---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The science of numbers ought to be…"
description: "\"The science of numbers ought to be preferred as an acquisition before all others, because of its necessity and because of the great secrets and other m..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png"
---

#  The science of numbers ought to be preferred as an…

![“The science of numbers ought to be preferred as an acquisition before all others, because of its necessity and because of the great secrets and other mysteries which there are in the properties of numbers. All sciences partake of it, and it has need of none.” quote by Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png)

> “The science of numbers ought to be preferred as an acquisition before all others, because of its necessity and because of the great secrets and other mysteries which there are in the properties of numbers. All sciences partake of it, and it has need of none.”

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Numbers are fundamental, revealing essential truths and mysteries that underpin all sciences, making them a primary study.

**In simple terms:** Numbers reveal essential truths behind all sciences.

Key Takeaway

Study mathematics early to grasp foundational concepts.

Themes

education mathematics philosophy

Mood

curious inquisitive

Type

educational philosophical

When to use this quote

- education curriculum
- research foundations
- interdisciplinary projects

Key Concepts

Fundamentalism epistemology interconnectedness

Questions to Reflect On

- How do numbers shape our understanding of other fields?
- What mysteries in numbers remain unsolved?

A Different Perspective

Numbers alone cannot solve all problems without context.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Acquisition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acquisition/) [Acquisition Necessity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acquisition-necessity-4057395/) [Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Necessity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessity/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers/) [Numbers Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers-ought-4057392/) [Numbers Sciences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers-sciences-4057393/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [Property](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/property/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-numbers-4057394/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/)

## Related quotes

> [Science by itself is about numbers, and it's about measuring things. It's very important but it's very dry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/science-by-itself-is-about-numbers-and-it-s-about-measuring-things-it/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [If truth can be found in any sublunary science, numbers will produce it, for to that at last almost all other sciences refer for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hester-lynch-piozzi/if-truth-can-be-found-in-any-sublunary-science-numbers-will-produce/)

[Hester Lynch Piozzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hester-lynch-piozzi/)

> [As priestcraft was always the enemy of knowledge, because priestcraft supports itself by keeping people in delusion and ignorance, it was consistent with its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/as-priestcraft-was-always-the-enemy-of-knowledge-because-priestcraft/)

[Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/)

> [But most automotive dealerships are set up for customer acquisition - which is crazy when you consider the average cost of customer acquisition is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hughes/but-most-automotive-dealerships-are-set-up-for-customer-acquisition/)

[Arthur Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hughes/)

> [I ended up doing four or five plays in college and being an English major with my thesis in language acquisition, which I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-coon/i-ended-up-doing-four-or-five-plays-in-college-and-being-an-english/)

[Carrie Coon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-coon/)

> [One industrial age belief is that GDP or GNP is a measure of progress. I don't care if you're the President of China or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/one-industrial-age-belief-is-that-gdp-or-gnp-is-a-measure-of-progress/)

[Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/)

> [A sustainable economy represents nothing less than a higher social order one as concerned with future generations as with our own, and more focused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/a-sustainable-economy-represents-nothing-less-than-a-higher-social/)

[Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/)

> [Accounting consequences do not influence our operating or capital-allocation decisions. When acquisition costs are similar, we much prefer to purchase $2 of earnings that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/accounting-consequences-do-not-influence-our-operating-or-capital/)

[Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/)

> [When ice appears out of doors, and boys seize it up while it is solid, at first they experience new pleasures. But in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/when-ice-appears-out-of-doors-and-boys-seize-it-up-while-it-is-solid/)

[Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/)

> [All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow; acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings in separation; births…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milarepa/all-worldly-pursuits-have-but-one-unavoidable-and-inevitable-end/)

[Milarepa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milarepa/)

> [Learning to play the guitar is a combination of mental and motor skill acquisition. And to develop motor skill, repetition is essential... Whenever musicians…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-roberts/learning-to-play-the-guitar-is-a-combination-of-mental-and-motor/)

[Howard Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-roberts/)

> [We may... affirm that the balance of power in a society accompanies the balance of property in land. The only possible way, then, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/we-may-affirm-that-the-balance-of-power-in-a-society-accompanies-the/)

[John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/)

> [Personal happiness lies in knowing that life is not a checklist of acquisition. Your qualifications are not your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/personal-happiness-lies-in-knowing-that-life-is-not-a-checklist-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [ No one suffers so much as he \[the genius\] with the people, and, therefore, for the people, with whom he lives. For, in a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/no-one-suffers-so-much-as-he-the-genius-with-the-people-and-therefore/)

[Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/)

> [The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance”: “The differences between expert performers and normal adults are not immutable, that is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-anders-ericsson/the-role-of-deliberate-practice-in-the-acquisition-of-expert/)

[K. Anders Ericsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-anders-ericsson/)

