--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every politician, clergyman, educator, or…" description: "\"Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician, in short, anyone dealing with human individuals, is bound to make grave mistakes if he ignores the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png" --- # Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician, in… ![“Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician, in short, anyone dealing with human individuals, is bound to make grave mistakes if he ignores these two great truths of population zoology: (1) no two individuals are alike, and (2) both environment and genetic endowment make a contribution to…” quote by Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png) > “Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician, in short, anyone dealing with human individuals, is bound to make grave mistakes if he ignores these two great truths of population zoology: (1) no two individuals are alike, and (2) both environment and genetic endowment make a contribution to nearly every trait.” [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human professionals must recognize individual differences and the combined influence of genetics and environment on traits, otherwise they will err gravely. **In simple terms:** People differ; genes and environment shape us. Key Takeaway Consider diversity and nature‑nurture in decisions. Themes science ethics human behavior Mood thoughtful educational Type scientific ethical When to use this quote - medical diagnosis - education policy - psychological counseling - human resources - public health planning Key Concepts population genetics individual variability environmental influence Questions to Reflect On - How do we integrate genetic and environmental data? - What safeguards prevent bias in professional judgments? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on one factor can mislead conclusions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clergymen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clergymen/) [Contribution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contribution/) [Educator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/educator/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Physicians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physicians/) [Politician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politician/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Zoology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zoology/) ## Related quotes > [The capitalist has this over the politician and the clergyman; he has in practice done more to raise the standard of living of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinesh-d-souza/the-capitalist-has-this-over-the-politician-and-the-clergyman-he-has/) [Dinesh D'Souza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinesh-d-souza/) > [A doctor is a man licensed to make grave mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-louis-levinson/a-doctor-is-a-man-licensed-to-make-grave-mistakes/) Leonard Louis Levinson > [“You were not made to tend to the grave of your mistakes because God removed the coffin and backfilled the hole.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/you-were-not-made-to-tend-to-the-grave-of-your-mistakes-because-god/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [The older I get the more I admire and crave competence, just simple competence, in any field from adultery to zoology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-older-i-get-the-more-i-admire-and-crave-competence-just-simple/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Have pity on them all, for it is we who are the real monsters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-heuvelmans/have-pity-on-them-all-for-it-is-we-who-are-the-real-monsters/) Bernard Heuvelmans > [ During my second year at Edinburgh \[1826-27\] I attended Jameson's lectures on Geology and Zoology, but they were incredible dull. The sole effect they… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/during-my-second-year-at-edinburgh-1826-27-i-attended-jameson-s/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [According to man's environment, society has made as many different types of men as there are varieties in zoology. The differences between a soldier,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/according-to-man-s-environment-society-has-made-as-many-different/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [My zoology thesis was a functional analysis of the thyroid gland of the three-toed sloth. I chose the sloth because its demeanour - calm,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/my-zoology-thesis-was-a-functional-analysis-of-the-thyroid-gland-of/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [Hippogriff, n. An animal (now extinct) which was half horse and half griffin. The griffin was itself a compound creature, half lion and half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/hippogriff-n-an-animal-now-extinct-which-was-half-horse-and-half/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [It is, I find, in zoology as it is in botany: all nature is so full, that that district produces the greatest variety which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-white/it-is-i-find-in-zoology-as-it-is-in-botany-all-nature-is-so-full-that/) [Gilbert White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-white/) > [Dragons, you know, we have a good deal of biology and zoology about the dragon; we know their habits. The dragon tends to guard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/dragons-you-know-we-have-a-good-deal-of-biology-and-zoology-about-the/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [I was 16 when I got admission in Hans Raj College. I completed school when I was 16, so everyone in my class -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-kashyap/i-was-16-when-i-got-admission-in-hans-raj-college-i-completed-school/) [Anurag Kashyap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-kashyap/) > [What's next? Shall we appoint elephants to teach zoology?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-jakobson/what-s-next-shall-we-appoint-elephants-to-teach-zoology/) [Roman Jakobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-jakobson/) > [Zoology has always been interesting to me. Nature is fascinating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/zoology-has-always-been-interesting-to-me-nature-is-fascinating/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [The first steps in Agriculture, Astronomy, Zoology, (those first steps which the farmer, the hunter, and the sailor take,) teach that nature's dice are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-first-steps-in-agriculture-astronomy-zoology-those-first-steps/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More by Ernst Mayr > [There is more to biology than rats, Drosophila, Caenorhabditis, and E. coli.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/there-is-more-to-biology-than-rats-drosophila-caenorhabditis-and-e/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [“The funny thing is if in England, you ask a man in the street who the greatest living Darwinian is, he will say Richard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/the-funny-thing-is-if-in-england-you-ask-a-man-in-the-street-who-the/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [The history of science knows scores of instances where an investigator was in the possession of all the important facts for a new theory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/the-history-of-science-knows-scores-of-instances-where-an/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [most scientific problems are far better understood by studying their history than their logic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/most-scientific-problems-are-far-better-understood-by-studying-their/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [I did not claim that speciation occurs only in founder populations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/i-did-not-claim-that-speciation-occurs-only-in-founder-populations/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [Evolution, thus, is merely contingent on certain processes articulated by Darwin: variation and selection. No longer is a fixed object transformed, as in transformational…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/evolution-thus-is-merely-contingent-on-certain-processes-articulated/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [In Earth, among millions of lineages or organisms and perhaps 50 billion speciation events, only one led to high intelligence ; this