Thomas Huxley
Thomas Huxley
Thomas Henry Huxley PC PRS FLSwas an English biologist, known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionScientist
Date of Birth4 May 1825
school men yield
The besetting sin of able men is impatience of contradiction and of criticism. Even those who do their best to resist the temptation, yield to it almost unconsciously and become the tools of toadies and flatterers. "Authorities," "disciples," and "schools" are the curse of science and do more to interfere with the work of the scientific spirit than all its enemies.
christian atheist school
I have never had the least sympathy with the a priori reasons against orthodoxy, and I have by nature and disposition the greatest possible antipathy to all the atheistic and infidel school. Nevertheless I know that I am, in spite of myself, exactly what the Christian would call, and, so far as I can see, is justified in calling, atheist and infidel.
duty east hunger learn mental order satisfy unable wind
Learn what is true, in order to do what is right, is the summing up of the whole duty of man, for all who are unable to satisfy their mental hunger with the east wind of authority.
medicine woes
The only medicine for suffering, crime, and all the other woes of mankind, is wisdom.
truth lying science
Irrationally held truths may be more harmful than reasoned errors.
inspiring freedom men
It is far better for a man to go wrong in freedom than to go right in chains.
harmful held truths
The scientific spirit is of more value than its products, and irrationally held truths may be more harmful than reasoned errors.
begin fate
It is the customary fate of new truths, to begin as heresies, and to end as superstitions.
beautiful great hypothesis science tragedy ugly
The great tragedy of science is the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact.
giving doubt unqualified
Give unqualified assent to no propositions but those the truth of which is so clear and distinct that they cannot be doubted. The enunciation of this first great commandment of science consecrated doubt.
truth ideas may
To say that an idea is necessary is simply to affirm that we cannot conceive the contrary; and the fact that we cannot conceive the contrary of any belief may be a presumption, but is certainly no proof, of its truth.
life-is-too-short slaying oneself
Life is too short to occupy oneself with the slaying of the slain more than once.
savages ghost without-god
There are savages without God in any proper sense of the word, but none without ghosts.
hard-work hands details
From the dawn of exact knowledge to the present day, observation, experiment, and speculation have gone hand in hand; and, whenever science has halted or strayed from the right path, it has been, either because its votaries have been content with mere unverified or unverifiable speculation (and this is the commonest case, because observation and experiment are hard work, while speculation is amusing); or it has been, because the accumulation of details of observation has for a time excluded speculation.