Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon
A prominent naturalist who authored the monumental 'Histoire Naturelle', a 36-volume encyclopedia that influenced generations of naturalists.
Most quoted
"The first truth that results from this examination is that the Earth is a planet, a star, which has its own movement, which turns around the Sun, and which, consequently, is subject to the same laws as all the other planets."
— from Histoire Naturelle, générale et particulière, 1749
"Man is the only animal that can laugh and weep; for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are, and what they ought to be."
— from Attributed
"Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps; for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to be."
— from Histoire Naturelle, générale et particulière, 1749
All quotes by Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (406)
Les grands esprits attirent l'envie des petits.
À la fin, la nature reprend ses droits.
Genius is but a greater aptitude for patience.
The great works are those that are written with the greatest care.
The most beautiful works are those which contain the greatest number of truths.
Time is the only thing we have to lose.
The true method of natural history is to observe, to compare, and to combine.
The human mind, in its most perfect state, is but a mirror reflecting the universe.
The earth is a monument of successive revolutions.
Nature proceeds by imperceptible gradations.
Man is the only animal that can laugh and weep; for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are, and what they ought to be.
The history of animals is the history of man.
The true philosopher is he who, in the midst of the greatest difficulties, preserves his tranquility.
The universe is a vast machine, the parts of which are all connected.
The true happiness of man consists in the tranquility of his soul.
The chain of beings is not interrupted.
The greatest pleasure in life is to do what people say you cannot do.
Nature is a book, the pages of which are all written in the same language.
The human species is the only one that has a history.
The most beautiful discovery is the one that reveals the most profound truths.
Contemporaries of Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon
Other Biologys born within 50 years of Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (1707–1788).