Joseph Priestley

Chemistry British 1733 – 1804 250 quotes

He is credited with the discovery of oxygen and several other gases.

Quotes by Joseph Priestley

Experiment is the best test of truth in science.

Experimental philosophy 1772

Life's greatest joy is in serving others.

Letter to family 1795

Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many.

Essay on Power 1768

Wit is educated insolence.

Social commentary 1792

The beauty of science is its humility.

Lecture on science 1788

In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.

Appeal after riots 1793

Nature does nothing in vain.

Natural philosophy 1777

Liberty is the right to do as we wish, provided we infringe not the equal rights of others.

Political letters 1791

A joke's a very serious thing.

Witty remark in conversation 1780

The human spirit is the true measure of all things.

Disquisitions on Spirit 1782

Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.

On oxygen discovery 1774

The purpose of life is to matter, to count, to stand for something.

Memoirs reflection 1800

Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried.

Church history notes 1794

Science is organized knowledge. Wisdom is organized life.

Educational lecture 1785

The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.

On arts and education 1778

The more we know of the works of God, the more we must admire them.

The History and Present State of Electricity, with Original Experiments 1767

The English are a nation of philosophers, and they are the only nation in the world that has produced a Newton.

The History and Present State of Electricity, with Original Experiments 1767

The knowledge of nature is the knowledge of God.

Observations on Different Kinds of Air 1772

The more we know, the more we are sensible of our ignorance.

Observations on Different Kinds of Air 1772

The air, which we breathe, is not a simple substance, but a compound of several different kinds of air.

Experiments and Observations on Different Kinds of Air, Vol. I 1774