Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.
—Bertrand Russell, 1951
I’ll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when there’s evidence
of any thinking going on inside it.
—Terry Pratchett, 2016
***
A beautiful idea has a much greater chance of being correct than a ugly one.
—Roger Penrose, 1989
If nature were not beautiful it would not be worth knowing, and [then] life would not be
worth living.
—Henri Poincaré, 1908
Nature is never so admired as when she is understood.
—Bernard Le Bovier de Fontenelle, 1733
***
There are men who never err, because they never propose anything rational.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1832
The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything.
8
—E. J. Phelps, 1889
You must never feel badly about making mistakes […] as long as you take the trouble to
learn from them.
9
—Norton Juster, 1961
An error doesn’t become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.
—O. A. Battista, 1946
Who excuses himself, accuses himself.
—European proverb
10
Man is condemned to exhaust all possible errors when he examines any set of facts before
he recognizes the truth.
—Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, 1809
8
In his full text, Phelps explicitly refers to an earlier (circa 1868) maxim by Archbishop William
Connor Magee. Later paraphrases by Joseph Conrad, Theodore Roosevelt, and Marva Collins are
also frequently quoted.
9
See also the second quote in the On the Wise… section.
10
Here and below, the label European is used for any proverb that is similar (within a reasonable
flexibility of translation) in two or more European languages.
6
On Discoveries, Problems, and Solutions
—Bertrand Russell, 1951
I’ll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when there’s evidence
of any thinking going on inside it.
—Terry Pratchett, 2016
***
A beautiful idea has a much greater chance of being correct than a ugly one.
—Roger Penrose, 1989
If nature were not beautiful it would not be worth knowing, and [then] life would not be
worth living.
—Henri Poincaré, 1908
Nature is never so admired as when she is understood.
—Bernard Le Bovier de Fontenelle, 1733
***
There are men who never err, because they never propose anything rational.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1832
The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything.
8
—E. J. Phelps, 1889
You must never feel badly about making mistakes […] as long as you take the trouble to
learn from them.
9
—Norton Juster, 1961
An error doesn’t become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.
—O. A. Battista, 1946
Who excuses himself, accuses himself.
—European proverb
10
Man is condemned to exhaust all possible errors when he examines any set of facts before
he recognizes the truth.
—Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, 1809
8
In his full text, Phelps explicitly refers to an earlier (circa 1868) maxim by Archbishop William
Connor Magee. Later paraphrases by Joseph Conrad, Theodore Roosevelt, and Marva Collins are
also frequently quoted.
9
See also the second quote in the On the Wise… section.
10
Here and below, the label European is used for any proverb that is similar (within a reasonable
flexibility of translation) in two or more European languages.
6
On Discoveries, Problems, and Solutions