Ludwig Boltzmann

Physics Austrian 1844 – 1906 497 quotes

Founder of statistical mechanics and entropy equation

Quotes by Ludwig Boltzmann

Who, then, is to decide what is true and what is false? The ultimate court of appeal is observation and experiment, not the doctrines of men, however learned or venerable.

Speech 1897

The second law of thermodynamics holds, I think, only with a certain degree of probability.

Lectures on Gas Theory 1896

Entropy is not a measure of disorder, but rather a measure of the number of ways a system can be arranged.

Major work on statistical mechanics 1877

The struggle for existence in the organic world is nothing but a struggle for matter in motion.

Lecture 1900

I am convinced that the particle theory will in the end be generally accepted.

Letter 1890

The world is not deterministic, but probabilistic.

Essay 1895

Atoms exist; that is an article of faith for the physicist.

Speech 1900

The laws of thermodynamics may be asserted when the theory of probability is applied to a great number of molecules.

Paper on entropy 1872

Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.

Personal reflection

The deepest pain I have suffered nobody will ever understand.

Letter before death 1906

In my opinion, a scientist's life is the most beautiful.

Interview 1880

The molecule is the bridge between the inorganic and the organic world.

Lecture 1898

Probability is the guide of life.

Aphorism

The universe tends towards maximum entropy, yet life defies it temporarily.

Essay 1905

Experiment without theory is blind, but theory without experiment is mere intellectual play.

Speech 1885

I have always found that the less I know about a subject, the more confidently I can discuss it.

Witty remark

The physicist's greatest joy is to see theory confirmed by experiment.

Letter 1890

Thermodynamics is the mechanics of heat.

Early paper 1871

The concept of equilibrium is fundamental to understanding irreversible processes.

Major work 1877

Science advances one funeral at a time.

Aphorism