Dmitri Mendeleev — "It is easier to make a scientific discovery than to explain it to the common man…"

"Knowing how contented, free and joyful is life in the realms of science, one fervently wishes that many would enter their portals."

"Pleasures flit by -- they are only for yourself; work leaves a mark of long-lasting joy, work is for others."

"The invisible world of chemical atoms is still waiting for the creator of chemical mechanics."

"The greatest value of a scientific discovery is not so much in the discovery itself as in the stimulus it provides for further investigation."

"To protect the Russian borders from enemies, I would surround the whole country with a continuous wall of vodka."