Mankind quotes
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William_Kingdon_Clifford
Insufficient Evidence
"To sum up: it is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence. If a man, holding a belief which he was taught in childhood or persuaded of afterwards, keeps down and pushes away any doubts which arise about it in his mind, purposely avoids the reading of books and the company of men that call into question or discuss it, and regards as impious those questions which cannot easily be asked without disturbing it-- the life of that man is one long sin against mankind."
- Source: William Kingdon Clifford, from the paper entitled 'The Ethics of Belief', published in the Contemporary Review in 1877. Online at http://people.brandeis.edu
/~teuber /Clifford_ethics.pdf retrieved 2023.
- Keywords: Wrong_quotes Belief_quotes Insufficient_quotes Evidence_quotes Doubt_quotes Mind_quotes Ignorance_quotes Question_quotes Discussion_quotes Sin_quotes Evil_quotes Humanity_quotes Summarize_quotes Teach_quotes Learning_quotes Persuasion_quotes Suppression_quotes Avoid_quotes Reading_quotes Book_quotes Company_quotes Men_quotes Man_quotes Impious_quotes Easy_quotes Disturb_quotes Life_quotes Mankind_quotes
Albert_Einstein
Magnificent Applied Science
“Why does this magnificent applied science which saves work and makes life easier bring us so little happiness? The simple answer runs: Because we have not yet learned to make sensible use of it. In war it serves that we may poison and mutilate each other. In peace it has made our lives hurried and uncertain. Instead of freeing us in great measure from spiritually exhausting labor, it has made men into slaves of machinery, who for the most part complete their monotonous long day's work with disgust and must continually tremble for their poor rations... It is not enough that you should understand about applied science in order that your work may increase man's blessings. Concern for the man himself and his fate must always form the chief interest of all technical endeavours; concern for the great unsolved problems of the organization of labor and the distribution of goods in order that the creations of our mind shall be a blessing and not a curse to mankind. Never forget this in the midst of your diagrams and equations.”
- Source: Albert Einstein [Speaker];
- 1950-02-16 [Speech/Date]; California Institute of Technology [Location]; CalTech students [Audience];
- 1950-02-17 [Reporting/Article/Date]; “Einstein Sees Lack in Applying Science” [Title]; Anonymous [Article/Author]; New York Times [Reporting/Newspaper]; 8 [Page];
- Keywords: Science_quotes Happiness_quotes War_quotes Wisdom_quotes Peace_quotes Work_quotes Slavery_quotes Automation_quotes Ethics_quotes Values_quotes Empathy_quotes Labor_quotes Distribution_quotes Mind_quotes Humanity_quotes Mathematics_quotes Engineering_quotes Magnificent_quotes Applied_quotes Save_quotes Life_quotes Simple_quotes Answer_quotes Learn_quotes Sensible_quotes Poison_quotes Mutilate_quotes Hurry_quotes Uncertain_quotes Freedom_quotes Spiritual_quotes Exhausting_quotes Men_quotes Machinery_quotes Monotonous_quotes Long_quotes Day_quotes Disgust_quotes Continual_quotes Tremble_quotes Poor_quotes Rations_quotes Understand_quotes Increase_quotes Blessing_quotes Man_quotes Fate_quotes Chief_quotes Interest_quotes Technical_quotes Endeavour_quotes Concern_quotes Problem_quotes Unsolved_quotes Organization_quotes Creation_quotes Curse_quotes Mankind_quotes Forget_quotes Diagram_quotes Equation_quotes
Carl_Jung
Devil's Disdain
“It is the devil who says: Disdain all reason and science, mankind's highest powers. That is never appropriate even though we are forced to acknowledge the irrational.”
- Source: Written by Carl Jung in a letter to J, B. Lang, dated 1918-01-17. Letter in private possess of Stephen Martin. Reprinted in the book The Red Book: Liber Novus: A Reader's Edition, published 2009 by W. W. Norton, ISBN: 978-039308908-0. Edited by Sonu Shamdasani, translated by Mark Kybruz, John Peck, and Sonu Shamdasani. Introduction, page 46.
Prophetic Delusion
“The danger consists in the prophet’s delusion which often is the result of dealing with the unconscious. It is the devil who says: Disdain all reason and science, mankind’s highest powers. That is never appropriate even though we are forced to acknowledge the irrational.”
- Source: Written by Carl G. Jung On January 17, 1918-01-17 in a letter to to J. B. Lang. Letter is a private possession of Stephan Martin but is also reported in ‘The Red Book: Liber Novus: A Reader's Edition’, written by C. G. Jung, edited with an introduction by Sonu Shamdasani, translated by Mark Kyburz, John Peck, and Sonu Shamdasani; published by W. W. Norton in 2012; ISBN 978-0393089080; Page 46.
- Notes: This quotes makes a reference to Mephistopheles' statement in Faust (1.1851f.)
John_Maynard_Keynes
Technological Unemployment
“In our own lifetimes... we may be able to perform all the operations of agriculture, mining, and manufacture with a quarter of the human effort to which we have been accustomed. For the moment the very rapidity of these changes is hurting us and bringing difficult problems to solve... We are being afflicted with... technological unemployment. This means unemployment due to our discovery of means of economising the use of labour outrunning the pace at which we can find new uses for labour. But this is only a temporary phase of maladjustment... In the long run... mankind is solving its economic problem. I would predict that the standard of life in progressive countries one hundred years hence will be between four and eight times as high as it is today.”
