--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The newborn infant is now seen to be…" description: "\"The newborn infant is now seen to be wired with awesome precision... This marvelous robot will be launched into the world under the care of its parents..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg" --- # The newborn infant is now seen to be wired with awesome… ![“The newborn infant is now seen to be wired with awesome precision... This marvelous robot will be launched into the world under the care of its parents... But to what extent does the wiring of the neurons, so undeniably encoded in the genes, preordain the directions that social development will…” quote by E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg) > “The newborn infant is now seen to be wired with awesome precision... This marvelous robot will be launched into the world under the care of its parents... But to what extent does the wiring of the neurons, so undeniably encoded in the genes, preordain the directions that social development will follow?” [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Questions genetic influence on social development and free will **In simple terms:** Genes shape but don't fully dictate behavior Key Takeaway Consider nature vs nurture Themes genetics development free will Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type scientific philosophical When to use this quote - parenting - education - psychology - neuroscience Key Concepts determinism plasticity environment Questions to Reflect On - What role does environment play? - Can we change innate tendencies? A Different Perspective Genetics is not sole destiny ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Neurons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neurons/) [Newborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/newborn/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Precision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precision/) [Robot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robot/) [Robotics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robotics/) [Robots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robots/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social development](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-development/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [We are compelled to drive toward total knowledge, right down to the levels of the neuron and the gene. When we have progressed enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/we-are-compelled-to-drive-toward-total-knowledge-right-down-to-the/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The anorexic is the fuse nakedly exposed to the direct power of modern media, a psyche whose wiring has no insulation. The anorexic is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-smith/the-anorexic-is-the-fuse-nakedly-exposed-to-the-direct-power-of/) [Kenny Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-smith/) > [Something really big happened in the world's wiring in the last decade, but it was obscured by the financial crisis and post-9/11. We went…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/something-really-big-happened-in-the-world-s-wiring-in-the-last/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [“Of course your parents know how to push your buttons. They're the ones who did the wiring.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delia-fontan-fernandez/of-course-your-parents-know-how-to-push-your-buttons-they-re-the-ones/) Delia Fontan Fernandez > [It’s all in the genes”: an explanation for the way things are that does not threaten the way things are. Why should someone feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-menand/it-s-all-in-the-genes-an-explanation-for-the-way-things-are-that-does/) [Louis Menand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-menand/) > [“Wiring in nooses from the ceiling, waiting to be connected, plugged into the rest of the city.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-hilary/wiring-in-nooses-from-the-ceiling-waiting-to-be-connected-plugged/) [Sarah Hilary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-hilary/) > [Angels speak. They appear and reappear. They feel with apt sense of emotion. While Angels may become visible by choice, our eyes are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/angels-speak-they-appear-and-reappear-they-feel-with-apt-sense-of/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [ \[Completely bored by a country weekend, wiring to a friend:\] For heaven's sake, rush me a loaf of bread, enclosing saw and file. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/completely-bored-by-a-country-weekend-wiring-to-a-friend-for-heaven-s/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [I can install toilets. I know all about the wax ring. I can tile floors. I'm learning how to do basic wiring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bullock/i-can-install-toilets-i-know-all-about-the-wax-ring-i-can-tile-floors/) [Sandra Bullock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bullock/) > [Canada may be fast-forwarding, jump starting, into a new pattern, a model of communication linkages, a civilization that is more than a grab for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-w-powe/canada-may-be-fast-forwarding-jump-starting-into-a-new-pattern-a/) [B. W. Powe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-w-powe/) > [I like storytelling. We all have an active thing that we do that gives us self-esteem, that makes us proud; it's necessary. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-zindel/i-like-storytelling-we-all-have-an-active-thing-that-we-do-that-gives/) [Paul Zindel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-zindel/) > [Traditional dinosaur theory is full of short circuits. Like the antiquated wiring in an old house, the details sputter and burn out when specific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-t-bakker/traditional-dinosaur-theory-is-full-of-short-circuits-like-the/) [Robert T. Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-t-bakker/) > [We are all far less rational in our decision-making than standard economic theory assumes. Our irrational behaviors are neither random nor senseless: they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/we-are-all-far-less-rational-in-our-decision-making-than-standard/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) > [I think that people do things for a reason - that we have mental illness, that we have genetic wiring that can get triggered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/i-think-that-people-do-things-for-a-reason-that-we-have-mental/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [It is unnecessary to understand electromagnetic theory before wiring a lamp or to study physics in order to repair a pump. We count on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-r-newman/it-is-unnecessary-to-understand-electromagnetic-theory-before-wiring/) [James R Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-r-newman/) ## More by E. O. Wilson > [Without a trace of irony I can say I have been blessed with brilliant enemies. I owe them a great debt, because they redoubled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/without-a-trace-of-irony-i-can-say-i-have-been-blessed-with-brilliant/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [It's