--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are all enormously indebted to the…" description: "\"We are all enormously indebted to the National Science Foundation of the United States and the American public for steady support over close to 50 year..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg" --- # We are all enormously indebted to the National Science… ![“We are all enormously indebted to the National Science Foundation of the United States and the American public for steady support over close to 50 years.” quote by Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg) > “We are all enormously indebted to the National Science Foundation of the United States and the American public for steady support over close to 50 years.” [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He acknowledges the vital, long‑term support of the NSF and the public for scientific progress. **In simple terms:** Science thrives on public and NSF support. Key Takeaway Support and funding are essential. Themes science funding public support research gratitude Mood appreciative inspirational Type acknowledgment motivational When to use this quote - grant writing - science advocacy - policy making Key Concepts Science policy public‑private partnership Questions to Reflect On - How can scientists better communicate value to the public? - What alternatives exist if NSF support wanes? A Different Perspective Funding can be unpredictable and politicized. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/support/) ## Related quotes > [By the time we made the discovery in 2015, the National Science Foundation had put close to $1.1 billion into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/by-the-time-we-made-the-discovery-in-2015-the-national-science/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [There is no national science, just as there is no national multiplication table; what is national is no longer science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/there-is-no-national-science-just-as-there-is-no-national/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [I think we perhaps are, with sleep, where we were with smoking about 50 years ago, in that we had all of the science,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-walker/i-think-we-perhaps-are-with-sleep-where-we-were-with-smoking-about-50/) [Matthew Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-walker/) > [Most jobs today are still structured the same way they were 50 years ago, when most families had someone who could stay at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-blades/most-jobs-today-are-still-structured-the-same-way-they-were-50-years/) [Joan Blades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-blades/) > [I think for the next 50 years I'm not going to be able to stop because of the light that you shine for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/i-think-for-the-next-50-years-i-m-not-going-to-be-able-to-stop/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [It is beter to live 50 years as a tiger rather than live 100 years as a chicken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgerrin-james/it-is-beter-to-live-50-years-as-a-tiger-rather-than-live-100-years-as/) [Edgerrin James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgerrin-james/) > [I've been around two years shy of 50 years doing what I do. I am a musician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frankie-avalon/i-ve-been-around-two-years-shy-of-50-years-doing-what-i-do-i-am-a/) [Frankie Avalon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frankie-avalon/) > [The world has changed a great deal from when I began 50 years ago. I was very fortunate. There were a lot of opportunities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-meier/the-world-has-changed-a-great-deal-from-when-i-began-50-years-ago-i/) [Richard Meier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-meier/) > [I was lucky to go to work every day for 50 years, to a job that I loved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-gillick/i-was-lucky-to-go-to-work-every-day-for-50-years-to-a-job-that-i-loved/) [Pat Gillick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-gillick/) > [In 2010, I had been playing guitar for 50 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-ritenour/in-2010-i-had-been-playing-guitar-for-50-years/) [Lee Ritenour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-ritenour/) > [My parents' journey to this country just over 50 years ago, the family they built, and my chance to serve New Jersey in Congress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-kim/my-parents-journey-to-this-country-just-over-50-years-ago-the-family/) [Andy Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-kim/) > [My goal is to fight until I'm 50 years old in the UFC.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merab-dvalishvili/my-goal-is-to-fight-until-i-m-50-years-old-in-the-ufc/) [Merab Dvalishvili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merab-dvalishvili/) > [When observers look back 50 years from now, the arguments supporting Florida's ban on same-sex marriage, though just as sincerely held \[as views of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lewis-hinkle/when-observers-look-back-50-years-from-now-the-arguments-supporting/) Robert Lewis Hinkle > [To have to introduce a new product at the worst economic time in the last 50 years probably wasn't the greatest thing to have happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mechanic/to-have-to-introduce-a-new-product-at-the-worst-economic-time-in-the/) Bill Mechanic > [Even if you have done no wrong, no mistake in the last 50 years, remember the mistake you did 51 years ago and repent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radhanath-swami/even-if-you-have-done-no-wrong-no-mistake-in-the-last-50-years/) [Radhanath Swami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radhanath-swami/) ## More by Rainer Weiss > [Gravitational waves, because they are so imperturbable - they go through everything - they will tell you the most information you can get about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/gravitational-waves-because-they-are-so-imperturbable-they-go-through/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [The waves travel with the velocity of light and slightly squeeze and stretch space transverse to the direction of their motion. The first waves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/the-waves-travel-with-the-velocity-of-light-and-slightly-squeeze-and/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [Experimentally, we now have demonstrated that Einstein's theory is right in strong gravitational fields. That's important to a lot of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/experimentally-we-now-have-demonstrated-that-einstein-s-theory-is/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [You think Earth's gravity is really something when you're climbing the stairs. But, as far as physics goes, it is a pipsqueak, infinitesimal, tiny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/you-think-earth-s-gravity-is-really-something-when-you-re-climbing/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [We've seen black holes, which is already wonderful. We also expect to see the merger of neutron stars, and that was a thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-ve-seen-black-holes-which-is-already-wonderful-we-also-expect-to/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [We know about black holes and neutron stars, but we hope there are other phenomena we can see because of the gravitational waves they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-know-about-black-holes-and-neutron-stars-but-we-hope-there-are/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [We were looking almost one-tenth of the way to the edge of the universe. We're planning to use the facilities we have to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-were-looking-almost-one-tenth-of-the-way-to-the-edge-of-the/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [It's very, very exciting that it worked out in the end that we are actually detecting things and actually adding to the knowledge, through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/it-s-very-very-exciting-that-it-worked-out-in-the-end-that-we-are/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [For reasons probably related to the popular vision of Albert Einstein and, also, the threat posed by black holes in comic books and science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/for-reasons-probably-related-to-the-popular-vision-of-albert-einstein/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [The whole idea of gravity curling up space, that is the epitome of what is going on in a black hole. I would've loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/the-whole-idea-of-gravity-curling-up-space-that-is-the-epitome-of/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [The obvious thing to me was, let's take freely floating masses in space and measure the time it takes light to travel between them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/the-obvious-thing-to-me-was-let-s-take-freely-floating-masses-in/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [All at once, funding was gone due to the Mansfield Amendment, which was a reaction to the Vietnam War. In the minds of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/all-at-once-funding-was-gone-due-to-the-mansfield-amendment-which-was/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [The whole world tried to reproduce the Weber experiments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/the-whole-world-tried-to-reproduce-the-weber-experiments/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [My father was a dictator in the true German sense. He suppressed my mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/my-father-was-a-dictator-in-the-true-german-sense-he-suppressed-my/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) > [By the time we made the discovery in 2015, the National Science Foundation had put close to $1.1 billion into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/by-the-time-we-made-the-discovery-in-2015-the-national-science/) [Rainer Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) [Explore all 57 Rainer Weiss quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/) ## More American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) Browse all 7,717 American quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We are all enormously indebted to the National Science Foundation of the United States and the American public for steady support over close to 50 years.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rainer Weiss" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-national-science-foundation-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-national-science-foundation-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/rainer-weiss-11997_american_we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-na_1915442.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We are all enormously indebted to the National Science Foundation of the United States and the American…” — Rainer Weiss", "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": "Rainer Weiss", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-weiss/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We are all enormously indebted to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-national-science-foundation-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-weiss/we-are-all-enormously-indebted-to-the-national-science-foundation-of/#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 } } ] } ```