--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A discovery is generally an unforeseen…" description: "\"A discovery is generally an unforeseen relation not included in theory.\" — Claude Bernard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png" --- # A discovery is generally an unforeseen relation not… ![“A discovery is generally an unforeseen relation not included in theory.” quote by Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png) > “A discovery is generally an unforeseen relation not included in theory.” [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Discovery arises when unexpected relationships appear that theory does not predict, prompting new understanding. **In simple terms:** Unexpected links lead to breakthroughs. Key Takeaway Seek patterns beyond current models. Themes science creativity unexpected theory discovery Mood inquisitive analytical Type observational inspirational When to use this quote - research - problem solving - technology development Key Concepts philosophy of science innovation curiosity Questions to Reflect On - What blind spots exist in current theories? - How can you test unexpected relations? A Different Perspective New theories may overlook practical constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Discovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) [Discovery Generally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery-generally-4501410/) [Generally Unforeseen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generally-unforeseen-4501411/) [Relation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relation/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Unforeseen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unforeseen/) [Unforeseen Relation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unforeseen-relation-4501409/) ## Related quotes > [Astronomy may be revolutionized more than any other field of science by observations from above the atmosphere. Study of the planets, the Sun, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyman-spitzer/astronomy-may-be-revolutionized-more-than-any-other-field-of-science/) [Lyman Spitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyman-spitzer/) > [Ardent desire for knowledge, in fact, is the one motive attracting and supporting investigators in their efforts; and just this knowledge, really grasped and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/ardent-desire-for-knowledge-in-fact-is-the-one-motive-attracting-and/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Even mistaken hypotheses and theories are of use in leading to discoveries. This remark is true in all the sciences. The alchemists founded chemistry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/even-mistaken-hypotheses-and-theories-are-of-use-in-leading-to/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [One of the most horrible, yet most important, discoveries of our age has been that, if you really wish to destroy a person and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/one-of-the-most-horrible-yet-most-important-discoveries-of-our-age/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [But too often the goal of the planners is a universal gray state of health corresponding to absence of disease rather than to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-dubos/but-too-often-the-goal-of-the-planners-is-a-universal-gray-state-of/) [Rene Dubos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-dubos/) > [Concerning all acts of initiative there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/concerning-all-acts-of-initiative-there-is-one-elementary-truth-the/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [Always try to associate yourself closely with and learn as much as you can from those who know more than you, who do better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/always-try-to-associate-yourself-closely-with-and-learn-as-much-as/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [The arrival of the unforeseen reveals the depths of one's heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-arrival-of-the-unforeseen-reveals-the-depths-of-one-s-heart/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For an introvert his environment is himself and can never be subject to startling or unforeseen change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/for-an-introvert-his-environment-is-himself-and-can-never-be-subject/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Failure is not a destination; it’s an invitation to unforeseen VICTORIES.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-brown/failure-is-not-a-destination-it-s-an-invitation-to-unforeseen/) [Les Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-brown/) > [Play enables us to rearrange our capacities and our very identity so that they can be used in unforeseen ways](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-nachmanovitch/play-enables-us-to-rearrange-our-capacities-and-our-very-identity-so/) [Stephen Nachmanovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-nachmanovitch/) > [Italians are great improvisers. If something unforeseen happens, they throw up their hands, and they adjust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/italians-are-great-improvisers-if-something-unforeseen-happens-they/) [Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/) > [“How do you calculate upon the unforeseen? It seems to be an art of recognizing the role of the unforeseen, of keeping your balance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/how-do-you-calculate-upon-the-unforeseen-it-seems-to-be-an-art-of/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [He had not yet lived long enough to have discovered that nothing is more close at hand then the impossible, and that what must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-had-not-yet-lived-long-enough-to-have-discovered-that-nothing-is/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [The moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves, too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never have otherwise occurred...unforeseen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-moment-one-definitely-commits-oneself-then-providence-moves-too/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) ## More by Claude Bernard > [In every enterprise ... the mind is always reasoning, and, even when we seem to act without a motive, an instinctive logic still directs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/in-every-enterprise-the-mind-is-always-reasoning-and-even-when-we/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Descriptive anatomy is to physiology what geography is to history, and just as it is not enough to know the typography of a country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/descriptive-anatomy-is-to-physiology-what-geography-is-to-history-and/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Mediocre men often have the most acquired knowledge. It is in the darker. It is in the darker regions of science that great men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/mediocre-men-often-have-the-most-acquired-knowledge-it-is-in-the/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Ardent desire for knowledge, in fact, is the one motive attracting and supporting investigators in their efforts; and just this knowledge, really grasped and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/ardent-desire-for-knowledge-in-fact-is-the-one-motive-attracting-and/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [If I had to define life in a single phrase, I should clearly express my thought of throwing into relief one characteristic which, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/if-i-had-to-define-life-in-a-single-phrase-i-should-clearly-express/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [The investigator should have a robust