makes me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/in-earth-among-millions-of-lineages-or-organisms-and-perhaps-50/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [I have the honesty to say I'm an Atheist. There is nothing that supports the idea of a personal God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/i-have-the-honesty-to-say-i-m-an-atheist-there-is-nothing-that/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [All I claimed was that when a drastic change occurs, it occurs in a relatively small and isolated population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/all-i-claimed-was-that-when-a-drastic-change-occurs-it-occurs-in-a/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [A new species develops if a population which has become geographically isolated from its parental species acquires during this period of isolation characters which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/a-new-species-develops-if-a-population-which-has-become/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [According to the concept of transformational evolution, first clearly articulated by Lamarck, evolution consists of the gradual transformation of organisms from one condition of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/according-to-the-concept-of-transformational-evolution-first-clearly/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [Our understanding of the world is achieved more effectively by conceptual improvements than by discovery of new facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/our-understanding-of-the-world-is-achieved-more-effectively-by/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [Wherever we look at the living biota … discontinuities are overwhelmingly frequent…The discontinuities are even more striking in the fossil record. New species usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/wherever-we-look-at-the-living-biota-discontinuities-are/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [There are a number of attributes of species and populations that are not of any particular selective advantage to any single individual in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/there-are-a-number-of-attributes-of-species-and-populations-that-are/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) > [The reduced variability of small populations is not always due to accidental gene loss, but sometimes to the fact that the entire population was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/the-reduced-variability-of-small-populations-is-not-always-due-to/) [Ernst Mayr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) [Explore all 51 Ernst Mayr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/) ## More Clergymen quotes > [If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/if-lawyers-are-disbarred-and-clergymen-defrocked-doesn-t-it-follow/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [“All religions worthy of the name are now making great efforts to purify their doctrines and return to their original standpoint, — all except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/all-religions-worthy-of-the-name-are-now-making-great-efforts-to/) [Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/) > [I believe in an America where the rights that I have described are enjoyed by all, regardless of their race or their creed or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/i-believe-in-an-america-where-the-rights-that-i-have-described-are/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [I questioned the faithful of all communions; I particularly sought the society of clergymen, who are the depositories of the various creeds and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-questioned-the-faithful-of-all-communions-i-particularly-sought-the/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [The election makes me think of a story of a man who was dying. He had only two minutes to live, so he sent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-election-makes-me-think-of-a-story-of-a-man-who-was-dying-he-had/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [No doctrine is more excellent, or necessary to be preached and studied, than Jesus Christ, and him crucified.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flavel/no-doctrine-is-more-excellent-or-necessary-to-be-preached-and-studied/) [John Flavel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flavel/) > [Anyone who makes a decision at our meetings is seen later and referred to a local clergyman, Protestant, Catholic, or Jewish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/anyone-who-makes-a-decision-at-our-meetings-is-seen-later-and/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [“Clergymen, judges, statesmen--the wisest, calmest, holiest persons of their day--stood in the inner circle round about the gallows, loudest to applaud the work of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/clergymen-judges-statesmen-the-wisest-calmest-holiest-persons-of/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [One person I do feel a little sorry for, though, is the Archbishop of Canterbury, the most important clergyman in Britain and he's only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-condell/one-person-i-do-feel-a-little-sorry-for-though-is-the-archbishop-of/) [Pat Condell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-condell/) > [Of all the classes of men, I dislike the most those who make their livings by talking - actors, clergymen, politicians, pedagogues, and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/of-all-the-classes-of-men-i-dislike-the-most-those-who-make-their/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [There was reference made to a book written in Greek by a former Rabbi who had been converted to Christianity. There was reference to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-streicher/there-was-reference-made-to-a-book-written-in-greek-by-a-former-rabbi/) [Julius Streicher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-streicher/) > [“Doctors try to get rid of their patients - clergymen try to get them hooked on the medicine so that they will become addicts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/doctors-try-to-get-rid-of-their-patients-clergymen-try-to-get-them/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [I have always considered a clergyman as the father of a larger family than he is able to maintain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/i-have-always-considered-a-clergyman-as-the-father-of-a-larger-family/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [I liked the thought of being a country clergyman. Accordingly I read with care Pearson on the Creed and a few other books on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-liked-the-thought-of-being-a-country-clergyman-accordingly-i-read/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [A civil ruler dabbling in religion is as reprehensible as a clergyman dabbling in politics. Both render themselves odious as well as ridiculous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gibbons/a-civil-ruler-dabbling-in-religion-is-as-reprehensible-as-a-clergyman/) [James Gibbons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gibbons/) [Browse all 128 Clergymen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clergymen/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician, in short, anyone dealing with human individuals, is bound to make grave mistakes if he ignores these two great truths of population zoology: (1) no two individuals are alike, and (2) both environment and genetic endowment make a contribution to nearly every trait.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ernst Mayr" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-physician-in-short-anyone/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Clergymen" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-physician-in-short-anyone/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6e/ernst-mayr-13171_clergymen_every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-p_3160291.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician, in short, anyone dealing with human individuals, is…” — Ernst Mayr", "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": "Ernst Mayr", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-mayr/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Every politician, clergyman, educator, or physician,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-physician-in-short-anyone/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-mayr/every-politician-clergyman-educator-or-physician-in-short-anyone/#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 } } ] } ```