Max Planck
Originated quantum theory with energy quanta
Most quoted
"The quantum theory is a theory of the elementary quanta of the cosmos and the chaos, the light and the darkness, the good and the evil, the life and the death, the beginning and the end, the alpha and the omega, the past, the present, and the future, the here and the now, the everywhere and the always, the visible and the invisible, the known and the unknown, the finite and the infinite, the possible and the impossible, the necessary and the contingent, the universal and the particular, the general and the specific, the abstract and the concrete, the simple and the complex, the whole and the part, the one and the many, the same and the different, the identity and the difference, the unity and the multiplicity, the order and the chaos, the harmony and the discord, all things and nothing, being and non-being, existence and non-existence, reality and unreality, truth and falsehood, knowledge and ignorance, wisdom and folly, beauty and ugliness, good and evil, morality and immorality, ethics and unethics, religion and irreligion, spirituality and materialism, God and atheism, the universe and the void."
— from The Origin and Development of the Quantum Theory, 1920
"The quantum theory is a theory of the elementary quanta of the cosmos and the chaos, the light and the darkness, the good and the evil, the life and the death, the beginning and the end, the alpha and the omega, the past, the present, and the future, the here and the now, the everywhere and the always, the visible and the invisible, the known and the unknown, the finite and the infinite, the possible and the impossible, the necessary and the contingent, the universal and the particular, the general and the specific, the abstract and the concrete, the simple and the complex, the whole and the part, the one and the many, the same and the different, the identity and the difference, the unity and the multiplicity, the order and the chaos, the harmony and the discord."
— from The Origin and Development of the Quantum Theory, 1920
"My original decision to devote myself to science was a direct result of the discovery which has never ceased to fill me with enthusiasm since my early youth - the comprehension of the far from obvious fact that the laws of human reasoning coincide with the laws governing the sequences of the impressions we receive from the world about us; that, therefore, pure reasoning can enable man to gain an insight into the mechanism of the latter. In that sense, it is obvious that science cannot be neutral, and cannot be isolated from life."
— from Scientific Autobiography, 1949
All quotes by Max Planck (661)
The man who is not afraid to challenge authority is the man who will make discoveries.
The highest reward for a man's toil is not what he gets for it, but what he becomes by it.
The scientist must be a man of courage, for he must be willing to face the unknown.
The man who is not afraid to be alone is the man who will make the greatest discoveries.
The most important thing in life is to learn how to learn.
The scientist must be a man of humility, for he must recognize the limits of his knowledge.
The man who is not afraid to be different is the man who will change the world.
The most important thing in science is to keep asking questions.
The scientist must be a man of patience, for he must be willing to wait for results.
The man who is not afraid to fail is the man who will succeed.
The most important thing in life is to find your purpose.
The scientist must be a man of vision, for he must be able to see beyond the present.
The man who is not afraid to dream is the man who will achieve great things.
The most important thing in science is to be open to new ideas.
The scientist must be a man of passion, for he must love his work.
The man who is not afraid to be himself is the man who will find true happiness.
The most important thing in life is to live with integrity.
All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the electron to vibrate and holds together the minutest solar system of the atom. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind. This mind is the matrix of all matter.
The highest purpose of a man's life is to serve the truth, and to serve it in the most effective way.
The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.
Contemporaries of Max Planck
Other Physicss born within 50 years of Max Planck (1858–1947).