--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By day, contrary to common wisdom, you…" description: "\"“By day, contrary to common wisdom, you probably won’t see the Great Pyramids at Giza, and you certainly won’t see the Great Wall of China. Their obscu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d6/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_great-wall_by-day-contrary-to-common-wisdom-you-pro_985173.png" --- # By day, contrary to common wisdom, you probably won’t see… ![“By day, contrary to common wisdom, you probably won’t see the Great Pyramids at Giza, and you certainly won’t see the Great Wall of China. Their obscurity is partly the result of having been made from the soil and stone of the surrounding landscape. And although the Great Wall is thousands of…” quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d6/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_great-wall_by-day-contrary-to-common-wisdom-you-pro_985173.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d6/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_great-wall_by-day-contrary-to-common-wisdom-you-pro_985173.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d6/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_great-wall_by-day-contrary-to-common-wisdom-you-pro_985173.png) > ““By day, contrary to common wisdom, you probably won’t see the Great Pyramids at Giza, and you certainly won’t see the Great Wall of China. Their obscurity is partly the result of having been made from the soil and stone of the surrounding landscape. And although the Great Wall is thousands of miles long, it’s only about twenty feet wide—much narrower than the U.S. interstate highways you can barely see from a transcontinental jet. From orbit, with the unaided eye, you would have seen smoke plumes rising from the oil-field fires in Kuwait at the end of the first Persian Gulf War in 1991 and smoke from the burning World Trade Center towers in New York City on September 11, 2001. You will also notice the green–brown boundaries between swaths of irrigated and arid land. Beyond that shortlist, there’s not much else made by humans that’s identifiable from hundreds of miles up in the sky. You can see plenty of natural scenery, though, including hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, ice floes in the North Atlantic, and volcanic eruptions wherever they occur.”” [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human-made structures are tiny and hard to spot from orbit, while natural phenomena dominate the view. **In simple terms:** Human creations are small from space. Key Takeaway Look beyond monuments; notice nature’s scale. Themes space observation human impact scale perception Mood awe curiosity humility Type informational reflective When to use this quote - satellite imagery analysis - educational videos - policy discussions on climate - public outreach - space tourism Key Concepts Astronomy Geography Environmental science Questions to Reflect On - How does this perspective change our view of human achievement? - What natural events are most visible from space? A Different Perspective Large structures may be visible under specific conditions, limiting general observations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Great wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-wall/) [Gulf of mexico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gulf-of-mexico/) [Gulf war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gulf-war/) [New york city](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york-city/) [Persian gulf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persian-gulf/) [Wall Of China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall-of-china/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [World trade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-trade/) [World trade center](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-trade-center/) ## Related quotes > [“Religion is not a bridge between God and Man; it is the Great Wall of China between them!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/religion-is-not-a-bridge-between-god-and-man-it-is-the-great-wall-of/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“BRUCE STERLING Homo sapiens declared extinct , Nature, November 11, 1999: Since I've been asked to offer an epitaph," the highly distributed poetware continued,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-sterling/bruce-sterling-homo-sapiens-declared-extinct-nature-november-11-1999/) [Bruce Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-sterling/) > [Why does great wall of china comes in the seven wonders of the world ?? because it is the FIRST AND ONLY CHINESE THING…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arashi/why-does-great-wall-of-china-comes-in-the-seven-wonders-of-the-world/) [Arashi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arashi/) > [The image and the costs of a Berlin-like wall or a Great Wall of China is something that the American people have not accepted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bersin/the-image-and-the-costs-of-a-berlin-like-wall-or-a-great-wall-of/) [Alan Bersin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bersin/) > [“I've heard about a man and woman who are walking the length of the Great Wall of China, approaching each other from opposite directions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/i-ve-heard-about-a-man-and-woman-who-are-walking-the-length-of-the/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [Obama took a tour of the Great Wall of China and said, 'We need one of these things around the White House.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/obama-took-a-tour-of-the-great-wall-of-china-and-said-we-need-one-of/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [“The wall of silence that exists between us is as long as the Great Wall of China. And though it’s the same length, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-wall-of-silence-that-exists-between-us-is-as-long-as-the-great/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [There in the mist, enormous, majestic, silent and terrible, stood the Great Wall of China. Solitarily, with the indifference of nature herself, it crept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/there-in-the-mist-enormous-majestic-silent-and-terrible-stood-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“Some people are like "the great wall of china", you can´t reach them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alin-sav/some-people-are-like-the-great-wall-of-china-you-can-t-reach-them/) [Alin Sav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alin-sav/) > [“The Carpenters had a threshold more solid and extensive than the Great Wall of China. 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It's the 'All Right Wall of China.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/being-honest-with-you-it-s-not-the-great-wall-of-china-it-s-an-all/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) > [Religion is not a bridge between God and Man; it is a Great Wall of China between them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/religion-is-not-a-bridge-between-god-and-man-it-is-a-great-wall-of/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I always have a problem liking things that I'm told I should like. This has been the problem with most of the Wonders I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/i-always-have-a-problem-liking-things-that-i-m-told-i-should-like/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) ## More by Neil deGrasse Tyson > [I don't want to go into space because of war. I think we would if it was triggered. If China said they want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-go-into-space-because-of-war-i-think-we-would-if-it/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [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/) > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. 