Heinrich Hertz

The images which we may form of things are not determined without ambiguity by the requirement that the consequents of the images must be the images of the consequents.

We cannot a priori demand from nature simplicity, nor can we judge what in her opinion is simple.

The law of causality is not a necessity of thought, but an empirical fact.

The principle of least action is perhaps the most comprehensive of all physical laws.

Time and space are not conditions of existence, time and space are a model for thinking.

The energy of the universe is constant; the entropy of the universe tends towards a maximum.

The question of the utility of the waves is a secondary one; in the first place, I wanted to prove that light and electricity are of the same nature.

It is not in the power of science to reveal to us the essence of things; this we shall never know.

The task of the physicist is to trace the phenomena of nature back to the simple laws of mechanics.

The difficulty lies not in the new ideas, but in escaping the old ones.

We are convinced that the phenomena of nature are governed by laws which are not of our making.

The aim of science is, on the one hand, a comprehension, as complete as possible, of the connection between the sense experiences in their totality, and, on the other hand, the accomplishment of this aim by the use of a minimum of primary concepts and relations.

The whole subject of electricity is in a state of rapid development, and it is impossible to foresee what new facts may be brought to light.

I have succeeded in producing distinct rays of electric force, and in carrying out with them the elementary experiments which are commonly performed with light and radiant heat.

The velocity of propagation of electromagnetic effects in air is the same as that of light.

The beauty and logical completeness of Maxwell's theory have often compelled admiration.

The validity of the equations extends as far as the validity of the concepts current and electric force.

We cannot observe the ether itself; we can only observe its effects.

The physicist must be content to describe phenomena and not attempt to explain their ultimate nature.

The laws of mechanics are the foundation of all physical science.