I will argue that every scrap of biological diversity is priceless, to be learned and cherished, and never to be surrendered without a struggle.
Science, its imperfections notwithstanding, is the sword in the stone that humanity finally pulled. The question it poses, of universal and orderly materialism, is the most important that can be asked in philosophy and religion.
Very often ambition and entrepreneurial drive, in combination, beat brilliance.
If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago. If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into chaos.
They travel long distances to stroll along the seashore, for reasons they can’t put into words.
Human beings were made for music. Its thrill and rapture are picked up almost immediately by little children
The best way to live in this real world is to free ourselves of demons and tribal gods.
You teach me, I forget. You show me, I remember. You involve me, I understand.
[Scientific humanism is] the only worldview compatible with science’s growing knowledge of the real world and the laws of nature.
Social intelligence was therefore always at a high premium. A sharp sense of empathy can make a huge difference, and with it in an ability to manipulate, to gain cooperation, and to deceive.
[E]very major religion today is a winner in the Darwinian struggle waged among cultures, and none ever flourished by tolerating its rivals.
Real scientists do not take vacations. They take field trips…
[S]elfish members win within groups, but groups of altruists best groups of selfish members. (63)
A lifetime can be spent in a Magellanic voyage around the trunk of a single tree.