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People who believe themselves ignorant of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/informed-ignorance-provides-the-natural-state-of-mind-for-research/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [If you seek only easy problems to solve, then ultimately, there'll be nothing about you to distinguish yourself from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/if-you-seek-only-easy-problems-to-solve-then-ultimately-there-ll-be/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The caricature of science is that we hold tight to the theories we have, and shun challenges to them. That's just not true. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-caricature-of-science-is-that-we-hold-tight-to-the-theories-we/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [I've said multiple times that the world's first trillionaire is going to be the person who exploits the resources of asteroids, the natural resources…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-ve-said-multiple-times-that-the-world-s-first-trillionaire-is-going/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [ They \[scientists of centuries past\] call on God only from the lonely and precarious edge of incomprehension. Where they feel certain about their explanations,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/they-scientists-of-centuries-past-call-on-god-only-from-the-lonely/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [We explore our environment, more than we are compelled to utter poetry, when we're toddlers. We start doing that later. Before that happens, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/we-explore-our-environment-more-than-we-are-compelled-to-utter-poetry/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [You can't have people making decisions about the future of the world who are scientifically illiterate. That's a recipe for disaster. And I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/you-can-t-have-people-making-decisions-about-the-future-of-the-world/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Science surrounds you. It's not something that you can step aside, step over or push out of your way because you were never good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/science-surrounds-you-it-s-not-something-that-you-can-step-aside-step/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The idea that God resides in the unknown is what philosophers call the God of the gaps. And we have this thing called science,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-idea-that-god-resides-in-the-unknown-is-what-philosophers-call/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Everybody's got money for vacation time. Look at how much we all spend just to get - well, I get sick on the loop-the-loop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/everybody-s-got-money-for-vacation-time-look-at-how-much-we-all-spend/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) [Explore all 1,143 Neil deGrasse Tyson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) ## More Great wall quotes > [Mr. Donald Trump talking about the US Mexican border, he's not doing anything new or unusual. It's something that's very much in the air…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-hughes-hallett/mr-donald-trump-talking-about-the-us-mexican-border-he-s-not-doing/) [Lucy Hughes-Hallett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-hughes-hallett/) > [ The scenery was very beautiful. But I did not see The Great Wall \[of China\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yang-liwei/the-scenery-was-very-beautiful-but-i-did-not-see-the-great-wall-of/) Yang Liwei > [But none of that kept me from picturing what a tsunami might look like if it did rise up and roar toward my little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-sunderland/but-none-of-that-kept-me-from-picturing-what-a-tsunami-might-look/) [Abby Sunderland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-sunderland/) > [“Religion is not a bridge between God and Man; it is the Great Wall of China between them!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/religion-is-not-a-bridge-between-god-and-man-it-is-the-great-wall-of/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I remember as a child reading or hearing the words 'The Great Divide' and being stunned by the glorious sound, a proper sound for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-remember-as-a-child-reading-or-hearing-the-words-the-great-divide/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I could vanish the silk better than Ben Vereen - that was for sure. So I think maybe they said, "Okay, maybe he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-copperfield/i-could-vanish-the-silk-better-than-ben-vereen-that-was-for-sure-so-i/) [David Copperfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-copperfield/) > [Even in China. Children there, next to the Great Wall, who had never seen Mickey Mouse responded. So the studio did have that skill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hench/even-in-china-children-there-next-to-the-great-wall-who-had-never/) [John Hench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hench/) > [“It sounds too simple to be true, but consider the Great Wall of China, if you will: one stone at a time, man. That’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/it-sounds-too-simple-to-be-true-but-consider-the-great-wall-of-china/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [We are not a typical family that goes for a movie on Sunday or has dinner together every night. But we are strong as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alia-bhatt/we-are-not-a-typical-family-that-goes-for-a-movie-on-sunday-or-has/) [Alia Bhatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alia-bhatt/) > [I will build a great, great wall on our southern border. And I will have Mexico pay for that wall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-will-build-a-great-great-wall-on-our-southern-border-and-i-will/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [We will build a great wall. We are going to drain the swamp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-will-build-a-great-wall-we-are-going-to-drain-the-swamp/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Religion is not a bridge between God and Man; it is a Great Wall of China between them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/religion-is-not-a-bridge-between-god-and-man-it-is-a-great-wall-of/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Being honest with you, it's not the 'great' wall of China. It's an all right wall. It's the 'All Right Wall of China.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/being-honest-with-you-it-s-not-the-great-wall-of-china-it-s-an-all/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) > [On the weekends I do the usual parental things, going to the boys' football tournaments or getting out for a hike along the Great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/on-the-weekends-i-do-the-usual-parental-things-going-to-the-boys/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Who and of what import were the men whose bones bulk the Great Wall, the thirty million Mao starved, or the thirty million children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/who-and-of-what-import-were-the-men-whose-bones-bulk-the-great-wall/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) [Browse all 55 Great wall quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-wall/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“By day, contrary to common wisdom, you probably won’t see the Great Pyramids at Giza, and you certainly won’t see the Great Wall of China. 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