It has always seemed to me extreme presumptuousness on the part of those who want to make human ability the read more

It has always seemed to me extreme presumptuousness on the part of those who want to make human ability the measure of what nature can and knows how to do, since, when one comes down to it, there is not one effect in nature, no matter how small, that even the most speculative minds can fully understand. -Galileo Galilei.

Theory provides the maps that turn an uncoordinated set of experiments or computer simulations into a cumulative exploration.

Theory provides the maps that turn an uncoordinated set of experiments or computer simulations into a cumulative exploration.

People think of the inventor as a screwball, but no one ever asks the inventor what he thinks of other read more

People think of the inventor as a screwball, but no one ever asks the inventor what he thinks of other people.

Wives are young men's mistresses; companions for middle age; and
old men's nurses.

Wives are young men's mistresses; companions for middle age; and
old men's nurses.

...there is no prescribed route to follow to arrive at a new idea. You have to make the intuitive leap. read more

...there is no prescribed route to follow to arrive at a new idea. You have to make the intuitive leap. But the difference is that once you've made the intuitive leap you have to justify it by filling in the intermediate steps. In my case, it often happens that I have an idea, but then I try to fill in the intermediate steps and find that they don't work, so I have to give it up.

Form follows function. - "Lippincott's Magazine", March, 1896.

Form follows function. - "Lippincott's Magazine", March, 1896.

What is there in the vale of life
Half so delightful as a wife,
When friendship, love, read more

What is there in the vale of life
Half so delightful as a wife,
When friendship, love, and peace combine
To stamp the marriage-bond divine?

Guide to understanding a net.addict's day: Slow day: didn't have much to do, so spent three hours on usenet. Busy read more

Guide to understanding a net.addict's day: Slow day: didn't have much to do, so spent three hours on usenet. Busy day: managed to work in three hours of usenet. Bad day: barely squeezed in three hours of usenet.

Inanimate objects can be classified scientifically into three major categories; those that don't work, those that break down and those read more

Inanimate objects can be classified scientifically into three major categories; those that don't work, those that break down and those that get lost.