always been a dream of mine, of exploring the living world, of classifying all the species and finding out what makes up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/it-s-always-been-a-dream-of-mine-of-exploring-the-living-world-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Competing is intense among humans, and within a group, selfish individuals always win. But in contests between groups, groups of altruists always beat groups…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/competing-is-intense-among-humans-and-within-a-group-selfish/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [When all else fails, men turn to reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/when-all-else-fails-men-turn-to-reason/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The commitment must be much deeper - to let no species knowingly die; to take all reasonable action to protect every species and race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-commitment-must-be-much-deeper-to-let-no-species-knowingly-die-to/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Science is not marginal. Like art, it is a universal possession of humanity, and scientific knowledge has become a vital part of our species'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/science-is-not-marginal-like-art-it-is-a-universal-possession-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The living environment is the biosphere, the thin layer around the world of living organisms. We're part of that. Our existence is dependent on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-living-environment-is-the-biosphere-the-thin-layer-around-the/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The biological evolutionary perception of life and of human qualities is radically different from that of traditional religion, whether it's Southern Baptist or Islam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-biological-evolutionary-perception-of-life-and-of-human-qualities/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [We should preserve every scrap of biodiversity as priceless while we learn to use it and come to understand what it means to humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/we-should-preserve-every-scrap-of-biodiversity-as-priceless-while-we/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [In many environments, take away the ants and there would be partial collapses in many of the land ecosystems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/in-many-environments-take-away-the-ants-and-there-would-be-partial/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [If those committed to the quest fail, they will be forgiven. When lost, they will find another way. The moral imperative of humanism is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/if-those-committed-to-the-quest-fail-they-will-be-forgiven-when-lost/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The extinctions ongoing worldwide promise to be at least as great as the mass extinction that occurred at the end of the age of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-extinctions-ongoing-worldwide-promise-to-be-at-least-as-great-as/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Most people are surprised when they hear my somber figures: we know of 2 million species of plants, animals and microorganisms, and we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/most-people-are-surprised-when-they-hear-my-somber-figures-we-know-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Because the living environment is what really sustains us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/because-the-living-environment-is-what-really-sustains-us/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The variety of genes on the planet in viruses exceeds, or is likely to exceed, that in all of the rest of life combined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-variety-of-genes-on-the-planet-in-viruses-exceeds-or-is-likely-to/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) [Explore all 253 E. O. Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) ## More Birth quotes > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974 > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The greatest mystery in life is not life itself, but death. Death is the culmination of life, the ultimate blossoming of life. In death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-greatest-mystery-in-life-is-not-life-itself-but-death-death-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Nirvana is a word that means enlightenment, being beyond the illusion of birth and death, the illusion of pain, the illusion of love, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/nirvana-is-a-word-that-means-enlightenment-being-beyond-the-illusion/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/there-are-two-kinds-of-beauty-there-is-a-beauty-which-god-gives-at/) [Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) Adam Imad > [The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/the-wailing-of-the-newborn-infant-is-mingled-with-the-dirge-for-the/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [I gave birth to most of them MC's... So when it comes around to the month of May, Send me your royalty check for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-shante/i-gave-birth-to-most-of-them-mc-s-so-when-it-comes-around-to-the/) Roxanne Shante > [“A Beautiful verse takes birth when "U"n"I" VERSE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajesh-walecha/a-beautiful-verse-takes-birth-when-u-n-i-verse/) [Rajesh Walecha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajesh-walecha/) > [“There is no born evil, only a corruptible canvas darkened by a formidable perpetrator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yefon-isabelle/there-is-no-born-evil-only-a-corruptible-canvas-darkened-by-a/) [Yefon Isabelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yefon-isabelle/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) [Browse all 6,183 Birth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The newborn infant is now seen to be wired with awesome precision... This marvelous robot will be launched into the world under the care of its parents... But to what extent does the wiring of the neurons, so undeniably encoded in the genes, preordain the directions that social development will follow?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E. O. Wilson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wired-with-awesome-precision/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Birth" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wired-with-awesome-precision/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d34/e-o-wilson-1348_birth_the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wir_782873.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The newborn infant is now seen to be wired with awesome precision... This marvelous robot will be launched…” — E. O. Wilson", "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": "E. O. Wilson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The newborn infant is now seen...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wired-with-awesome-precision/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-newborn-infant-is-now-seen-to-be-wired-with-awesome-precision/#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 } } ] } ```