're the aperture to finding out what's right. Science is a self-correcting process. To be accepted, new ideas must survive the most rigorous standards of evidence and scrutiny.

I also wish that the Pledge of Allegiance were directed at the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, as it read more

I also wish that the Pledge of Allegiance were directed at the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, as it is when the President takes his oath of office, rather than to the flag and the nation

Knowing a great deal is not the same as being smart; intelligence is not information alone but also judgment, the read more

Knowing a great deal is not the same as being smart; intelligence is not information alone but also judgment, the manner in which information is collected and used