F. Sherwood Rowland
He shared the Nobel Prize for his work on the depletion of the ozone layer by chlorofluorocarbons.
Most quoted
"Isn't it a responsibility of scientists, if you believe that you have found something that can affect the environment, isn't it your responsibility to actually do something about it, enough so that action actually takes place?"
— from Nobel Prize Lecture, 1995
"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. Especially if you made them feel wrong."
— from Attributed/Paraphrased
"What's the use of having developed a science well enough to make predictions if, in the end, all we're willing to do is stand around and wait for them to come true?"
— from Interview/Speech
All quotes by F. Sherwood Rowland (415)
The joy of teaching is seeing a student's eyes light up with understanding.
My colleagues at UC Irvine were a constant source of intellectual stimulation and support.
The initial calculations were alarming, and we knew we had to act.
It's a humbling experience to realize the profound impact of human activity on the planet.
The scientific method is our best tool for navigating uncertainty.
My family's unwavering support allowed me to pursue this challenging work.
The fight for environmental protection is a marathon, not a sprint.
We must empower the next generation of scientists to tackle the world's most pressing problems.
Our responsibility to the planet is to understand it, and then to act on that understanding.
Science is not just a collection of facts, but a way of thinking about the world.
The ozone layer is a shield, and we've been poking holes in it.
When you have a problem, you don't just sit there and watch it get worse. You try to fix it.
The scientific method is a powerful tool, but it requires courage to follow where it leads.
We have a moral obligation to protect the environment for future generations.
The greatest joy in science is the discovery of something new, something that no one else has ever known.
It's not enough to be right; you have to be able to convince others that you're right.
The atmosphere doesn't recognize national boundaries.
We are all part of a global experiment, and we need to pay attention to the results.
The evidence was clear, and we had to speak out.
Science is a human endeavor, with all the strengths and weaknesses that implies.
Contemporaries of F. Sherwood Rowland
Other Chemistrys born within 50 years of F. Sherwood Rowland (1927–2012).