--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Science doesn't work by voting. Did…" description: "\"Science doesn't work by voting. Did people vote on the theory of relativity? No! It's either right or it's wrong. Do we vote on whether genetics is a g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d8/alan-stern-5283_genetics_science-doesn-t-work-by-voting-did-peopl_2109112.png" --- # Science doesn't work by voting. Did people vote on the… ![“Science doesn't work by voting. Did people vote on the theory of relativity? No! It's either right or it's wrong. Do we vote on whether genetics is a good theory or not? Of course not.” quote by Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d8/alan-stern-5283_genetics_science-doesn-t-work-by-voting-did-peopl_2109112.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d8/alan-stern-5283_genetics_science-doesn-t-work-by-voting-did-peopl_2109112.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d8/alan-stern-5283_genetics_science-doesn-t-work-by-voting-did-peopl_2109112.png) > “Science doesn't work by voting. Did people vote on the theory of relativity? No! It's either right or it's wrong. Do we vote on whether genetics is a good theory or not? Of course not.” [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Scientific truths are determined by evidence, not popular opinion; voting cannot validate empirical facts. **In simple terms:** Science is proven, not voted on. Key Takeaway Rely on data, not polls. Themes science evidence democracy truth Mood skeptical inquisitive analytical Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - policy making - education - media reporting Key Concepts philosophy of science methodology public understanding Questions to Reflect On - How do we protect science from populism? - What role should public opinion play in funding research? A Different Perspective Voting can ignore minority scientific breakthroughs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Genetics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genetics/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Voting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voting/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [My genetics are good, but they aren't crazy He-Man style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellan-lutz/my-genetics-are-good-but-they-aren-t-crazy-he-man-style/) [Kellan Lutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellan-lutz/) > [Science doesn't have flags. Science doesn't have borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/science-doesn-t-have-flags-science-doesn-t-have-borders/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [We should provide the meaning of the universe in the meaning of our own lives. So I think science doesn't necessarily have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-m-krauss/we-should-provide-the-meaning-of-the-universe-in-the-meaning-of-our/) [Lawrence M. Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-m-krauss/) > [Don't they know science doesn't work like that? You can't just order scientific breakthroughs. They happen when you are looking at something you've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/don-t-they-know-science-doesn-t-work-like-that-you-can-t-just-order/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [A man of science doesn't discover in order to know, he wants to know in order to discover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/a-man-of-science-doesn-t-discover-in-order-to-know-he-wants-to-know/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [A lot of science doesn't require big "ns" but if you're trying to understand something about human health and you're looking at interventions that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/a-lot-of-science-doesn-t-require-big-ns-but-if-you-re-trying-to/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [Doesn't it get on my nerves when people say science doesn't know everything. Science knows it doesn't know everything otherwise it would stop. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dara-o-briain/doesn-t-it-get-on-my-nerves-when-people-say-science-doesn-t-know/) [Dara O Briain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dara-o-briain/) > [One of the greatest features of science is that it doesn't matter where you were born, and it doesn't matter what the belief systems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/one-of-the-greatest-features-of-science-is-that-it-doesn-t-matter/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“There are big questions science doesn’t answer, such as why is there something rather than nothing? There can’t be a scientific answer to that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/there-are-big-questions-science-doesn-t-answer-such-as-why-is-there/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“Research is supposed to be additive. Science doesn’t actually work in breakthroughs the way we’re all taught.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-green/research-is-supposed-to-be-additive-science-doesn-t-actually-work-in/) [Hank Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-green/) > [People tend not to disassociate the technological issues from pure scientific research, so that science sometimes gets a bad name for things that science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-coyne/people-tend-not-to-disassociate-the-technological-issues-from-pure/) [George Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-coyne/) > [“You shouldn’t make jokes about these things,” she said. “Science doesn’t have all the answers, you know.” “It’s got all the best questions, though,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/you-shouldn-t-make-jokes-about-these-things-she-said-science-doesn-t/) [Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/) > [“Science doesn’t take sides, does it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-luceno/science-doesn-t-take-sides-does-it/) [James Luceno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-luceno/) > [There is much that science doesn't understand, many mysteries still to be resolved. In a Universe tens of billions of light-years across and some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/there-is-much-that-science-doesn-t-understand-many-mysteries-still-to/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“Just because you deny facts and science doesn't mean they aren't true”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-corn/just-because-you-deny-facts-and-science-doesn-t-mean-they-aren-t-true/) [Johnny Corn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-corn/) ## More by Alan Stern > [Competition-driven innovation and price pressure that commercial practices foster can only make human spaceflight ever more common and U.S. leadership in this domain ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/competition-driven-innovation-and-price-pressure-that-commercial/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Of course Pluto is a planet: It's massive enough to have its shape controlled by gravity rather than material strength, which is the hallmark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/of-course-pluto-is-a-planet-it-s-massive-enough-to-have-its-shape/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [It used to be said that Pluto is a misfit. But now we know Earth is the misfit. This is the most populous class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/it-used-to-be-said-that-pluto-is-a-misfit-but-now-we-know-earth-is/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [The Kuiper belt region, which I call the third zone because it lies beyond the rocky terrestrial planets and beyond the giant planets, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/the-kuiper-belt-region-which-i-call-the-third-zone-because-it-lies/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [I think if you were between maybe 6 and 16, there was nothing like Apollo, and I wonder if there can be something like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/i-think-if-you-were-between-maybe-6-and-16-there-was-nothing-like/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [If you put Earth out beyond Neptune, you wouldn't be able to call it a planet because it couldn't clear its zone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/if-you-put-earth-out-beyond-neptune-you-wouldn-t-be-able-to-call-it-a/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Why would you listen to an astronomer about a planet?