“Man is here for the sake of other men - above all for those upon whose smiles and well-being our own happiness depends.”

“The development of science and of the creative activities of the spirit requires a freedom that consists in the independence of thought from the restrictions of authoritarian and social prejudice.”

“Imagination is intelligence having fun.”

“In my view, it is the most important function of art and science to awaken this religious feeling and keep it alive in those who are receptive to it.”

“The world is in greater peril from those who tolerate or encourage evil than from those who actually commit it.”

“The tendencies we have mentioned are something new for America. They arose when, under the influence of the two World Wars and the consequent concentration of all forces on a military goal, a predominantly military mentality developed, which with the almost sudden victory became even more accentuated. The characteristic feature of this mentality is that people place the importance of what Bertrand Russell so tellingly terms “naked power” far above all other factors which affect the relations between peoples. The Germans, misled by Bismarck’s successes in particular, underwent just such a transformation of their mentality—in consequence of which they were entirely ruined in less than a hundred years. I must frankly confess that the foreign policy of the United States since the termination of hostilities has reminded me, sometimes irresistibly, of the attitude of Germany under Kaiser Wilhelm II, and I know that, independent of me, this analogy has most painfully occurred to others as well. It is characteristic of the military mentality that non-human factors (atom bombs, strategic bases, weapons of all sorts, the possession of raw materials, etc.) are held essential, while the human being, his desires and thoughts—in short, the psychological factors—are considered as unimportant and secondary. Herein lies a certain resemblance to Marxism, at least insofar as its theoretical side alone is kept in view. The individual is degraded to a mere instrument; he becomes “human materiel.” The normal ends of human aspiration vanish with such a viewpoint. Instead, the military mentality raises “naked power” as a goal in itself—one of the strangest illusions to which men can succumb.”

“I see my life in terms of music.”

“I have deep faith that the principle of the universe will be beautiful and simple.”

“All generalizations are false, including this one.”

“artificial intellegance is no match for natural stupidity”

“We should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality. ”

“If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?”

“Let every man judge according to his own standards, by what he has himself read, not by what others tell him.”

“Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts.”

“I'd rather be an optimist and a fool than a pessimist and right.”