faith - and yet not believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/the-investigator-should-have-a-robust-faith-and-yet-not-believe/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Even mistaken hypotheses and theories are of use in leading to discoveries. This remark is true in all the sciences. The alchemists founded chemistry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/even-mistaken-hypotheses-and-theories-are-of-use-in-leading-to/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Tout est poison, rien n'est poison, tout est une question de dose. Everything is poisonous, nothing is poisonous, it is all a matter of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/tout-est-poison-rien-n-est-poison-tout-est-une-question-de-dose/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [A fact in itself is nothing. It is valuable only for the idea attached to it, or for the proof which it furnishes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/a-fact-in-itself-is-nothing-it-is-valuable-only-for-the-idea-attached/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [It is what we know already that often prevents us from learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/it-is-what-we-know-already-that-often-prevents-us-from-learning/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [We must remain, in a word, in an intellectual disposition which seems paradoxical, but which, in my opinion, represents the true mind of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/we-must-remain-in-a-word-in-an-intellectual-disposition-which-seems/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [The fact that knowledge endlessly recedes as the investigator is about to grasp it is what constitutes at the same time his torment and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/the-fact-that-knowledge-endlessly-recedes-as-the-investigator-is/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [But while I accept specialization in the practice, I reject it utterly in the theory of science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/but-while-i-accept-specialization-in-the-practice-i-reject-it-utterly/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Men who have excessive faith in their theories ... make poor observations, because they choose among the results of their experiments only what suits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/men-who-have-excessive-faith-in-their-theories-make-poor-observations/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [First causes are outside the realm of science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/first-causes-are-outside-the-realm-of-science/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) [Explore all 91 Claude Bernard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) ## More Discovery quotes > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then \[these?\],… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in-england-in-1624-and-in-this/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Throughout my work, I have assumed that the standard model is correct, and hence, the Higgs boson should be found. Although this is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashoke-sen/throughout-my-work-i-have-assumed-that-the-standard-model-is-correct/) [Ashoke Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashoke-sen/) > [There is usually no dreamer so unworldly as the anthologist. He wanders in a vast garden, lost in wonder, unable to decide often between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-webb/there-is-usually-no-dreamer-so-unworldly-as-the-anthologist-he/) [Mary Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-webb/) > [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The discovery that heartbreak is indeed heartbreaking consoles us about our humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/the-discovery-that-heartbreak-is-indeed-heartbreaking-consoles-us/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [ “\[W\]e must learn to accommodate ourselves to the discovery that some of those cunningly-fashioned instruments called human souls have only a very limited range… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/w-e-must-learn-to-accommodate-ourselves-to-the-discovery-that-some-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [We cannot predict the new forces, powers, and discoveries that will be disclosed to us when we reach the other planets and set up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/we-cannot-predict-the-new-forces-powers-and-discoveries-that-will-be/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [ That has been another interesting discovery: that basically a city \[Lagos\] could recover from a really deep, deep, deep pit. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rem-koolhaas/that-has-been-another-interesting-discovery-that-basically-a-city/) [Rem Koolhaas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rem-koolhaas/) > [Every fact of science was once Damned. Every invention was considered impossible. Every discovery was a nervous shock to some orthodoxy. Every artistic innovation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/every-fact-of-science-was-once-damned-every-invention-was-considered/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [When we look at the love of Christ, we make a wonderful discovery. Love is more a decision than an emotion! Christ-like love applauds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/when-we-look-at-the-love-of-christ-we-make-a-wonderful-discovery-love/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“In December of 2007 human bones including skulls, which have been radiocarbon dated back to between 1304 and 1424, were found in a museum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/in-december-of-2007-human-bones-including-skulls-which-have-been/) [Captain Hank Bracker, "Seawater One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/) > [The European talks of progress because by the aid of a few scientific discoveries he has established a society which has mistaken comfort for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/the-european-talks-of-progress-because-by-the-aid-of-a-few-scientific/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-durant/education-is-a-progressive-discovery-of-our-own-ignorance/) [Will Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-durant/) > [The characters in my novels are my own unrealized possibilities. That is why I am equally fond of them all and equally horrified by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-characters-in-my-novels-are-my-own-unrealized-possibilities-that/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) [Browse all 3,125 Discovery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A discovery is generally an unforeseen relation not included in theory.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Claude Bernard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-relation-not-included-in-theory/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Discovery" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-relation-not-included-in-theory/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dde/claude-bernard-7455_discovery_a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-r_1336421.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A discovery is generally an unforeseen relation not included in theory.” — Claude Bernard", "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": "Claude Bernard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A discovery is generally an unforeseen...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-relation-not-included-in-theory/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/a-discovery-is-generally-an-unforeseen-relation-not-included-in-theory/#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 } } ] } ```