C.P. Snow

history crime obedience rebellion

“When you think of the long and gloomy history of man, you will find more hideous crimes have been committed in the name of obedience than have ever been committed in the name of rebellion.”

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

happiness pursuit ridiculous

“The pursuit of happiness is a most ridiculous phrase; if you pursue happiness you'll never find it.”

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

technology queer gift hand stab back

“Technology is a queer thing. It brings you gifts with one hand, and stabs you in the back with the other.”

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

scientist neutral truth responsibility

“A scientist has to be neutral in his search for the truth, but he cannot be neutral as to the use of that truth when found. If you know more than other people, you have more responsibility, rather than less.”

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

humanize scientist simonize humanist

"What we need to do is to humanize the scientist and simonize the humanist."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

zeroth first second third law game play win quit

"Zeroth law: You must play the game

First law: You can't win

Second law: You can't break even

Third law: You can't quit the game."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

polar groups intellectual scientist gulf incomprehension

"Two polar groups: at one pole we have the literary intellectuals, at the other scientists, and as the most representative, the physical scientists. Between the two a gulf of mutual incomprehension."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

2070 understand Shakespeare Newton

"By the year 2070 we cannot say, or it would be imbecile to do so, that any man alive could understand Shakespearean experience better than Shakespeare, whereas any decent eighteen-year-old student of physics will know more physics than Newton."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

people future wolves humanity

"What will people of the future think of us? Will they say, as Roger Williams said of the Massachusetts Indians, that we were wolves with the minds of men? Will they think that we resigned our humanity? They will have the right."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

dreadful million people starve death television TV

"The most dreadful thing of all is that many millions of people in the poor countries are going to starve to death before our eyes. We shall see them doing so upon our television sets."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)

English tradition nine ten century

"Nine English traditions out of ten date from the latter half of the nineteenth century."

― C.P. Snow (1905-1980)