In college, in the early 1950s, I began to learn a little about how science works, the secrets of its great success, how rigorous the standards of evidence must be if we are really to know something is true, how many false starts and dead ends have plagued human thinking, how our biases can colour our interpretation of evidence, and how often belief systems widely held and supported by the political, religious and academic hierarchies turn out to be not just slightly in error, but grotesquely wrong.
Carl Sagan in The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
Submitted by Catalin Popescu
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Related quotes
We must surrender our skepticism only in the face of rock-solid evidence. Science demands a tolerance for ambiguity. Where we are ignorant, we withhold belief. Whatever annoyance the uncertainty engenders serves a higher purpose: It drives us to accumulate better data. This attitude is the difference between science and so much else. Science offers little in the way of cheap thrills. The standards of evidence are strict. But when followed they allow us to see far, illuminating even a great darkness.
Carl Sagan in Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
Submitted by Catalin Popescu
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There are many hypotheses in science that are wrong. That's perfectly alright; it's the aperture to finding out what's right. Science is a self-correcting process. To be accepted, new ideas must survive the most rigorous standards of evidence and scrutiny.
quote by Carl Sagan
Submitted by Catalin Popescu
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False facts are highly injurious to the progress of science, for they often endure long; but false views, if supported by some evidence, do little harm, for every one takes a salutary pleasure in proving their falseness.
quote by Charles Darwin
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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False facts are highly injurious to the progress of science, for they often endure long but false views, if supported by some evidence, do little harm, for everyone takes a salutory pleasure in proving their falseness.
quote by Charles Robert Darwin
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Credulity is belief in slight evidence, with no evidence, or against evidence.
quote by Tryon Edwards
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The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it is not utterly absurd; indeed in view of the silliness of the majority of mankind, a widespread belief is more likely to be foolish than sensible.
Bertrand Russell in Marriage and Morals (1929)
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Puzzling Evidence
You got the cbs...!
And the abc...!
You got time and newsweek!
Well, theyre the same to me!
Now dont you wanna get right with me?
(puzzling evidence)
I hope you get evrything you need
(puzzling evidence)
Puzzling evidence
Puzzling evidence
Puzzling evidence
Done hardened in your heart
Hardened in your heart.
...alright!u
Now I am the gun
And you are the bullet
I got the power and glory!
(puzzling)
And the money to buy it!
(puzzling)
Got your gulf and western and your mastercard
(puzzling evidence)
Got what you wanted, lost what you had
(puzzling evidence)
Im seeing
Puzzling evidence
Puzzling evidence
Puzzling evidence
Done hardened in your heart
Its hardened up your heart.
...alright!
Huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...u
Well, Im puzzling (huh!)
Im puzzling (huh!)
Im puzzling (huh!)
Puzzling (huh!)
Im puzzling (huh!)
Woo...Im puzzling (huh!)
Sometimes Im puzzling! (huh!)
See the little children! (puzzlin)
And the family! (puzzlin)
Gonna live together! (puzzlin)
Take them home with me! (puzzlin)
Well I hope youre happy with what youve made
(puzzling evidence)
In the land of the free and the home of the brave
(puzzling evidence)
Im seeing
Puzzling evidence
Puzzling evidence
Puzzling (sometimes) evidence
Done hardened in your heart
Hardened in your heart
Huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...
Im puzzling (huh!)
Puzzling (huh!)
Puzzling (huh!)
P-p-p-puzzlin! (huh!)
Still puzzlin! (huh!)
song performed by by Talking Heads
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence.
quote by Richard Dawkins
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Puzzlin' Evidence
You got the CBS...!
And the ABC...!
You got Time and Newsweek!
Well, they're the same to me!
Now don't you wanna get right with me?
(Puzzling Evidence)
I hope you get ev'rything you need
(Puzzling Evidence)
Puzzling Evidence
Puzzling Evidence
Puzzling Evidence
Done hardened in your heart
Hardened in your heart.
...Alright!
Now I am the gun
And you are the bullet
I got the power and glory!
(Puzzling)
And the money to buy it!
(Puzzling)
Got your Gulf and Western and your MasterCard
(Puzzling Evidence)
Got what you wanted, lost what you had
(Puzzling Evidence)
I'm seeing
Puzzling Evidence
Puzzling Evidence
Puzzling Evidence
Done hardened in your heart
It's hardened up your heart.
...alright!
Huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...
Well, I'm puzzling (Huh!)
I'm puzzling (Huh!)
I'm puzzling (Huh!)
Puzzling (Huh!)
I'm puzzling (Huh!)
Woo...I'm puzzling (Huh!)
Sometimes I'm puzzling! (Huh!)
See the little children! (Puzzlin')
And the family! (Puzzlin')
Gonna live together! (Puzzlin')
Take them home with me! (Puzzlin')
Well I hope you're happy with what you've made
(Puzzling Evidence)
In the land of the free and the home of the brave
(Puzzling Evidence)
I'm seeing
Puzzling Evidence
Puzzling Evidence
Puzzling (sometimes) evidence
Done hardened in your heart
Hardened in your heart
Huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...huh...
