--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The messages that DNA molecules contain…" description: "\"The messages that DNA molecules contain are all but eternal when seen against the time scale of individual lifetimes. The lifetimes of DNA messages giv..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/richard-dawkins-115_dna_the-messages-that-dna-molecules-contain_815982.jpg" --- # The messages that DNA molecules contain are all but… ![“The messages that DNA molecules contain are all but eternal when seen against the time scale of individual lifetimes. The lifetimes of DNA messages give or take a few mutations are measured in units ranging from millions of years to hundreds of millions of years; or, in other words, ranging from…” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/richard-dawkins-115_dna_the-messages-that-dna-molecules-contain_815982.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/richard-dawkins-115_dna_the-messages-that-dna-molecules-contain_815982.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/richard-dawkins-115_dna_the-messages-that-dna-molecules-contain_815982.jpg) > “The messages that DNA molecules contain are all but eternal when seen against the time scale of individual lifetimes. The lifetimes of DNA messages give or take a few mutations are measured in units ranging from millions of years to hundreds of millions of years; or, in other words, ranging from 10,000 individual lifetimes to a trillion individual lifetimes. Each individual organism should be seen as a temporary vehicle, in which DNA messages spend a tiny fraction of their geological lifetimes.” [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. DNA messages persist across vast timescales, while individual organisms are brief carriers of these long-lived genetic instructions. **In simple terms:** Genes outlast lives; organisms are temporary vessels. Key Takeaway Respect the longevity of genetic information. Themes evolution genetics time impermanence Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type scientific philosophical When to use this quote - research - education - conservation - ethical debates on genetics Key Concepts biology philosophy cosmology Questions to Reflect On - How does this perspective affect our view of life? - What responsibilities arise from recognizing our brief existence? A Different Perspective Oversimplifies complex ecological interactions and cultural evolution. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dna/) [Eternal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternal/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) [Messages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messages/) [Organisms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organisms/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Mutation is random; natural selection is the very opposite of random.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/mutation-is-random-natural-selection-is-the-very-opposite-of-random/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“Even the voice of conscience undergoes mutation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-jerzy-lec/even-the-voice-of-conscience-undergoes-mutation/) [Stanisław Jerzy Lec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-jerzy-lec/) > [Throughout the book, she refers to herself as "the side effect," which is just totally correct. Cancer kids are essentially side effects of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/throughout-the-book-she-refers-to-herself-as-the-side-effect-which-is/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [ After observing mutations in fruit flies for many years, Professes Goldschmidt fell into despair. The changes, he lamented, were so hopelessly micro \[insignificant\] that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-macbeth/after-observing-mutations-in-fruit-flies-for-many-years-professes/) [Norman Macbeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-macbeth/) > [The text moves like a small crustacean with compound eye and complex nervous system; throbbing, involuted, it becomes a parasite on a different body,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-brossard/the-text-moves-like-a-small-crustacean-with-compound-eye-and-complex/) [Nicole Brossard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-brossard/) > [We find in the history of ideas mutations which do not seem to correspond to any obvious need, and at first sight appear as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/we-find-in-the-history-of-ideas-mutations-which-do-not-seem-to/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [The secrets of evolution are death and time-the deaths of enormous numbers of lifeforms that were imperfectly adapted to the environment; and time for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-secrets-of-evolution-are-death-and-time-the-deaths-of-enormous/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Choose your mutations carefully...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mothersbaugh/choose-your-mutations-carefully/) [Mark Mothersbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mothersbaugh/) > [Occasionally, a great band would come along, like Blondie or OutKast who could be pop and bring interesting ideas into the mainstream at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-marr/occasionally-a-great-band-would-come-along-like-blondie-or-outkast/) [Johnny Marr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-marr/) > [The proof given by Wright, that non-adaptive differentiation will occur in small populations owing to "drift," or the chance fixation of some new mutation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-huxley/the-proof-given-by-wright-that-non-adaptive-differentiation-will/) [Julian Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-huxley/) > [Our lack of community is intensely painful. A TV talk show is not community. A couple of hours in a church pew each Sabbath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-james-duncan/our-lack-of-community-is-intensely-painful-a-tv-talk-show-is-not/) [David James Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-james-duncan/) > [The unique nature about the influenza virus is its great potential for changes, for mutation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-chan/the-unique-nature-about-the-influenza-virus-is-its-great-potential/) [Margaret Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-chan/) > [Having