As soon as man does not take his existence for granted, but beholds it as something unfathomably mysterious, thought begins.

As soon as man does not take his existence for granted, but beholds it as something unfathomably mysterious, thought begins.

Some of us still get all weepy when we think about the Gaia Hypothesis, the idea that earth is a read more

Some of us still get all weepy when we think about the Gaia Hypothesis, the idea that earth is a big furry goddess-creature who resembles everybody's mom in that she knows what's best for us. But if you look at the historical record -- Krakatoa, Mt. Vesuvius, Hurricane Charley, poison ivy, and so forth down the ages -- you have to ask yourself: Whose side is she on, anyway?

Memory depends very much on the perspicuity, regularity, and order of our thoughts. Many complain of the want of memory, read more

Memory depends very much on the perspicuity, regularity, and order of our thoughts. Many complain of the want of memory, when the defect is in the judgment; and others, by grasping at all, retain nothing.

There is not any memory with less satisfaction than the memory of some temptation we resisted.

There is not any memory with less satisfaction than the memory of some temptation we resisted.

If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts, but if he will be content to begin read more

If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts, but if he will be content to begin with doubts, he shall end in certainties.

A man gift will make a way for him.

A man gift will make a way for him.

I would sum up my fear about the future in one word: boring. And that's my one fear: that everything read more

I would sum up my fear about the future in one word: boring. And that's my one fear: that everything has happened; nothing exciting or new or interesting is ever going to happen again... the future is just going to be a vast, conforming suburb of the soul.

You cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individuals. To that end, each of us must work read more

You cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individuals. To that end, each of us must work for our own improvement and, at the same time, share a general responsibility for all humanity, our particular duty being to aid those to whom we think we can be most useful.

Time goes, you say? Ah, no! Alas, Time stays, we go.

Time goes, you say? Ah, no! Alas, Time stays, we go.