## More by Boethius

> [“Among wise men there is no place at all left for hatred. For no one except the greatest of fools would hate good men.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/among-wise-men-there-is-no-place-at-all-left-for-hatred-for-no-one/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [“Has the world become so topsy-turvy that a living creature, whom the gift of reason makes divine, believes that his glory lies solely in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/has-the-world-become-so-topsy-turvy-that-a-living-creature-whom-the/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [All fortune is good fortune; for it either rewards, disciplines, amends, or punishes, and so is either useful or just.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/all-fortune-is-good-fortune-for-it-either-rewards-disciplines-amends/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [The completely simultaneous and perfect possession of unlimited life at a single moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/the-completely-simultaneous-and-perfect-possession-of-unlimited-life/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [Nunc fluens facit tempus,nunc stans facit aeternitatum.(The now that passes produces time, the now that remains produces eternity.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/nunc-fluens-facit-tempus-nunc-stans-facit-aeternitatum-the-now-that/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [I who once wrote songs with keen delight am now by sorrow driven to take up melancholy measures. Wounded Muses tell me what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/i-who-once-wrote-songs-with-keen-delight-am-now-by-sorrow-driven-to/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [Whose happiness is so firmly established that he has no quarrel from any side with his estate of life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/whose-happiness-is-so-firmly-established-that-he-has-no-quarrel-from/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [Who would give a law to lovers? Love is unto itself a higher law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/who-would-give-a-law-to-lovers-love-is-unto-itself-a-higher-law/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [“Quid autem de corporis uoluptatibus loquar, quarum appetentia quidem plena est anxietatis, satietas uero paenitentiae?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/quid-autem-de-corporis-uoluptatibus-loquar-quarum-appetentia-quidem/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [Give me Thy light, and fix my eyes on Thee!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/give-me-thy-light-and-fix-my-eyes-on-thee/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [In other living creatures the ignorance of themselves is nature, but in men it is a vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/in-other-living-creatures-the-ignorance-of-themselves-is-nature-but/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [If there is anything good about nobility it is that it enforces the necessity of avoiding degeneracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/if-there-is-anything-good-about-nobility-it-is-that-it-enforces-the/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [A man content to go to heaven alone will never go to heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/a-man-content-to-go-to-heaven-alone-will-never-go-to-heaven/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [So nothing is ever good or bad unless you think it so, and vice versa. All luck is good luck to the man who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/so-nothing-is-ever-good-or-bad-unless-you-think-it-so-and-vice-versa/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

> [“The greatest misery in adverse fortune is once to have been happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/the-greatest-misery-in-adverse-fortune-is-once-to-have-been-happy/)

[Boethius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

[Explore all 60 Boethius quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/)

## More Acquisition quotes

> [The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance”: “The differences between expert performers and normal adults are not immutable, that is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-anders-ericsson/the-role-of-deliberate-practice-in-the-acquisition-of-expert/)

[K. Anders Ericsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-anders-ericsson/)

> [ No one suffers so much as he \[the genius\] with the people, and, therefore, for the people, with whom he lives. For, in a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/no-one-suffers-so-much-as-he-the-genius-with-the-people-and-therefore/)

[Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/)

> [Personal happiness lies in knowing that life is not a checklist of acquisition. Your qualifications are not your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/personal-happiness-lies-in-knowing-that-life-is-not-a-checklist-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [We may... affirm that the balance of power in a society accompanies the balance of property in land. The only possible way, then, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/we-may-affirm-that-the-balance-of-power-in-a-society-accompanies-the/)

[John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/)

> [Learning to play the guitar is a combination of mental and motor skill acquisition. And to develop motor skill, repetition is essential... Whenever musicians…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-roberts/learning-to-play-the-guitar-is-a-combination-of-mental-and-motor/)

[Howard Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-roberts/)

> [All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow; acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings in separation; births…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milarepa/all-worldly-pursuits-have-but-one-unavoidable-and-inevitable-end/)

[Milarepa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milarepa/)

> [When ice appears out of doors, and boys seize it up while it is solid, at first they experience new pleasures. But in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/when-ice-appears-out-of-doors-and-boys-seize-it-up-while-it-is-solid/)

[Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/)

> [Accounting consequences do not influence our operating or capital-allocation decisions. When acquisition costs are similar, we much prefer to purchase $2 of earnings that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/accounting-consequences-do-not-influence-our-operating-or-capital/)

[Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/)

> [A sustainable economy represents nothing less than a higher social order one as concerned with future generations as with our own, and more focused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/a-sustainable-economy-represents-nothing-less-than-a-higher-social/)

[Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/)

> [One industrial age belief is that GDP or GNP is a measure of progress. I don't care if you're the President of China or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/one-industrial-age-belief-is-that-gdp-or-gnp-is-a-measure-of-progress/)

[Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/)

> [I ended up doing four or five plays in college and being an English major with my thesis in language acquisition, which I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-coon/i-ended-up-doing-four-or-five-plays-in-college-and-being-an-english/)

[Carrie Coon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-coon/)

> [But most automotive dealerships are set up for customer acquisition - which is crazy when you consider the average cost of customer acquisition is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hughes/but-most-automotive-dealerships-are-set-up-for-customer-acquisition/)

[Arthur Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hughes/)

> [As priestcraft was always the enemy of knowledge, because priestcraft supports itself by keeping people in delusion and ignorance, it was consistent with its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/as-priestcraft-was-always-the-enemy-of-knowledge-because-priestcraft/)

[Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/)

> [Even as the unborn babe is in the womb of his mother, these five are fixed as his life destiny: his life span, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/even-as-the-unborn-babe-is-in-the-womb-of-his-mother-these-five-are/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [What becomes of a man who acquires a beautiful woman, with her "beauty" his sole target? He sabotages himself. He has gained no friend,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/what-becomes-of-a-man-who-acquires-a-beautiful-woman-with-her-beauty/)

[Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/)

[Browse all 395 Acquisition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acquisition/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The science of numbers ought to be preferred as an acquisition before all others, because of its necessity and because of the great secrets and other mysteries which there are in the properties of numbers. All sciences partake of it, and it has need of none.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Boethius"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-preferred-as-an-acquisition-before/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Acquisition"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-preferred-as-an-acquisition-before/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e5/boethius-11247_acquisition_the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-prefe_2079934.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The science of numbers ought to be preferred as an acquisition before all others, because of its necessity…” — Boethius",
                "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": "Boethius",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boethius/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The science of numbers ought to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-preferred-as-an-acquisition-before/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boethius/the-science-of-numbers-ought-to-be-preferred-as-an-acquisition-before/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
