--- title: "9 Pauli Quotes by 7 authors" description: "Browse 9 Pauli quotes by 7 authors. Discover the best Pauli sayings and thoughts." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_asks_it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for_983306.jpg" --- > [It was absolutely marvelous working for Pauli. You could ask him anything. There was no worry that he would think a particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-frederick-weisskopf/it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for-pauli-you-could-ask-him/) [Victor Frederick Weisskopf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-frederick-weisskopf/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_asks_it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for_983306.jpg) > [After reading a paper by a young theoretical scientist, Pauli, shaking his head sadly, commented: That is not even wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-pauli/after-reading-a-paper-by-a-young-theoretical-scientist-pauli-shaking/) [Wolfgang Pauli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-pauli/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ee/wolfgang-pauli-14510_paper_after-reading-a-paper-by-a-young-theoret_2349928.png) > [ “For \[Wolfgang\] Pauli the central problem of electrodynamics was the field concept and the existence of an elementary charge which is expressible… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-p-enz/for-wolfgang-pauli-the-central-problem-of-electrodynamics-was-the/) [Charles P. Enz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-p-enz/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/243/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_for-wolfgang-pauli-the-central-problem-o_862023.jpg) > [“The prime number 137 had continuously occupied Pauli's mind. It is an approximate value for a constant appearing in the fine structure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-v-laurikainen/the-prime-number-137-had-continuously-occupied-pauli-s-mind-it-is-an/) [K. V. Laurikainen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-v-laurikainen/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/k-v-laurikainen-95313_atoms_the-prime-number-137-had-continuously-oc_3081314.jpg) > [“Realizing its fundamental importance in understanding spectral lines, in atomic physics and in the theory of how light and electrons interact, quantum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-i-miller/realizing-its-fundamental-importance-in-understanding-spectral-lines/) [Arthur I. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-i-miller/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/037/arthur-i-miller-220925_fine-structure-const_realizing-its-fundamental-importance-in_2590141.jpg) > [“In his first philosophical lecture on modern physics that Pauli gave in November 1934 to the Zurich Philosophical Society he said that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-p-enz/in-his-first-philosophical-lecture-on-modern-physics-that-pauli-gave/) [Charles P. Enz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-p-enz/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_in-his-first-philosophical-lecture-on-mo_1764442.jpg) > [ “Through Jung \[Pauli\] became very interested in various kinds of mysticism, including Jewish mysticism. This led Pauli to develop a friendship with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-frederick-weisskopf/through-jung-pauli-became-very-interested-in-various-kinds-of/) [Victor Frederick Weisskopf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-frederick-weisskopf/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_137_through-jung-pauli-became-very-intereste_269318.jpg) > [“The focus of history and philosophy of science scholar Arthur Miller’s (2010) "137: Jung and Pauli and the Pursuit of Scientific Obsession"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-hayen/the-focus-of-history-and-philosophy-of-science-scholar-arthur-miller/) [Todd Hayen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-hayen/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/699/todd-hayen-157203_ancient-egypt_the-focus-of-history-and-philosophy-of-s_2206043.jpg) > [“If we wanted to construct a basic philosophical attitude from these scientific utterances of Pauli 's, at first we would be inclined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-heisenberg/if-we-wanted-to-construct-a-basic-philosophical-attitude-from-these/) [Werner Heisenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-heisenberg/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/werner-heisenberg-4501_creative-process_if-we-wanted-to-construct-a-basic-philos_3220102.jpg) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pauli/#itemlist", "name": "Pauli Quotes", "numberOfItems": 9, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It was absolutely marvelous working for Pauli. You could ask him anything. There was no worry that he would think a particular question was stupid, since he thought all questions were stupid.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Victor Frederick Weisskopf" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-frederick-weisskopf/it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for-pauli-you-could-ask-him/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_asks_it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for_983306.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_asks_it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for_983306.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_asks_it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for_983306.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It was absolutely marvelous working for Pauli. You could ask him anything. 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This fundamental pure number had greatly fascinated Pauli, … For Pauli the explanation of the number 137 was the test of a successful field theory, a test which no theory has passed up to now.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles P. Enz" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-p-enz/for-wolfgang-pauli-the-central-problem-of-electrodynamics-was-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/243/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_for-wolfgang-pauli-the-central-problem-o_862023.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/243/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_for-wolfgang-pauli-the-central-problem-o_862023.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/243/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_for-wolfgang-pauli-the-central-problem-o_862023.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For [Wolfgang] Pauli the central problem of electrodynamics was the field concept and the existence of an…” — Charles P. Enz", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The prime number 137 had continuously occupied Pauli's mind. It is an approximate value for a constant appearing in the fine structure theory of atomic spectra which in its theoretical expression ties together electromagnetism, relativity and quantum theory. Pauli saw the fine structure theory of spectra as a key in understanding the deepest contemporary problems of theoretical physics. For that reason the number 137 possessed a mysterious attraction for him.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "K. V. Laurikainen" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-v-laurikainen/the-prime-number-137-had-continuously-occupied-pauli-s-mind-it-is-an/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/k-v-laurikainen-95313_atoms_the-prime-number-137-had-continuously-oc_3081314.