Max Born
Made fundamental contributions to quantum mechanics, particularly the Born rule for calculating probabilities.
Most quoted
"It is natural that a man should consider the work of his hands or his brain to be useful and important. Therefore nobody will object to an ardent experimentalist boasting of his measurements and rather looking down on the 'paper and ink' physics of his theoretical friend, who on his part is proud of his lofty ideas and despises the dirty fingers of the other."
— from Experiment and Theory in Physics, 1943
"The human race has today the means for annihilating itself—either in a fit of complete lunacy, i.e., in a big war, by a brief fit of destruction, or by a careless handling of atomic technology, through a slow process of poisoning and of deterioration in its genetic structure."
— from Letter, 1957
"The human race has today the means for annihilating itself—either in a fit of complete lunacy, i.e., in a big war, by a brief fit of destruction, or by careless handling of atomic technology, through a slow process of poisoning and of deterioration in its genetic structure."
— from Atomic Physics and Human Knowledge, 1957
All quotes by Max Born (371)
To understand the world, one must understand oneself.
The greatest adventure is to live the life of your dreams.
The fundamental laws of nature are not deterministic, but probabilistic.
Quantum mechanics is a complete theory, but it is not a deterministic theory.
The concept of an electron's orbit is a fiction.
We are forced to give up the idea of a complete description of the individual event.
The world is not made of things, but of processes.
The observer is an integral part of the observed system.
Our knowledge of the external world is always indirect, mediated by our senses and our instruments.
The human mind is capable of understanding the universe, but not of controlling it.
The pursuit of knowledge is a noble endeavor, but it must be tempered with wisdom and humility.
The greatest challenge facing humanity is to learn to live in peace and harmony with each other and with nature.
The future of humanity depends on our ability to cooperate and to share our knowledge and resources.
The scientific method is the most reliable way to acquire knowledge, but it is not the only way.
Art and science are two sides of the same coin, both seeking to understand and to express the truth about the world.
The human spirit is indomitable, capable of overcoming any obstacle.
Life is a precious gift, and we should cherish every moment of it.
The greatest legacy we can leave behind is a better world for future generations.
True understanding comes not from knowing all the answers, but from questioning everything.
The motion of a particle is not determined by the initial conditions in the classical sense, but by a probability distribution.
Contemporaries of Max Born
Other Physicss born within 50 years of Max Born (1882–1970).