--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every living thing is a masterpiece…" description: "\"“Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and edited by evolution.”\" — Neil deGrasse Tyson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png" --- # Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and… ![“Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and edited by evolution.” quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png) > ““Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and edited by evolution.”” [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. Nature creates diverse life forms; evolution refines them over time. **In simple terms:** Life is nature’s art, shaped by evolution. Key Takeaway Appreciate the complexity of living beings. Themes biology evolution wonder Mood awe curiosity inspired Type philosophical scientific When to use this quote - education - science communication - environmental policy - personal reflection - artistic inspiration Key Concepts natural selection adaptation complexity Questions to Reflect On - How does this perspective change your view of biodiversity? - What responsibilities arise from recognizing life as a masterpiece? A Different Perspective Evolutionary changes can be slow, making immediate impact hard to see. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Biology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biology/) [Edited Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edited-evolution-1569583/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Living thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-thing/) [Masterpiece Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/masterpiece-written-1569582/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Nature Edited](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-edited-1569581/) [Written Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written-nature-1083338/) ## Related quotes > [Masterpiece written by Aly Nazzir Bassam who lost his loved ones in tsunami . Sea! I will never forgive U, even if your waves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-bassam/masterpiece-written-by-aly-nazzir-bassam-who-lost-his-loved-ones-in/) [Ali Bassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-bassam/) > [“I was not falling in love; I was certainly not falling in love. Love was a fiction, written by Nature to disguise her real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatriz-williams/i-was-not-falling-in-love-i-was-certainly-not-falling-in-love-love/) [Beatriz Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatriz-williams/) > [Nothing is invented, for it's written in nature first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nothing-is-invented-for-it-s-written-in-nature-first/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Fraternity and compassion are written into nature's DNA.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-nath-kovind/fraternity-and-compassion-are-written-into-nature-s-dna/) [Ram Nath Kovind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-nath-kovind/) > [“Nothing is invented, for it’s written in nature first. Originality consists of returning to the origin. —ANTONI GAUDÍ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/nothing-is-invented-for-it-s-written-in-nature-first-originality-2/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [“Nothing is invented, for it’s written in nature first. Originality consists of returning to the origin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/nothing-is-invented-for-it-s-written-in-nature-first-originality/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [“You couldn’t hate a living thing for … living, could you?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/you-couldn-t-hate-a-living-thing-for-living-could-you/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [The only appropriate label for any living thing is life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devin-waugh/the-only-appropriate-label-for-any-living-thing-is-life/) [Devin Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devin-waugh/) > [I imagine that yes is the only living thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings/i-imagine-that-yes-is-the-only-living-thing/) [e. e. cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings/) > [All life is a movement in relationship. There is no living thing on earth which is not related to something or other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/all-life-is-a-movement-in-relationship-there-is-no-living-thing-on/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I would never kill a living thing, although I probably have inadvertently while driving automobiles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-would-never-kill-a-living-thing-although-i-probably-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Every living thing is a spirit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-s-tolan/every-living-thing-is-a-spirit/) [Stephanie S. Tolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-s-tolan/) > [Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will not die, but long after we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-burnham/make-big-plans-aim-high-in-hope-and-work-remembering-that-a-noble/) [Daniel Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-burnham/) > [Every living thing is both a whole system in and of itself as well as an essential part of other systems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-l-young-sowers/every-living-thing-is-both-a-whole-system-in-and-of-itself-as-well-as/) [Meredith L. Young-Sowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-l-young-sowers/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) ## 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. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The Pacific is the best toilet for satellites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-pacific-is-the-best-toilet-for-satellites/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [... informed ignorance provides the natural state of mind for research scientists at the ever-shifting frontiers of knowledge. 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 Biology quotes > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/) [Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/) > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [“Toshiaki learned that all living organisms were governed by their DNA. He was impressed by perfection of this system.Why did existence have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideaki-sena/toshiaki-learned-that-all-living-organisms-were-governed-by-their-dna/) [Hideaki Sena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hideaki-sena/) > [I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-weeknd/i-m-all-about-evolution-i-m-the-first-person-to-judge-myself/) [The Weeknd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-weeknd/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [Biochemists and biologists who adhere blindly to the Darwinism theory search for results that will be in agreement with their theories and consequently orient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-paul-grasse/biochemists-and-biologists-who-adhere-blindly-to-the-darwinism-theory/) [Pierre-Paul Grasse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-paul-grasse/) > [“A note of caution: epigenetics is also on the verge of transforming into a dangerous idea. Epigenetic modifications of genes can potentially superpose historical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddhartha-mukherjee/a-note-of-caution-epigenetics-is-also-on-the-verge-of-transforming/) [Siddhartha Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddhartha-mukherjee/) > [Natural history is not taught in seminary. This is curious, as most people in pastoral ministry are about 567 times more likely to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-maitland/natural-history-is-not-taught-in-seminary-this-is-curious-as-most/) [Sara Maitland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-maitland/) > [We are coming to a place where the road ends. From here on out, we will be making the road as we walk it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-atlee/we-are-coming-to-a-place-where-the-road-ends-from-here-on-out-we-will/) [Tom Atlee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-atlee/) > [I've always been interested in medicine and was pleased when my brother became a doctor. But after thinking seriously about that field, I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-medicine-and-was-pleased-when-my/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [Evolution... is the most powerful and the most comprehensive idea that has ever arisen on Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-huxley/evolution-is-the-most-powerful-and-the-most-comprehensive-idea-that/) [Julian Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-huxley/) > [History employs evolution to structure biological events in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/history-employs-evolution-to-structure-biological-events-in-time/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) [Browse all 3,034 Biology quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biology/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and edited by evolution.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Neil deGrasse Tyson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-written-by-nature-and-edited-by/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Biology" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-written-by-nature-and-edited-by/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/978/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_biology_every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-writ_936794.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and edited by evolution.” — Neil deGrasse Tyson", "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": "Neil deGrasse Tyson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Every living thing is a masterpiece,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-written-by-nature-and-edited-by/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/every-living-thing-is-a-masterpiece-written-by-nature-and-edited-by/#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 } } ] } ```