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Action Quote by Carl Sagan

“My deeply held belief is that if a god of anything like the traditional sort exists, our curiosity and intelligence are provided by such a god. We would be unappreciative of those gifts (as well as unable to take such a course of action) if we suppressed our passion to explore the universe and ourselves. On the other hand, if such a traditional god does not exist, our curiosity and our intelligence are the essential tools for managing our survival. In either case, the enterprise of knowledge is consistent with both science and religion, and is essential for the welfare of the human species.”

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More by Carl Sagan

It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it not stirring to understand how the world actually works — that white light is made of colors, that color is the way we perceive the wavelengths of light, that transparent air reflects light, that in so…

The prediction of nuclear winter is drawn not, of course, from any direct experience with the consequences of global nuclear war, but rather from…

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The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion or in politics, but it is not the path to knowledge; it has no…

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“Telepathy’ literally means to feel at a distance, just as ‘telephone’ is to hear at a distance and ‘television’ is to see at a distance. The word suggests the communication not of thoughts but of feelings, emotions. Around a quarter of all Americans believe they’ve experienced something like telepathy. People who know each other very well, who live together, who…

“On the scale of worlds—to say nothing of stars or galaxies—humans are inconsequential, a thin film of life on an obscure and solitary lump…

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Every one of us is, in the cosmic perspective, precious. If a human disagrees with you, let him live. In a hundred billion galaxies,…

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In our time, we have sifted the sands of Mars, we have established a presence there, we have fulfilled a century of dreams!

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“[ When a religious couple wrote to Sagan about fulfilled prophecies, he wrote back in May 1996 :] If ‘fulfilled prophecy’ is your criterion,…

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Don't judge everyone else by your own limited experience.

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“Books permit us to voyage through time, to tap the wisdom of our ancestors. The library connects us with the insight and knowledge, painfully extracted from Nature, of the greatest minds that ever were, with the best teachers, drawn from the entire planet and from all our history, to instruct us without tiring, and to inspire us to make our…

We live on a hunk of rock and metal that circles a humdrum star that is one of 400 billion other stars that make up the Milky Way Galaxy which is one of billions of other galaxies which make up a universe which may be one of a very large number, perhaps an infinite number, of other universes. That is…

A tiny blue dot set in a sunbeam. Here it is. That's where we live. That's home. We humans are one species and this…

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Explore all 1,043 Carl Sagan quotes

More Action quotes

I always say there are two things to be successful. The first is decide exactly what you want - set your goals - and…

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You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.

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Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…

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Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…

William Bernbach

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Every thought I have imprisioned in expression I must free by my deeds

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It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. I like to bang the…

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Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.

Swami Vivekananda

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As you begin changing your thinking, start immediately to change your behaviour. Begin to act the part of the person you would like to…

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It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United States goes and takes action there on behalf of the Iraqi government. You've got Iran coming in and saying we're going to stand with (Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri) al-Maliki, so now we're aligning ourselves with Iran,…

For comedy action, I must know the language.

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Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make…

Thomas Jefferson

“Action is a powerful thing. When you smile through your sadness, it can completely change your outlook. Try it! Smile :) Now hold onto…

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