--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a working hypothesis to explain the…" description: "\"As a working hypothesis to explain the riddle of our existence, I propose that our universe is the most interesting of all possible universes, and our ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png" --- # As a working hypothesis to explain the riddle of our… ![“As a working hypothesis to explain the riddle of our existence, I propose that our universe is the most interesting of all possible universes, and our fate as human beings is to make it so” quote by Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png) > “As a working hypothesis to explain the riddle of our existence, I propose that our universe is the most interesting of all possible universes, and our fate as human beings is to make it so” [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The universe may be the most interesting possible; humanity’s role is to make it so through discovery **In simple terms:** The universe is possibly the best; humans should make it better Key Takeaway Pursue knowledge; shape the cosmos positively Themes philosophy cosmology human potential Mood hopeful inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - scientific research - philosophical debate - educational curricula Key Concepts exploration creative inquiry future planning Questions to Reflect On - What actions make the universe more interesting? - How do we balance curiosity with responsibility? A Different Perspective Optimism may overlook existential risks and limits ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Fate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physics/) [Riddle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/riddle/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) ## Related quotes > [The laws of nature are constructed in such a way as to make the universe as interesting as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/the-laws-of-nature-are-constructed-in-such-a-way-as-to-make-the/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [“To be bound in a nutshell, see the world in two inches of ivory, in a grain of sand. Why not, when all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/to-be-bound-in-a-nutshell-see-the-world-in-two-inches-of-ivory-in-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Now, as there is an infinity of possible universes in the Ideas of God, and as only one of them can exist, there must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gottfried-leibniz/now-as-there-is-an-infinity-of-possible-universes-in-the-ideas-of-god/) [Gottfried Leibniz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gottfried-leibniz/) > [People credit me for making the universe interesting when in fact the universe is inherently interesting, and I'm merely revealing that fact. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/people-credit-me-for-making-the-universe-interesting-when-in-fact-the/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The laws governing the universe can be made interesting and wonderful to the child, more interesting even that things in themselves, and he begins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-laws-governing-the-universe-can-be-made-interesting-and-wonderful/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [“And that’s the riddle of existence for you. When to move and when to stay. Dwell too long and we become the prisoner of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lawrence/and-that-s-the-riddle-of-existence-for-you-when-to-move-and-when-to/) [Mark Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lawrence/) > [But the solution to the riddle of life and space and time lies outside space and time. For, as it should be abundantly clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-watzlawick/but-the-solution-to-the-riddle-of-life-and-space-and-time-lies/) [Paul Watzlawick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-watzlawick/) > [It seems to be very hard for people to live with riddles or to let them live, although one would think that life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-seems-to-be-very-hard-for-people-to-live-with-riddles-or-to-let/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is man's destiny to ponder on the riddle of existence and, as a byproduct of his wonderment, to create a new life on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kettering/it-is-man-s-destiny-to-ponder-on-the-riddle-of-existence-and-as-a/) [Charles Kettering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kettering/) > [I didn't read about it for school. It was just for myself. I was interested in cults in general but Jonestown was the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danzy-senna/i-didn-t-read-about-it-for-school-it-was-just-for-myself-i-was/) [Danzy Senna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danzy-senna/) > [Too many things are possible in a dream. It's most interesting when you don't know which space you're in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiro-murai/too-many-things-are-possible-in-a-dream-it-s-most-interesting-when/) [Hiro Murai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiro-murai/) > [One of the most interesting things for me in playing another species is that you want to make them different enough to be alien…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-murray/one-of-the-most-interesting-things-for-me-in-playing-another-species/) [Jaime Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-murray/) > [I am the most interesting book of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-bashkirtseff/i-am-the-most-interesting-book-of-all/) [Marie Bashkirtseff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-bashkirtseff/) > [The most interesting character to me is someone who is stuck in the no man's land between Belief and Unbelief, Faith and Faithlessness. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dooling/the-most-interesting-character-to-me-is-someone-who-is-stuck-in-the/) [Richard Dooling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dooling/) > [The karma that is most interesting is the mental karma because ultimately it generates physical action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-karma-that-is-most-interesting-is-the-mental-karma-because/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) ## More by Freeman Dyson > [For a physicist mathematics is not just a tool by means of which phenomena can be calculated, it is the main source of concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/for-a-physicist-mathematics-is-not-just-a-tool-by-means-of-which/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [“It is impossible to make real progress in technology without gambling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/it-is-impossible-to-make-real-progress-in-technology-without-gambling/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [“Sanity is, in essence, nothing more than the ability to live in harmony with nature's laws.