--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are at once constrained to play the…" description: "\"“We are at once constrained to play the hand that creation deals us, and empowered to come up with our own top-down methods to create our world the way..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg" --- # We are at once constrained to play the hand that creation… ![“We are at once constrained to play the hand that creation deals us, and empowered to come up with our own top-down methods to create our world the way we want it to be. We can employ our evolution-given brains to fly in planes and use our imagination to soar in spirit. We are a result of…” quote by Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg) > ““We are at once constrained to play the hand that creation deals us, and empowered to come up with our own top-down methods to create our world the way we want it to be. We can employ our evolution-given brains to fly in planes and use our imagination to soar in spirit. We are a result of evolution, and therefore so are our creations—both the not-so-good and very good. It’s glorious.”” [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humans are shaped by evolution yet can design societies using imagination and technology, for both good and bad. **In simple terms:** We can shape our world with mind and imagination. Key Takeaway Use creativity responsibly. Themes human potential technology responsibility Mood optimistic inspirational Type scientific philosophical When to use this quote - entrepreneurship - policy making - artistic creation - environmental stewardship Key Concepts evolutionary biology ethical design innovation Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards ensure innovation benefits all? - How do we balance freedom with responsibility? A Different Perspective Our creations can outpace our moral development, causing harm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Creations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creations/) ## Related quotes > [I will be alive even after death in their creations always good after my grandchildren who will remember my name!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/i-will-be-alive-even-after-death-in-their-creations-always-good-after/) Mak\_786 > [Perhaps of all the creations of man language is the most astonishing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lytton-strachey/perhaps-of-all-the-creations-of-man-language-is-the-most-astonishing/) [Lytton Strachey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lytton-strachey/) > [God is the perfect poet, Who in his person acts his own creations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-browning/god-is-the-perfect-poet-who-in-his-person-acts-his-own-creations/) [Robert Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-browning/) > [My whole life, I've always had to be surrounded by creative things. I find it relaxing to be in touch with creations by other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raf-simons/my-whole-life-i-ve-always-had-to-be-surrounded-by-creative-things-i/) [Raf Simons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raf-simons/) > [“There was an artist in the city of Kouroo who was disposed to strive after perfection. One day it came into his mind to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/there-was-an-artist-in-the-city-of-kouroo-who-was-disposed-to-strive/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [If I could live as a tree, as a river, as the moon, as the sun, as a star, as the earth, as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/if-i-could-live-as-a-tree-as-a-river-as-the-moon-as-the-sun-as-a-star/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Among God's creations, two, the dog and the guitar, have taken all the sizes and all the shapes in order not to be seperated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andres-segovia/among-god-s-creations-two-the-dog-and-the-guitar-have-taken-all-the/) [Andres Segovia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andres-segovia/) > [“There are over a million types of fish in the sea as there are flowers in all of the world's gardens. There are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/there-are-over-a-million-types-of-fish-in-the-sea-as-there-are/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [“God doesn't create imitations, so He designed you naturally. It’s ungratefulness to dream of putting on unnatural self. You have no right to fake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/god-doesn-t-create-imitations-so-he-designed-you-naturally-it-s/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [“Since God is not a subject of which we can have tangible evidence through direct experience, or at least, we think there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/since-god-is-not-a-subject-of-which-we-can-have-tangible-evidence/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [“Authenticity is so refreshing. Add more of that organic energy and effort into your creations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-baker/authenticity-is-so-refreshing-add-more-of-that-organic-energy-and/) [Robin S. Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-baker/) > [My big thing is that nobody is involved in my artistic creations and not putting their hands and their ideas into that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-nozuka/my-big-thing-is-that-nobody-is-involved-in-my-artistic-creations-and/) [Justin Nozuka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-nozuka/) > [When writing about historical characters I try to be as accurate as possible, and in particular not to misrepresent the view they held. With…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-barker/when-writing-about-historical-characters-i-try-to-be-as-accurate-as/) [Pat Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-barker/) > [“A row of daffodils and red tulips nestled against the walkway beneath my feet. Stray weeds peeked up through the cracks in the concrete,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-crane/a-row-of-daffodils-and-red-tulips-nestled-against-the-walkway-beneath/) Pamela Crane > [“Handing out your creations for free is really a great way to market your product.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-zingerman/handing-out-your-creations-for-free-is-really-a-great-way-to-market/) [Simon Zingerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-zingerman/) ## More by Bill Nye > [That's what makes a human a human, if we store information outside our bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/that-s-what-makes-a-human-a-human-if-we-store-information-outside-our/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [To try to really land a spacecraft really on another world is really difficult, and if we lose that ability, it's going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/to-try-to-really-land-a-spacecraft-really-on-another-world-is-really/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Humor is everywhere in that there's irony in just about anything a human does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/humor-is-everywhere-in-that-there-s-irony-in-just-about-anything-a/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [There's nothing I believe in more strongly than getting young people interested in science and engineering, for a better tomorrow, for all humankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/there-s-nothing-i-believe-in-more-strongly-than-getting-young-people/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Tax