--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In a vacuum all photons travel at the…" description: "\"In a vacuum all photons travel at the same speed. They slow down when travelling through air or water or glass. Photons of different energies are slowe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f73/jeanette-winterson-166_air_in-a-vacuum-all-photons-travel-at-the-sa_1807708.png" --- # In a vacuum all photons travel at the same speed. They… ![“In a vacuum all photons travel at the same speed. They slow down when travelling through air or water or glass. Photons of different energies are slowed down at different rates. If Tolstoy had known this, would he have recognised the terrible untruth at the beginning of Anna Karenina? 'All happy…” quote by Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f73/jeanette-winterson-166_air_in-a-vacuum-all-photons-travel-at-the-sa_1807708.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f73/jeanette-winterson-166_air_in-a-vacuum-all-photons-travel-at-the-sa_1807708.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f73/jeanette-winterson-166_air_in-a-vacuum-all-photons-travel-at-the-sa_1807708.png) > “In a vacuum all photons travel at the same speed. They slow down when travelling through air or water or glass. Photons of different energies are slowed down at different rates. If Tolstoy had known this, would he have recognised the terrible untruth at the beginning of Anna Karenina? 'All happy families are alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own particular way.' In fact it's the other way around. Happiness is a specific. Misery is a generalisation. People usually know exactly why they are happy. They very rarely know why they are miserable.” [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote challenges the notion that happiness is uniform and misery is unique, suggesting the opposite: happiness is specific, misery is general. **In simple terms:** Happiness is specific; misery is general. Key Takeaway Recognize that joy often has clear causes, while suffering is vague. Themes philosophy psychology literature Mood thoughtful introspective Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - creative writing - teaching - counseling - self‑analysis Key Concepts Relativism determinism human nature Questions to Reflect On - What causes make you feel happy? - Why is misery harder to pinpoint? A Different Perspective It may oversimplify complex emotional experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anna Karenina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anna-karenina/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Generalisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generalisation/) [Happy family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-family/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Misery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misery/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Photons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photons/) [Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speed/) [Unhappy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy/) [Unhappy family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy-family/) [Untruth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/untruth/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [Happiness is a specific. Misery is a generalization. People usually know exactly why they are happy. They very rarely know why they are miserable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/happiness-is-a-specific-misery-is-a-generalization-people-usually/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [unhappy families are conspiracies of silence. The one who breaks the silence is never forgiven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/unhappy-families-are-conspiracies-of-silence-the-one-who-breaks-the/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [It is this union of passionate interest in the detailed facts with equal devotion to abstract generalisation which forms the novelty in our present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/it-is-this-union-of-passionate-interest-in-the-detailed-facts-with/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [It is unwise to equate scientific activity with what we call reason, poetic activity with what we call imagination. Without the imaginative leap from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-day-lewis/it-is-unwise-to-equate-scientific-activity-with-what-we-call-reason/) [Cecil Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-day-lewis/) > [All generalisations - perhaps except this one - are false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-g-del/all-generalisations-perhaps-except-this-one-are-false/) [Kurt Gödel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-g-del/) > [The increasing technicality of the terminology employed is also a serious difficulty. It has become necessary to learn an extensive vocabulary before a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-george-bonney/the-increasing-technicality-of-the-terminology-employed-is-also-a/) [Thomas George Bonney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-george-bonney/) > [Some people come up to be directors by coming through the camera department and there's not a lot of women in the camera department.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-firth/some-people-come-up-to-be-directors-by-coming-through-the-camera/) [Colin Firth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-firth/) > [I just don't believe in generalisations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-fellowes/i-just-don-t-believe-in-generalisations/) [Julian Fellowes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-fellowes/) > [I hate all generalisations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arj-barker/i-hate-all-generalisations/) [Arj Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arj-barker/) > [I take offense at that generalisation. Not all women sit around and obsess about men, as soon as my relationships are over, I move…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-jones/i-take-offense-at-that-generalisation-not-all-women-sit-around-and/) [Samantha Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-jones/) > [Life is a tightrope between two errors: generalizing the wrong particular and particularizing the wrong general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/life-is-a-tightrope-between-two-errors-generalizing-the-wrong/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [I