952 Quotes by Isaac Asimov

For instance, in a book entitled Mathematics and the Imagination (published in 1940) the authors, Edward Kasner and James Newman, introduced a number called the "googol," which is good and large and which was promptly taken up by writers of books and articles on popular mathematics. Personally, I think it is an awful name, but the young child of one of the authors invented it, and what could a proud father do? Thus, we are afflicted forever with that baby-talk number.

Mathematicians deal with large numbers sometimes, but never in their income.

I wouldn't want [the people of Baleyworld] to live that long as a general thing. The pace of historical and intellectual advance would then become too slow. Those at the top would stay in power too long. Baleyworld would sink into conversation and decay - as your world has done.

It lasted for a long time, I believe.""A very long time. It was a great success, but even great successes come to a natural end.

It is a mistake,” he said, “to suppose that the public wants the environment protected or their lives saved and that they will be grateful to any idealist who will fight for such ends. What the public wants is their own individual comfort.

People who don't expect justice don't have to suffer disappointment.

The first problem of living is to minimize friction with the crowds that surround you on all sides.

Human beings sometimes find a kind of pleasure in nursing painful emotions, in blaming themselves without reason or even against reason.

Peki ama ya yanılıyorsam ? Bunu ünlü matematikçi, filozof ve sözünü esirgemeyen bir ateist olan Bertrand Russell'a da sormuşlardı. "Peki ya ölüp de kendinizi Tanrı'nın karşısında buluverirseniz ? o zaman ne yaparsınız ?" demişlerdi. Bunun üzerine yılların gözü pek fikir adamı şu cevabı verdi: 'O zaman ona, "Tanrım, bize daha fazla kanıt göstermen gerekirdi' derim." ... Ben bir ateistim ve bana göre ölümden sonra gelen tek şey de sonsuza dek sürecek rüyasız, derin bir uykudur.