Stephen Jay Gould

The history of life is a story of both triumph and tragedy.

The human mind is a product of its environment, and its thoughts are shaped by its experiences.

The greatest gift of science is the ability to see the world anew.

The world is a puzzle, and science is the key to unlocking its secrets.

We are not the only intelligent beings in the universe, but we are the only ones we know.

Science and beauty are intertwined.

The history of life is a story of both simplicity and complexity.

The human mind is a marvel of evolution, capable of both great good and great evil.

The greatest challenge to humanity is to live in harmony with nature.

The world is a garden, and we are its caretakers.

We are not the owners of the earth, but its temporary inhabitants.

Nothing is more dangerous than an idea when it is the only one you have.

In science, 'fact' can only mean 'confirmed to such a degree that it would be perverse to withhold provisional assent.'

Facts are the air of scientists. Without facts, you can never spawn a theory.

Science is an integral part of culture. It's not this foreign thing, done by an arcane priesthood. It's one of the glories of the human intellectual tradition.

The center of human nature is neither the selfish gene nor the altruistic gene, but the cooperative gene.

We cannot, even if we want to, turn our eyes away from the world, for we are part of it.

History is not comforting. History is not moralizing. History is just stuff that happened.

Equilibrium is a figment of the human imagination.

The price of progress is trouble.