Age Quote by Abraham Pais
“Some years ago John Kenneth Galbraith wrote in an essay on his efforts at writing a history of economics: 'As one approaches the present, one is filled with a sense of hopelessness; in a year and possibly even a month, there is now more economic comment in the supposedly serious literature than survives from the whole of the thousand years commonly denominated as the Middle Ages ... anyone who claims to be familiar with it all is a confessing liar.' I believe that all physicists would subscribe to the same sentiments regarding their own professional literature. I do at any rate.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: Reflections on Economic History, 1970s
Historical literature is overwhelmed by recent commentary, making comprehensive mastery impossible.
In simple terms: Too much recent work drowns older knowledge.
Key Takeaway
Focus on core ideas, not volume.
Themes
history
economics
information overload
humility
Mood
critical
skeptical
Type
analytical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- academic research
- policy analysis
- education
- publishing
Key Concepts
epistemology
scholarship
literature review
Questions to Reflect On
- Can we trust modern summaries?
- How to discern lasting insights?
A Different Perspective
Depth may be sacrificed for breadth.
![“We are fast approaching a situation in which nobody will believe anything we [physicists] say in any matter that touches upon our self-interest. Nothing we do is likely to arrest our decline in numbers, support or social value.” quote by Leo Kadanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/255/leo-kadanoff-72384_believe_we-are-fast-approaching-a-situation-in-w_942212.jpg)
![“[George] Uhlenbeck was a highly gifted physicist. One of his remarkable traits was he would read every issue of T%he Physical Review from cover to cover.” quote by Abraham Pais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/115/abraham-pais-24808_biographies_george-uhlenbeck-was-a-highly-gifted-phy_609330.jpg)
