--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When society puts some small fraction of…" description: "\"“When society puts some small fraction of its wealth into asking and answering big questions, it reminds us all of the curiosity we have about our univ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/sean-carroll-20433_community_when-society-puts-some-small-fraction-of_1477835.jpg" --- # When society puts some small fraction of its wealth into… ![“When society puts some small fraction of its wealth into asking and answering big questions, it reminds us all of the curiosity we have about our universe. And that leads to all sorts of good places.” quote by Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/sean-carroll-20433_community_when-society-puts-some-small-fraction-of_1477835.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/sean-carroll-20433_community_when-society-puts-some-small-fraction-of_1477835.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/sean-carroll-20433_community_when-society-puts-some-small-fraction-of_1477835.jpg) > ““When society puts some small fraction of its wealth into asking and answering big questions, it reminds us all of the curiosity we have about our universe. And that leads to all sorts of good places.”” [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Investing in curiosity-driven research yields unexpected benefits for society. **In simple terms:** Funding curiosity leads to good outcomes. Key Takeaway Support exploratory science for societal gain. Themes science curiosity investment progress Mood optimistic inspirational Type philosophical encouraging When to use this quote - space exploration - basic physics - philosophy of science - public policy Key Concepts fundamental research knowledge creation innovation Questions to Reflect On - Which big questions deserve more funding? - How to measure impact of curiosity research? A Different Perspective Limited resources require prioritization; not all curiosity yields immediate returns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Curiosity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity/) [Truth Seeking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-seeking/) [Wealth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wealth/) ## Related quotes > [Stories build cultures by answering the big questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mckee/stories-build-cultures-by-answering-the-big-questions/) [Robert McKee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mckee/) > [I have a vast curiosity about our universe, our origins, and its probable future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-williamson/i-have-a-vast-curiosity-about-our-universe-our-origins-and-its/) [Jack Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-williamson/) > [We're born with a curiosity about the universe. Those people who don't have a curiosity don't have it because it's gotten beaten out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kip-thorne/we-re-born-with-a-curiosity-about-the-universe-those-people-who-don-t/) [Kip Thorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kip-thorne/) > [The past is a good place to visit .. but it's not a good place to stay..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackielyn-soguilon/the-past-is-a-good-place-to-visit-but-it-s-not-a-good-place-to-stay/) Jackielyn Soguilon > [“Listen, gods die when they are forgotten. People too. But the land's still here. The good places, and the bad. The land isn't going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/listen-gods-die-when-they-are-forgotten-people-too-but-the-land-s/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [Marks & Spencer's in Cardiff is a really good place to get recognised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-jones/marks-spencer-s-in-cardiff-is-a-really-good-place-to-get-recognised/) [Ruth Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-jones/) > [Whenever I'm stressed out or having a bad day, the one thing that gets me happy or back into like a good place of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paige-spiranac/whenever-i-m-stressed-out-or-having-a-bad-day-the-one-thing-that-gets/) [Paige Spiranac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paige-spiranac/) > [“I agree that it's a shame some books have to suffer ratings that clearly are invalid. However I can't think of a way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otis-y-chandler/i-agree-that-it-s-a-shame-some-books-have-to-suffer-ratings-that/) Otis Y. Chandler > [There's a side to reality TV that is part education, as well. I've seen that since doing "MasterChef Junior," in terms of the effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-ramsay/there-s-a-side-to-reality-tv-that-is-part-education-as-well-i-ve-seen/) [Gordon Ramsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-ramsay/) > [“Today was my forty-fifth birthday. Impending old age and a problem marriage were staring me in the face. Not a good place to be.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-cantwell/today-was-my-forty-fifth-birthday-impending-old-age-and-a-problem/) Karen Cantwell > [Our family was very fond of the University of Iowa. We thought it was a good place to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-van-allen/our-family-was-very-fond-of-the-university-of-iowa-we-thought-it-was/) [James Van Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-van-allen/) > [It's a good place when all you have is hope and not expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-boyle/it-s-a-good-place-when-all-you-have-is-hope-and-not-expectations/) [Danny Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-boyle/) > [I don't feel I have to write deep and meaningful songs; they can be light and meaningless. It has to do with the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-diamond/i-don-t-feel-i-have-to-write-deep-and-meaningful-songs-they-can-be/) [Neil Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-diamond/) > [You want to remain hungry and stay in a good place as a competitor; at the same time, you want to be confident but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamar-odom/you-want-to-remain-hungry-and-stay-in-a-good-place-as-a-competitor-at/) [Lamar Odom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lamar-odom/) > [Come to think of it, Pasadena's as good a place to die