often wonder why the whole world is so prone to generalise. Generalisations are seldom if ever true and are usually utterly inaccurate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-often-wonder-why-the-whole-world-is-so-prone-to-generalise/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [It surely can be no offence to state, that the progress of science has led to new views, and that the consequences that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-surely-can-be-no-offence-to-state-that-the-progress-of-science-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't like the word 'urban' because I think it's a bit of a generalisation and they use it to class music, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taio-cruz/i-don-t-like-the-word-urban-because-i-think-it-s-a-bit-of-a/) [Taio Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taio-cruz/) > [The new tinge to modern minds is a vehement and passionate interest in the relation of general principles to irreducible and stubborn facts. All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-new-tinge-to-modern-minds-is-a-vehement-and-passionate-interest/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) ## More by Jeanette Winterson > [“After nine nights must come ten and every desperate meeting only leaves you desperate for another. There is never enough to eat, never enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/after-nine-nights-must-come-ten-and-every-desperate-meeting-only/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [You never give away your heart; you lend it from time to time. If it were not so, how could we take it back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/you-never-give-away-your-heart-you-lend-it-from-time-to-time-if-it/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I have found that I am not a space where people want to live, at least not without decorating first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-have-found-that-i-am-not-a-space-where-people-want-to-live-at-least/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Yes. Just pass me my leg will you? It's on top of the wardrobe where he threw it, and I think my right arm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/yes-just-pass-me-my-leg-will-you-it-s-on-top-of-the-wardrobe-where-he/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Every second the Universe divides into possibilities and most of those possibilities never happen. It is not a uni-verse -- there is more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/every-second-the-universe-divides-into-possibilities-and-most-of/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [You are a pool of clear water where the light plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/you-are-a-pool-of-clear-water-where-the-light-plays/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“It's the cliches that cause the trouble. A precise emotion seeks a precise expression. If what I feel is not precise than how should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/it-s-the-cliches-that-cause-the-trouble-a-precise-emotion-seeks-a/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [What would it have meant to be happy? What would it have meant if things had been bright, clear, good between us?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/what-would-it-have-meant-to-be-happy-what-would-it-have-meant-if/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Mrs Ratlow was a widow, and she was head of English, but she still did all the cooking and cleaning for her two sons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/mrs-ratlow-was-a-widow-and-she-was-head-of-english-but-she-still-did/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“I shall have nowt to talk to now the baby is boiled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-shall-have-nowt-to-talk-to-now-the-baby-is-boiled/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“What art does is to coax us away from the mechanical and towards the miraculous. The so-called uselessness of art is a clue to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/what-art-does-is-to-coax-us-away-from-the-mechanical-and-towards-the/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Happy Valentines Day to those who have found love, in whatever shape or form, and to those who are still hunting, don’t give up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/happy-valentines-day-to-those-who-have-found-love-in-whatever-shape/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“It took me a long time to realise that there are two kinds of writing: the one you write and the one that writes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-realise-that-there-are-two-kinds-of-writing/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [A curse on this game. How can you stick at a game when the rules keep on changing? I shall call myself Alice and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/a-curse-on-this-game-how-can-you-stick-at-a-game-when-the-rules-keep/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“He turned away and I turned to him in vivid heat to look on the sun-dried world. The groves and towers were gone. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-turned-away-and-i-turned-to-him-in-vivid-heat-to-look-on-the-sun/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) [Explore all 1,016 Jeanette Winterson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## More Air quotes > [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/) [Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. 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But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/) [N.D. 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The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) Browse all 6,278 Air quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In a vacuum all photons travel at the same speed. They slow down when travelling through air or water or glass. Photons of different energies are slowed down at different rates. If Tolstoy had known this, would he have recognised the terrible untruth at the beginning of Anna Karenina? 'All happy families are alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own particular way.' In fact it's the other way around. Happiness is a specific. Misery is a generalisation. 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