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/k-v-laurikainen-95313_atoms_the-prime-number-137-had-continuously-oc_3081314.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/k-v-laurikainen-95313_atoms_the-prime-number-137-had-continuously-oc_3081314.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The prime number 137 had continuously occupied Pauli's mind. It is an approximate value for a constant…” — K. V. Laurikainen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Realizing its fundamental importance in understanding spectral lines, in atomic physics and in the theory of how light and electrons interact, quantum electrodynamics, Pauli and Heisenberg were determined to derive it from quantum theory rather than introducing it from the start. They believed that if they could find a version of quantum electrodynamics capable of producing the fine structure constant, it would not contain the infinities that marred their theories.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Arthur I. Miller" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-i-miller/realizing-its-fundamental-importance-in-understanding-spectral-lines/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/037/arthur-i-miller-220925_fine-structure-const_realizing-its-fundamental-importance-in_2590141.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/037/arthur-i-miller-220925_fine-structure-const_realizing-its-fundamental-importance-in_2590141.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/037/arthur-i-miller-220925_fine-structure-const_realizing-its-fundamental-importance-in_2590141.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Realizing its fundamental importance in understanding spectral lines, in atomic physics and in the theory of…” — Arthur I. Miller", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In his first philosophical lecture on modern physics that Pauli gave in November 1934 to the Zurich Philosophical Society he said that only a formulation of quantum theory would be satisfactory which expresses the relation between the value of [the fine structure constant] and charge conservation in the same complementary was as that between the space-time description and energy-momentum conservation.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles P. Enz" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-p-enz/in-his-first-philosophical-lecture-on-modern-physics-that-pauli-gave/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_in-his-first-philosophical-lecture-on-mo_1764442.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_in-his-first-philosophical-lecture-on-mo_1764442.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/charles-p-enz-91251_fine-structure-const_in-his-first-philosophical-lecture-on-mo_1764442.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In his first philosophical lecture on modern physics that Pauli gave in November 1934 to the Zurich…” — Charles P. Enz", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Through Jung [Pauli] became very interested in various kinds of mysticism, including Jewish mysticism. This led Pauli to develop a friendship with Gershom Scholem, the world's greatest authority in that field and in the Cabala, … On one occasion Scholem asked me to tell him about unsolved problems in modern physics. … When I mentioned this number --137-- to Scholem, … He told me that in Hebrew … The number corresponding to the word 'cabala' happens to be 137.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Victor Frederick Weisskopf" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-frederick-weisskopf/through-jung-pauli-became-very-interested-in-various-kinds-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_137_through-jung-pauli-became-very-intereste_269318.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_137_through-jung-pauli-became-very-intereste_269318.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_137_through-jung-pauli-became-very-intereste_269318.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Through Jung [Pauli] became very interested in various kinds of mysticism, including Jewish mysticism. This…” — Victor Frederick Weisskopf", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The focus of history and philosophy of science scholar Arthur Miller’s (2010) \"137: Jung and Pauli and the Pursuit of Scientific Obsession\" is Jung and Pauli’s mutual effort to discover the cosmic number or fine structure constant, which is a fundamental physical constant dealing with electromagnetism, or, from a different perspective, could be considered the philosopher’s stone of the mathematical universe. This was indeed one of Pauli and Jung’s collaborative passions, but it was not the only concentration of their relationship. Quantum physics could be seen as the natural progression from ancient alchemy, through chemistry, culminating in the abstract world of subatomic particles, wave functions, and mathematics. [Ancient Egypt and Modern Psychotherapy]”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Todd Hayen" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-hayen/the-focus-of-history-and-philosophy-of-science-scholar-arthur-miller/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/699/todd-hayen-157203_ancient-egypt_the-focus-of-history-and-philosophy-of-s_2206043.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/699/todd-hayen-157203_ancient-egypt_the-focus-of-history-and-philosophy-of-s_2206043.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/699/todd-hayen-157203_ancient-egypt_the-focus-of-history-and-philosophy-of-s_2206043.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The focus of history and philosophy of science scholar Arthur Miller’s (2010) \"137: Jung and Pauli and the…” — Todd Hayen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If we wanted to construct a basic philosophical attitude from these scientific utterances of Pauli 's, at first we would be inclined to infer from them an extreme rationalism and a fundamentally skeptical point of view. In reality however, behind this outward display of criticism and skepticism lay concealed a deep philosophical interest even in those dark areas of reality of the human mind which elude the grasp of reason. And while the power of fascination emanating from Pauli 's analyses of physical problems was admittedly due in some measure to the detailed and penetrating clarity of his formulations, the rest was derived from a constant contact with the field of creative processes, for which no rational formulation as yet exists.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Werner Heisenberg" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-heisenberg/if-we-wanted-to-construct-a-basic-philosophical-attitude-from-these/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/werner-heisenberg-4501_creative-process_if-we-wanted-to-construct-a-basic-philos_3220102.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/werner-heisenberg-4501_creative-process_if-we-wanted-to-construct-a-basic-philos_3220102.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/werner-heisenberg-4501_creative-process_if-we-wanted-to-construct-a-basic-philos_3220102.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If we wanted to construct a basic philosophical attitude from these scientific utterances of Pauli 's, at…” — Werner Heisenberg", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pauli/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pauli/", "name": "Pauli Quotes", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pauli/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/victor-frederick-weisskopf-451_asks_it-was-absolutely-marvelous-working-for_983306.jpg" }, "description": "Browse 9 Pauli quotes by 7 authors. 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