--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Science is a cemetary of dead ideas." description: "\"Science is a cemetary of dead ideas.\" — Miguel de Unamuno" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png" --- # Science is a cemetary of dead ideas. ![“Science is a cemetary of dead ideas.” quote by Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png) > “Science is a cemetary of dead ideas.” [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ideas that fail are discarded, leaving a graveyard of obsolete thoughts. **In simple terms:** Failed ideas become dead. Key Takeaway Learn from past mistakes. Themes knowledge progress failure Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - research - innovation - education Key Concepts philosophy science Questions to Reflect On - What ideas have you revived after being dismissed? - How do you decide which ideas to abandon? A Different Perspective Not all discarded ideas are worthless. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) ## Related quotes > [Science is a cemetery of dead ideas, even though life may issue from them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-is-a-cemetery-of-dead-ideas-even-though-life-may-issue-from/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [Oh, would that my mind could let fall its dead ideas, as the tree does its withered leaves!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/oh-would-that-my-mind-could-let-fall-its-dead-ideas-as-the-tree-does/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [“ravished by dead words become obscene, and dead ideas become obsessions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/ravished-by-dead-words-become-obscene-and-dead-ideas-become-obsessions/) [d.h. lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [The living ideas of the dead are more powerful and effective than the dead ideas of the living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serj-tankian/the-living-ideas-of-the-dead-are-more-powerful-and-effective-than-the/) [Serj Tankian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serj-tankian/) > [It's not only what we have inherited from our father and mother that walks in us. It's all sorts of dead ideas, and lifeless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-not-only-what-we-have-inherited-from-our-father-and-mother-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Science is a cemetery of dead ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-is-a-cemetery-of-dead-ideas/) [Miguel De Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [We're all so clogged with dead ideas passed from generation to generation that even the best of us don't know the way out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-weiss/we-re-all-so-clogged-with-dead-ideas-passed-from-generation-to-2/) [Peter Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-weiss/) > [The most loathsome materialism is not the kind people usually think of, but the sort that attempts to let dead ideas pass for living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-most-loathsome-materialism-is-not-the-kind-people-usually-think/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I’ll tell you this, I may be dead but my ideas will not die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-saro-wiwa/i-ll-tell-you-this-i-may-be-dead-but-my-ideas-will-not-die/) Ken Saro-Wiwa > [Oh, would that my mind could let fall its dead ideas, as the tree does its withered leaves! And without too many regrets, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/oh-would-that-my-mind-could-let-fall-its-dead-ideas-as-the-tree-does-2/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [We're all so clogged with dead ideas passed from generation to generation that even the best of us don't know the way out We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-weiss/we-re-all-so-clogged-with-dead-ideas-passed-from-generation-to/) [Peter Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-weiss/) > [Meetings are places where dead ideas rise from their graves and eat the brains of the living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/meetings-are-places-where-dead-ideas-rise-from-their-graves-and-eat/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [I think I probably have the philosophy of a poor man. You know, like maybe I'd steal the pennies off a dead man's eyes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cassavetes/i-think-i-probably-have-the-philosophy-of-a-poor-man-you-know-like/) [John Cassavetes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cassavetes/) > [We have to start processing what we're really made of in America. American character is not dead. American integrity and honesty are not dead.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-fox/we-have-to-start-processing-what-we-re-really-made-of-in-america/) [Josh Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-fox/) > [“I wrote this book because I had formed a strong impression that the people currently living were paying insufficient attention to the dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-ferguson/i-wrote-this-book-because-i-had-formed-a-strong-impression-that-the/) [Niall Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niall-ferguson/) ## More by Miguel de Unamuno > [The pessimism that protests and defends itself cannot be truly said to be pessimism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/the-pessimism-that-protests-and-defends-itself-cannot-be-truly-said/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [We should try to be the parents of our future rather than the offspring of our past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/we-should-try-to-be-the-parents-of-our-future-rather-than-the/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [We never know, believe me, when we have succeeded best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/we-never-know-believe-me-when-we-have-succeeded-best/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [A lot of good arguments are spoiled by some fool who knows what he is talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/a-lot-of-good-arguments-are-spoiled-by-some-fool-who-knows-what-he-is/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [Philosophy fulfills the need to create for ourselves a single and complete concept of the world and of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/philosophy-fulfills-the-need-to-create-for-ourselves-a-single-and/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [None are so likely to believe too little as those who have begun by believing too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/none-are-so-likely-to-believe-too-little-as-those-who-have-begun-by/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [The devil is an angel too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/the-devil-is-an-angel-too/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [My work...is to shatter the faith of men here, there, and everywhere, faith in affirmation, faith in negation, and faith in abstention from faith,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/my-work-is-to-shatter-the-faith-of-men-here-there-and-everywhere/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [“I must not throw away my village to win my soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/i-must-not-throw-away-my-village-to-win-my-soul/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [Everything that exalts and expands consciousness is good, while that which depresses and diminishes it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/everything-that-exalts-and-expands-consciousness-is-good-while-that/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [Was man made for science, or was science made for man?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/was-man-made-for-science-or-was-science-made-for-man/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [We need God, not in order to understand the why, but in order to feel and sustain the ultimate wherefore, to give a meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/we-need-god-not-in-order-to-understand-the-why-but-in-order-to-feel/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [Science says: 'We must live,' and seeks the means of prolonging, increasing, facilitating and amplifying life, of making it tolerable and acceptable, wisdom says:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-says-we-must-live-and-seeks-the-means-of-prolonging/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [To love with the spirit is to pity, and he who pities most loves most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/to-love-with-the-spirit-is-to-pity-and-he-who-pities-most-loves-most/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) > [These terrible sociologists, who are the astrologers and alchemists of our twentieth century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/these-terrible-sociologists-who-are-the-astrologers-and-alchemists-of/) [Miguel de Unamuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) [Explore all 153 Miguel de Unamuno quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Science is a cemetary of dead ideas.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Miguel de Unamuno" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/279/miguel-de-unamuno-2211_art_science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas-3055_3055637.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Science is a cemetary of dead ideas.” — Miguel de Unamuno", "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": "Miguel de Unamuno", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-unamuno/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Science is a cemetary of dead...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-unamuno/science-is-a-cemetary-of-dead-ideas/#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 } } ] } ```