I'm puzzling (Huh!)
Puzzling (Huh!)
Puzzling (Huh!)
P-P-P-Puzzlin'! (Huh!)
Still Puzzlin'! (Huh
song performed by by Talking Heads
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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A lot of folks are still demanding more evidence before they actually consider Iraq a threat. For example, France wants more evidence. And you know I'm thinking, the last time France wanted more evidence they rolled right through Paris with the German flag.
quote by David Letterman
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it is not utterly absurd.
quote by Bertrand Russell
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I think it's already apparent that a good part of this Nation understands — if only instinctively — that anything which seems to suggest that God favors a political party or the establishment of a state church, is wrong and dangerous. Way down deep the American people are afraid of an entangling relationship between formal religions — or whole bodies of religious belief — and government. Apart from constitutional law and religious doctrine, there is a sense that tells us it's wrong to presume to speak for God or to claim God's sanction of our particular legislation and His rejection of all other positions. Most of us are offended when we see religion being trivialized by its appearance in political throw-away pamphlets. The American people need no course in philosophy or political science or church history to know that God should not be made into a celestial party chairman.
quote by Mario Cuomo
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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The Hurt-Feelings
A belief, especially a religious one,
That cannot be defended by evidence,
Proof or logic, is protected or nurtured
By hurt-feelings and the threat of violence.
poem by Rm. Shanmugam Chettiar
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In like manner, if I let myself believe anything on insufficient evidence, there may be no great harm done by the mere belief; it may be true after all, or I may never have occasion to exhibit it in outward acts.
quote by William Kingdon Clifford
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Political realism believes that politics, like society in general, is governed by objective laws that have their roots in human nature. In order to improve society it is first necessary to understand the laws by which society lives. The operation of these laws being impervious to our preferences, men will challenge them only at the risk of failure. Realism, believing as it does in the objectivity of the laws of politics, must also believe in the possibility of developing a rational theory that reflects, however imperfectly and one-sidedly, these objective laws. It believes also, then, in the possibility of distinguishing in politics between truth and opinion — between what is true objectively and rationally, supported by evidence and illuminated by reason, and what is only a subjective judgment, divorced from the facts as they are and informed by prejudice and wishful thinking.
quote by Hans Morgenthau
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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It is a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. It biases the judgment.
quote by Conan Doyle
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Hebrews 11: 1
Faith is the substance of things hoped for
the light of the Lord that opens the door
Reveling the light of heaven serene
the evidence of things not seen
My God has revealed the evidence
His glorious power with consequence
Healing me and making me clean
the evidence of things not seen
Faith in Christ without reservation
releaved the pain of my aberration
So open His book to see what I mean
the evidence of things not seen
Faith is the substance of things hoped for
the evidence of things not seen
poem by Amera Andersen
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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God Has Such Amazing Faith
We talk about believing in God
Believing in lies believing in truth,
Being a living sacrifice, putting our full trust in something that we
Cannot even see
But man, God is the one who really has strong faith
How does such a being, full of power, trust us?
He had a legacy, He sent His only son to the world
That Son was His hope, His pride, His joy, the world's very Savior
And yet that same Son was crucified
And then He died
But through power He rose again
And gave that power, that exceeding gain
To us.
We have that Spirit
But God entrusted his legacy to mortal man
There is no evidence of the resurrection
That evidence is Jesus Himself who is seated on the throne
The Only evidence we have is the Holy Spirit
God's faith in us amazes me
That He'd trust a fallen people, not only with such power
But the legacy of His Son, His legacy.
That He'd entrust us to spread His gospel.
I can scarce believe that God had such faith
To leave the only evidence of Jesus and His resurrection
In the hearts of men
Thank you God for your faith and trust
It's hard for us to put our faith in You, You who is powerful
You who is merciful, You who is loving.
But in all your great mercy and love
You put your faith in us
To spread that gospel
To use that power
To continue the legacy
To listen to the Spirit
To make disciples
To live
Because before You
Before Your sacrifice
Before the new heart
Before the redemption
Before the forgiveness
Before the healing
We were all dead
So thank You God
Thank You for having faith in me, even when I doubt you
Thank You for having faith in us, when we're a skeptical people
So thank You for the cross
I'll
We'll continue that legacy
Your Spirit, God, You, will be the living and strong evidence
That you are powerful, that Jesus rose from the dead
Lord God
I'll
We'll carry this Spirit to the ends of the earth
Because YOUR love, YOUR grace, and God YOUR FAITH
They give us strength
poem by David Knox
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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It is almost impossible to exaggerate the proneness of the human mind to take miracles as evidence, and to seek for miracles as evidence.
quote by Matthew Arnold
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Must faith be exactly that, the willingness and ability to believe in the face of a lack of evidence? If one could find the evidence, would then the faith be dead?
quote by Clifford D. Simak
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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