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/why-would-you-listen-to-an-astronomer-about-a-planet/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [When we first sent missions to Jupiter, no one expected to find moons that would have active volcanoes. And I could go down a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/when-we-first-sent-missions-to-jupiter-no-one-expected-to-find-moons/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Pluto is still active four and a half billion years into its history. It was expected that small planets like Pluto would cool off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/pluto-is-still-active-four-and-a-half-billion-years-into-its-history/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [The Kuiper Belt is the largest mapped structure in our planetary system, three times as big as all the territory from the sun out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/the-kuiper-belt-is-the-largest-mapped-structure-in-our-planetary/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [If two billion people wanted to watch a robot fly by Pluto, imagine what it will be like when the first humans step on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/if-two-billion-people-wanted-to-watch-a-robot-fly-by-pluto-imagine/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [To keep everyone invested in your vision, you have to back up a little bit and really analyze who the different stakeholders are and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/to-keep-everyone-invested-in-your-vision-you-have-to-back-up-a-little/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [We're going to find Marses and maybe Earths out in the solar system's attic of the Oort Cloud and the Kuiper Belt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/we-re-going-to-find-marses-and-maybe-earths-out-in-the-solar-system-s/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [One of the implications of the discovery of the Kuiper Belt and its many small planets is that many scientists now think of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/one-of-the-implications-of-the-discovery-of-the-kuiper-belt-and-its/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [CASIS has to succeed because for it not to succeed would be a huge setback for the International Space Station program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/casis-has-to-succeed-because-for-it-not-to-succeed-would-be-a-huge/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) [Explore all 102 Alan Stern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) ## More Genetics quotes > [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/) [Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/) > [Biochemists and biologists who adhere blindly to the Darwinism theory search for results that will be in agreement with their theories and consequently orient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-paul-grasse/biochemists-and-biologists-who-adhere-blindly-to-the-darwinism-theory/) [Pierre-Paul Grasse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-paul-grasse/) > [“A geneticist is a geek who claims to have proven through regression analyses that a Neanderthal had sex with your great-grandmother 50,000 years ago.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gaede/a-geneticist-is-a-geek-who-claims-to-have-proven-through-regression/) [Bill Gaede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gaede/) > [“The truth has a way of coming out of the closet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/march-lions/the-truth-has-a-way-of-coming-out-of-the-closet/) [March Lions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/march-lions/) > [With the absence of a flu vaccination last year, I did not take a flu shot; but there is still some immunity that carries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/with-the-absence-of-a-flu-vaccination-last-year-i-did-not-take-a-flu/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Mild autism can give you a genius like Einstein. If you have severe autism, you could remain nonverbal. You don't want people to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/mild-autism-can-give-you-a-genius-like-einstein-if-you-have-severe/) [Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/) > [The family we choose for ourselves is more important than the one we were born into; that people have to earn our respect and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/the-family-we-choose-for-ourselves-is-more-important-than-the-one-we/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [Soon it will be a sin for parents to have a child that carries the heavy burden of genetic disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-edwards/soon-it-will-be-a-sin-for-parents-to-have-a-child-that-carries-the/) [Bob Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-edwards/) > [You certainly can't prevent all mental health problems - factors like genetics and traumatic life events certainly play a role. But everyone can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-morin/you-certainly-can-t-prevent-all-mental-health-problems-factors-like/) [Amy Morin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-morin/) > [All illnesses have some heredity contribution. It's been said that genetics loads the gun and environment pulls the trigger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/all-illnesses-have-some-heredity-contribution-it-s-been-said-that/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [Genetic engineering is a result of science advancement, so I don't think that in itself is bad. If used wisely, genetics can be beneficial,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideo-kojima/genetic-engineering-is-a-result-of-science-advancement-so-i-don-t/) [Hideo Kojima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hideo-kojima/) > [“My dad will win, I silently countered, even as I smiled sweetly. I couldn’t wait to spike the ball right through her block, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lane/my-dad-will-win-i-silently-countered-even-as-i-smiled-sweetly-i/) [Jennifer Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lane/) > [“Genetics plays a role in determining who gets an anxiety disorder, what type it is (e.g., worry, compulsive”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-emmons/genetics-plays-a-role-in-determining-who-gets-an-anxiety-disorder/) [Henry Emmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-emmons/) > [In college, I had an early introduction to classical genetics from Professor Dan Lindsley, also an extraordinary teacher who influenced me greatly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-beutler/in-college-i-had-an-early-introduction-to-classical-genetics-from/) [Bruce Beutler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-beutler/) > [Reincarnation, at least as I conceive it, does not nullify what we know about evolution and genetics. It suggests, however, that there may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-stevenson/reincarnation-at-least-as-i-conceive-it-does-not-nullify-what-we-know/) [Ian Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-stevenson/) [Browse all 287 Genetics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genetics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Science doesn't work by voting. Did people vote on the theory of relativity? No! It's either right or it's wrong. Do we vote on whether genetics is a good theory or not? 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