dollars intended for science education must not be used to teach creationism as any sort of real explanation of nature, because any observation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/tax-dollars-intended-for-science-education-must-not-be-used-to-teach/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [The most serious problem facing humankind is climate change. All of these people breathing and burning our atmosphere has led to an extraordinarily dangerous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/the-most-serious-problem-facing-humankind-is-climate-change-all-of/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [If you just take a single human and put him or her in the forest he or she might not do very well without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/if-you-just-take-a-single-human-and-put-him-or-her-in-the-forest-he/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“Over billions of years, the planets exchange quite a bit of material. This is not speculation; this is fact. Planetary scientists have found pieces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/over-billions-of-years-the-planets-exchange-quite-a-bit-of-material/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [From an evolutionary standpoint you can't just wipe everything out and start over, and I don't think you can do it in the school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/from-an-evolutionary-standpoint-you-can-t-just-wipe-everything-out/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“People who should (or do) know better keep confusing weather with climate. Weather is what happens day to day in one place. Climate is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/people-who-should-or-do-know-better-keep-confusing-weather-with/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/the-more-you-find-out-about-the-world-the-more-opportunities-there/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Millennial voters are very concerned about climate change and will vote for candidates who are planning to address it. But the systems that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/millennial-voters-are-very-concerned-about-climate-change-and-will/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [By the way, most of the light that comes from the sun is green.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/by-the-way-most-of-the-light-that-comes-from-the-sun-is-green/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“As of this writing, the Opportunity rover is still roving. It was designed to run ninety Martian days—just over three months—but it is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/as-of-this-writing-the-opportunity-rover-is-still-roving-it-was/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“radioactive Rubidium-87, containing 37 protons (and 50 neutrons), can change or decay to strontium, which has 38 protons. These two elements can be thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/radioactive-rubidium-87-containing-37-protons-and-50-neutrons-can/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) [Explore all 220 Bill Nye quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) ## More Creation quotes > [“am not suggesting that successes in academics, athletics, or vocation somehow stand outside God’s good plan. Learning and play are joys that God himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-paul-jones/am-not-suggesting-that-successes-in-academics-athletics-or-vocation/) [Timothy Paul Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-paul-jones/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/) [Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/) > [I believe if there is a creator it will basically ask me two questions, how well did you enjoy my creation and what did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-victor-paskavich/i-believe-if-there-is-a-creator-it-will-basically-ask-me-two/) [Stanley Victor Paskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-victor-paskavich/) > [With no other choices open to us, we'd turned our gaze seaward. The oceans were our America: they reached farther than any prairie, untamed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carsten-jensen/with-no-other-choices-open-to-us-we-d-turned-our-gaze-seaward-the/) [Carsten Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carsten-jensen/) > [In the quiet moments of your day, what do you think and do? When you are with your Self and no one else, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/in-the-quiet-moments-of-your-day-what-do-you-think-and-do-when-you/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [The creation lives as genesis beneath the visible surface of the work. All intelligent people see this after the fact, but only the creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-creation-lives-as-genesis-beneath-the-visible-surface-of-the-work/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) > [When I was in my teens I had a series of intensely religious experiences. They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [I think that storytelling and creation are very close to what the center of what magic is about. I think not just for me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/i-think-that-storytelling-and-creation-are-very-close-to-what-the/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [To be part of the creation, I must act humbly. I'll take that over a goddess any day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-o-hara/to-be-part-of-the-creation-i-must-act-humbly-i-ll-take-that-over-a/) [Maureen O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-o-hara/) > [The country of Iraq is somewhat of an artificial creation going back to colonial days. And so you have the Kurds and then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clapper/the-country-of-iraq-is-somewhat-of-an-artificial-creation-going-back/) [James Clapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clapper/) [Browse all 5,225 Creation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We are at once constrained to play the hand that creation deals us, and empowered to come up with our own top-down methods to create our world the way we want it to be. We can employ our evolution-given brains to fly in planes and use our imagination to soar in spirit. We are a result of evolution, and therefore so are our creations—both the not-so-good and very good. It’s glorious.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill Nye" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-hand-that-creation-deals-us/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Creation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-hand-that-creation-deals-us/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/056/bill-nye-1613_creation_we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-h_597580.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We are at once constrained to play the hand that creation deals us, and empowered to come up with our own…” — Bill Nye", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bill Nye", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“We are at once constrained to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-hand-that-creation-deals-us/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/we-are-at-once-constrained-to-play-the-hand-that-creation-deals-us/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```