blue eyes is actually a mutation. Before the mutation occurred, all humans had brown eyes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/having-blue-eyes-is-actually-a-mutation-before-the-mutation-occurred/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Only cells that had been transformed by a virus or a genetic mutation had the potential to become immortal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-skloot/only-cells-that-had-been-transformed-by-a-virus-or-a-genetic-mutation/) [Rebecca Skloot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-skloot/) > [“All life is a mutation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-brutger/all-life-is-a-mutation/) Stacey Brutger ## More by Richard Dawkins > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The fundamentalist Kurt Wise proclaims that all the evidence in the universe would not change his mind. The true scientist, however passionately he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fundamentalist-kurt-wise-proclaims-that-all-the-evidence-in-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“much of the Bible is not systematically evil but just plain weird, as you would expect of a chaotically cobbled-together anthology of disjointed documents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/much-of-the-bible-is-not-systematically-evil-but-just-plain-weird-as/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We have seen that living things are too improbable and too beautifully 'designed' to have come into existence by chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-have-seen-that-living-things-are-too-improbable-and-too/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“We will not go quietly away. If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Explore all 1,239 Richard Dawkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More Dna quotes > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“Would a DNA test for love take a sample from the heart or the mind?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-cavanagh/would-a-dna-test-for-love-take-a-sample-from-the-heart-or-the-mind/) [Dean Cavanagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-cavanagh/) > [There are certain things that make restaurants work and a certain kind of DNA that people who excel in restaurants need. But it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bastianich/there-are-certain-things-that-make-restaurants-work-and-a-certain/) [Joe Bastianich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bastianich/) > [One glance and I knew exactly who and what he was. The classic alpha male, the kind who had spurred evolution forward about five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/one-glance-and-i-knew-exactly-who-and-what-he-was-the-classic-alpha/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [An important finding is that by determining the genome sequences of an entire family, one can identify many DNA sequencing errors and thus greatly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-hood/an-important-finding-is-that-by-determining-the-genome-sequences-of/) [Leroy Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-hood/) > [Music is in my DNA!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rihanna/music-is-in-my-dna/) [Rihanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rihanna/) > [The immigrant experience of all of us is what makes us Americans, because we value in our DNA liberty and opportunity above all else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/the-immigrant-experience-of-all-of-us-is-what-makes-us-americans/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [When I get really down, I remember that we all share 99.99 per cent of our DNA with Beyonce. And suddenly, the world doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tiffany/when-i-get-really-down-i-remember-that-we-all-share-99-99-per-cent-of/) [John Tiffany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tiffany/) > [The way we think may be completely different, but you and I are an ancient, archetypal couple, the original man and woman. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banana-yoshimoto/the-way-we-think-may-be-completely-different-but-you-and-i-are-an/) [Banana Yoshimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banana-yoshimoto/) > [Retirement is just not in my DNA.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-moreno/retirement-is-just-not-in-my-dna/) [Rita Moreno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-moreno/) > [Nuclear DNA encodes all the proteins and enzymes that make you you, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hendrik-poinar/nuclear-dna-encodes-all-the-proteins-and-enzymes-that-make-you-you/) [Hendrik Poinar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hendrik-poinar/) > [If you really want to be a good archaeologist, you have to understand ancient DNA; you have to understand chemical analysis to figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/if-you-really-want-to-be-a-good-archaeologist-you-have-to-understand/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [The no-subscription fee was so much in our DNA from the original 'Guild Wars': that we would get a smaller market but willing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-grubb/the-no-subscription-fee-was-so-much-in-our-dna-from-the-original/) [Jeff Grubb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-grubb/) > [“So while Pauling struggled with his model, Watson and Crick turned theirs inside out, so the negative phosphorus ions wouldn’t touch. This gave them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-kean/so-while-pauling-struggled-with-his-model-watson-and-crick-turned/) [Sam Kean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-kean/) > [While love is common, true love is rare, and I believe that few people are fortunate enough to experience it. The roads of regular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-buss/while-love-is-common-true-love-is-rare-and-i-believe-that-few-people/) [David Buss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-buss/) [Browse all 749 Dna quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dna/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The messages that DNA molecules contain are all but eternal when seen against the time scale of individual lifetimes. 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