as any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tolkin/come-to-think-of-it-pasadena-s-as-good-a-place-to-die-as-any/) [Michael Tolkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tolkin/) ## More by Sean Carroll > [“Nothingness, after all, is simpler than any one particular existing thing ever could be; there is only one nothing, and many kinds of something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/nothingness-after-all-is-simpler-than-any-one-particular-existing/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“Christopher Savage have calculated that in reasonable models, we expect about ten dark-matter particles to interact with the atoms in a typical human body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/christopher-savage-have-calculated-that-in-reasonable-models-we/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“The move from description to prescription, from saying what happens to passing judgment on what should happen, is a creative one, a fundamentally human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/the-move-from-description-to-prescription-from-saying-what-happens-to/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“Science and religion both make claims about the fundamental workings of the universe. Although these claims are not a priori incompatible (we could imagine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/science-and-religion-both-make-claims-about-the-fundamental-workings/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“Then we compare the predicted abundance of such a WIMP with the actual abundance of dark matter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/then-we-compare-the-predicted-abundance-of-such-a-wimp-with-the/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“This is not a universe that is advancing toward a goal; it is one that is caught in the grip of an unbreakable pattern.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/this-is-not-a-universe-that-is-advancing-toward-a-goal-it-is-one-that/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“an elegant mechanism emerges: a broken symmetry, hidden from our view by a field pervading space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/an-elegant-mechanism-emerges-a-broken-symmetry-hidden-from-our-view/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“Part of the sting was taken away when the American Physical Society awarded its 2010 Sakurai Prize in theoretical physics to Hagen, Englert, Guralnik,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/part-of-the-sting-was-taken-away-when-the-american-physical-society/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“We are part of the universe that has developed a remarkable ability: We can hold an image of the world in our minds. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/we-are-part-of-the-universe-that-has-developed-a-remarkable-ability/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“If our lives are brief and undirected, at least we can take pride in our mutual courage as we struggle to understand things much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/if-our-lives-are-brief-and-undirected-at-least-we-can-take-pride-in/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“Where misunderstanding dwells, misuse will not be far behind. No theory in the history of science has been more misused and abused by cranks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/where-misunderstanding-dwells-misuse-will-not-be-far-behind-no-theory/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“What started the ball rolling was a psychological conviction: the idea that something as horrible as these infant deaths couldn't just be random: someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/what-started-the-ball-rolling-was-a-psychological-conviction-the-idea/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“It’s only because the data force us into corners that we are inspired to create the highly counterintuitive structures that form the basis for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/it-s-only-because-the-data-force-us-into-corners-that-we-are-inspired/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“Historically, nature has been very good at surprising us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/historically-nature-has-been-very-good-at-surprising-us/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) > [“The meaning we find in life is not transacendent, but it's no less meaningful for that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-carroll/the-meaning-we-find-in-life-is-not-transacendent-but-it-s-no-less/) [Sean Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) [Explore all 30 Sean Carroll quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-carroll/) ## More Community quotes > [Race is the idea that a human being is more superior than another human being, race in society grants illusional rights to mistreat each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/race-is-the-idea-that-a-human-being-is-more-superior-than-another/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/) [Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. 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They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/) [Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/) > [It rolls off my back. Ridicule doesn't mean anything - even from people you're supposed to wear knee pads around, like the scientific community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-schultz/it-rolls-off-my-back-ridicule-doesn-t-mean-anything-even-from-people/) [Dwight Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-schultz/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/) Sheila Kamerman > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [Perhaps the greatest and least visible form of impoverishment caused by the Corporate State is the destruction of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/perhaps-the-greatest-and-least-visible-form-of-impoverishment-caused/) [Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/) [Browse all 13,840 Community quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When society puts some small fraction of its wealth into asking and answering big questions, it reminds us all of the curiosity we have about our universe. 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