- Source: From the Essay “Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren” written by John Maynard Keynes in 1930. Included in the book “Essays in Persuasion” edited by John Maynard Keynes and published by W. W. Norton & Company in 1963.
- Keywords: Lifetime_quotes Perform_quotes Ability_quotes Operation_quotes Agriculture_quotes Mining_quotes Manufacturing_quotes Quarter_quotes Human_quotes Effort_quotes Rapid_quotes Change_quotes Hurt_quotes Bring_quotes Difficult_quotes Problem_quotes Solve_quotes Afflict_quotes Technology_quotes Unemployment_quotes Employment_quotes Discover_quotes Means_quotes Economize_quotes Labor_quotes Outrun_quotes Pace_quotes Find_quotes Use_quotes Temporary_quotes Phase_quotes Maladjustment_quotes Adjustment_quotes Long_quotes Run_quotes Mankind_quotes Humanity_quotes Economic_quotes Prediction_quotes Standard_quotes Life_quotes Living_quotes Progressive_quotes Country_quotes Hundred_quotes Year_quotes High_quotes Today_quotes
Traditional Purpose
“Thus, we have been expressly evolved by nature — with all our impulses and deepest instincts — for the purpose of solving the economic problem. If the economic problem is solved, mankind will be deprived of its traditional purpose. Will this be a benefit? If one believes at all in the real values of life, the prospect at least opens up the possibility of benefit. Yet I think with dread of the readjustment of the habits and instincts of the ordinary man, bred into him for countless generations, which he may be asked to discard within a few decades.”
- Source: From the Essay “Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren” written by John Maynard Keynes in 1930. Included in the book “Essays in Persuasion” edited by John Maynard Keynes and published by W. W. Norton & Company in 1963.
- Keywords: Express_quotes Evolve_quotes Nature_quotes Impulse_quotes Deep_quotes Instinct_quotes Purpose_quotes Solve_quotes Economic_quotes Problem_quotes Mankind_quotes Humanity_quotes Deprive_quotes Traditional_quotes Benefit_quotes Believe_quotes Real_quotes Value_quotes Life_quotes Prospect_quotes Open_quotes Up_quotes Possibility_quotes Think_quotes Dread_quotes Readjustment_quotes Adjustment_quotes Habit_quotes Ordinary_quotes Man_quotes Human_quotes Bred_quotes Countless_quotes Generation_quotes Ask_quotes Discard_quotes Few_quotes Decade_quotes
Thomas_Robert_Malthus
Population and Subsistence
“I think I may fairly make two postulata. First, That food is necessary to the existence of man. Secondly, That the passion between the sexes is necessary, and will remain nearly in its present state... Assuming then my postulata as granted, I say, that the power of population is indefinitely greater than the power in the earth to produce subsistence for man. Population, when unchecked, increases in a geometrical ratio. Subsistence increases only in an arithmetical ratio... This implies a strong and constantly operating check on population from the difficulty of subsistence. This difficulty must fall somewhere; and must necessarily be severely felt by a large portion of mankind... The germs of existence contained in this spot of earth, with ample food, and ample room to expand in, would fill millions of worlds in the course of a few thousand years... Consequently, if the premises are just, the argument is conclusive against the perfectibility of the mass of mankind.”
- Source: Thomas Robert Malthus. The essay: “An Essay on the Principle of Population as It Affects the Future Improvement of Society, with Remarks on the Speculations of Mr. Goodwin, M. Condorcet and Other Writers”. Originally published: 1798. Edition: First. Publisher: J. Johnson. Location: London, England. Chapter: 1. Retrieved From: <https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/An_Essay_on_the_Principle_of_Population>. Retrieval Date: 2024-04-03.
- Notes: The dire predictions of Malthus have not yet been fulfilled. This is primarily due to errors in his initial assumptions (which are properly identified), not in errors in his logic. The first assumption (or postulatum) is that food production increases arithmetically (linearly). But historically, food production has increased geometrically (exponentially) due to advances in mechanical technologies and biotechnologies. The second assumption assumes passion and birth rates are directly correlated. However, technological advances in birth control, cultural advances in women's rights, and rising prosperity (which lowers birth rates) have falsified this assumption. Additional questionable assumptions are also made which are not initially specified.
- See Also:
- Keywords: Think_quotes Fair_quotes Assumption_quotes Postulate_quotes Food_quotes Existence_quotes Passion_quotes Sex_quotes Man_quotes Woman_quotes Remain_quotes Grant_quotes Power_quotes Population_quotes Indefinite_quotes Greater_quotes Earth_quotes World_quotes Production_quotes Subsistence_quotes Uncheck_quotes Increase_quotes Geometric_quotes Exponential_quotes Ratio_quotes Arithmetic_quotes Linear_quotes Imply_quotes Strong_quotes Constant_quotes Operate_quotes Check_quotes Difficult_quotes Fall_quotes Necessary_quotes Severe_quotes Feel_quotes Large_quotes Portion_quotes Mankind_quotes Humanity_quotes Germ_quotes Contain_quotes Spot_quotes Ample_quotes Room_quotes Expand_quotes Fill_quotes Course_quotes Few_quotes Thousand_quotes Year_quotes Premises_quotes Argument_quotes Consequence_quotes Conclusive_quotes Against_quotes Perfectibility_quotes Mass_quotes Hunger_quotes Starvation_quotes Malthusian_quotes