Leon Lederman

"We must never underestimate the power of a simple question."

"The greatest satisfaction in science comes from understanding something that was previously mysterious."

"Progress in science requires patience, persistence, and passion."

"Nature does not give up her secrets easily, but she does give them up."

"The universe is far more interesting than any fiction we could imagine."

"We stand at the frontier of knowledge, and the view is magnificent."

"In the end, science is about our deep desire to understand and belong."

"Every answer in science is merely a stepping stone to the next question."

"The most beautiful theories are often the simplest ones."

"To understand the cosmos is to understand a little bit more about ourselves."

"Science teaches us that we are connected to everything in the universe."

"The pursuit of knowledge is the truest form of freedom."

"I believe that wonder and rigor can coexist in perfect harmony."

"The universe has been conducting experiments for billions of years before we arrived."

"In every discovery lies a thousand new mysteries waiting to be solved."

"Science is the most democratic institution because nature doesn't lie."

"To give up on understanding is to give up on being fully human."

"The greatest legacy we can leave is a love of truth and inquiry."

"The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it."

"Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited to what we already know and understand."

"God is subtle, but he is not malicious."

"Since the time of Newton, we have been living in the intellectual shadow of the scientific revolution."

"The effort to understand the universe is one of the very few things that lifts human life a little above the level of farce."

"In physics, you don't have to go around making trouble for yourself—nature does it for you."

"Nature uses only the longest threads to weave her patterns."

"I think that I can safely say that nobody understands quantum mechanics."

"Do not suppose that abuses are eliminated by destroying the object which is abused."

"The most important thing is not to stop questioning."

"Beauty is the first test: there is no permanent place in the world for ugly mathematics."

"The real tragedy of science is that it takes years to make discoveries and seconds to misunderstand them."