Quotes in science

Any living cell carries with it the experience of a billion years of experimentation by its ancestors.

In physics, you don't have to go around making trouble for yourself - nature does it for you.

A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.

statistical methods appropriate for iterative inquiry can help the investigator not only to answer questions originally asked but also to catalyze the posing of new questions. Thus greatly assisting the subject matter specialist's attempt to understand the phenomenon under study.

Statistics is, or should be, about scientific investigation and how to do it better, but many statisticians believe it is a branch of mathematics.

Since all models are wrong the scientist cannot obtain a "correct" one by excessive elaboration. On the contrary following William of Occam he should seek an economical description of natural phenomena. Just as the ability to devise simple but evocative models is the signature of the great scientist so overelaboration and overparameterization is often the mark of mediocrity.

Each generation of scientists stands upon the shoulders of those who have gone before.

Science is all metaphor.

All Models Are Wrong But Some Are Useful

The quality revolution is nothing more, or less, than the dramatic expansion of scientific problem solving using informed observation and directed experimentation to find out more about the process, the product and the customer.