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/sanity-is-in-essence-nothing-more-than-the-ability-to-live-in-harmony/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [“I do not feel like an alien in this universe. The more I examine the universe and study the details of its architecture, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/i-do-not-feel-like-an-alien-in-this-universe-the-more-i-examine-the/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [It makes very little sense to believe the output of the climate models.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/it-makes-very-little-sense-to-believe-the-output-of-the-climate-models/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [The laws of nature are constructed in such a way as to make the universe as interesting as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/the-laws-of-nature-are-constructed-in-such-a-way-as-to-make-the/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [The history of mathematics is a history of horrendously difficult problems being solved by young people too ignorant to know that they were impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/the-history-of-mathematics-is-a-history-of-horrendously-difficult/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [You ask: what is the meaning or purpose of life? I can only answer with another question: do you think we are wise enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/you-ask-what-is-the-meaning-or-purpose-of-life-i-can-only-answer-with/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [When World War II came along, which was when I was a teenager, we all expected we would have anthrax bombs and this kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/when-world-war-ii-came-along-which-was-when-i-was-a-teenager-we-all/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [It has become part of the accepted wisdom to say that the twentieth century was the century of physics and the twenty-first century will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/it-has-become-part-of-the-accepted-wisdom-to-say-that-the-twentieth/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [Lucky individuals in each generation find technology appropriate to their needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/lucky-individuals-in-each-generation-find-technology-appropriate-to/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [A model is done when nothing else can be taken out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/a-model-is-done-when-nothing-else-can-be-taken-out/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [I am hoping that the scientists and politicians who have been blindly demonizing carbon dioxide for 37 years will one day open their eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/i-am-hoping-that-the-scientists-and-politicians-who-have-been-blindly/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [Intelligence may indeed be a benign influence creating isolated groups of philosopher-kings far apart in the heavens... On the other hand, intelligence may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/intelligence-may-indeed-be-a-benign-influence-creating-isolated/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [Most of the crackpot papers which are submitted to The Physical Review are rejected, not because it is impossible to understand them, but because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/most-of-the-crackpot-papers-which-are-submitted-to-the-physical/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) [Explore all 241 Freeman Dyson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) ## More Existence quotes > [Getting on the cover of TIME guarantees the existence of opposition in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/getting-on-the-cover-of-time-guarantees-the-existence-of-opposition/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [It does not seem to me to be sufficiently recognized everywhere among the officials that the existence or non-existence of our people and Empire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-hindenburg/it-does-not-seem-to-me-to-be-sufficiently-recognized-everywhere-among/) [Paul von Hindenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-von-hindenburg/) > [Quantum physics fluctuates all the time. But now the fluctuations are not just particles coming into and out of existence, which happens all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/quantum-physics-fluctuates-all-the-time-but-now-the-fluctuations-are/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [May God bless each of us in our calls to serve. May our faith strengthen as we serve in righteousness, faithfully keeping the commandments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/may-god-bless-each-of-us-in-our-calls-to-serve-may-our-faith/) [L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/) > [Never belong to a crowd; Never belong to a nation; Never belong to a religion; Never belong to a race. Belong to the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/never-belong-to-a-crowd-never-belong-to-a-nation-never-belong-to-a/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Universities are the cathedrals of the modern age. They shouldn't have to justify their existence by utilitarian criteria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lodge/universities-are-the-cathedrals-of-the-modern-age-they-shouldn-t-have/) [David Lodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lodge/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [To divide one's life by years is of course to tumble into a trap set by our own arithmetic. The calendar consents to carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/to-divide-one-s-life-by-years-is-of-course-to-tumble-into-a-trap-set/) [Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/) > [The party in Alobar’s head, which agitation and anxiety were throwing, now was crashed by a notion: existence can be rearranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-party-in-alobar-s-head-which-agitation-and-anxiety-were-throwing/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) [Browse all 7,646 Existence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a working hypothesis to explain the riddle of our existence, I propose that our universe is the most interesting of all possible universes, and our fate as human beings is to make it so", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Freeman Dyson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-riddle-of-our-existence-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Existence" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-riddle-of-our-existence-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2c/freeman-dyson-1435_existence_as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-r_2357080.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As a working hypothesis to explain the riddle of our existence, I propose that our universe is the most…” — Freeman Dyson", "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": "Freeman Dyson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As a working hypothesis to explain...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-riddle-of-our-existence-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/as-a-working-hypothesis-to-explain-the-riddle-of-our-existence-i/#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 } } ] } ```