Wigner, Eugene

"In times of doubt, return to first principles."

"The physicist's task is to find the simplest description of nature's complexity."

"One must not work on semiconductors, one must work on something sensible."

"The greatest discoveries come when we stop looking for what we expect to find."

"Beauty in a theorem is as important as beauty in a painting."

"The mind is the instrument; clarity of purpose is the tuning fork."

"What nature has hidden in deep darkness, the physicist must bring to light."

"The bridge between heart and mind is built with understanding."

"Science without conscience is the ruin of the soul."

"The present is shaped by our understanding of the past."

"Every moment of life is precious; we must not waste it on trivialities."

"The greatest gift one can give is to help another see the world differently."

"In physics, the important thing is not to be right, but to be less wrong than before."

"The universe speaks in the language of mathematics; we are merely learning to translate."

"Power without wisdom is tyranny; wisdom without power is impotence."

"The deepest truth often hides in the simplest observation."

"What makes life worth living is the constant pursuit of understanding."

"Nature is the best teacher; we need only the humility to learn."

"The foundations of science are not certainty, but carefully tested uncertainty."

"To live is to question; to question is to grow."

"The symmetry principles of nature are more fundamental than the laws themselves."

"Good science is like good art; it reveals something true about the nature of reality."

"The physicist's intuition is built upon years of careful observation and thought."

"We are all passengers on a train through time; the question is whether we observe the journey or merely sit with eyes closed."

"Mathematics is the poetry of reason."

"In the end, what matters is not what we knew, but what we learned."