--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It turns out to be very difficult to…" description: "\"“It turns out to be very difficult to devise a theory to describe the universe all in one go. Instead, we break the problem up into bits and invent a n..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/stephen-hawking-389_quote_it-turns-out-to-be-very-difficult-to-dev_1307518.jpg" --- # It turns out to be very difficult to devise a theory to… ![“It turns out to be very difficult to devise a theory to describe the universe all in one go. Instead, we break the problem up into bits and invent a number of partial theories. Each of these partial theories describes and predicts a certain limited class of observations, neglecting the effects of…” quote by Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/stephen-hawking-389_quote_it-turns-out-to-be-very-difficult-to-dev_1307518.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/stephen-hawking-389_quote_it-turns-out-to-be-very-difficult-to-dev_1307518.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/stephen-hawking-389_quote_it-turns-out-to-be-very-difficult-to-dev_1307518.jpg) > ““It turns out to be very difficult to devise a theory to describe the universe all in one go. Instead, we break the problem up into bits and invent a number of partial theories. Each of these partial theories describes and predicts a certain limited class of observations, neglecting the effects of other quantities, or representing them by simple sets of numbers. It may be that this approach is completely wrong. If everything in the universe depends on everything else in a fundamental way, it might be impossible to get close to a full solution by investigating parts of the problem in isolation. Nevertheless, it is certainly the way that we have made progress in the past.”” [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Science progresses by breaking complex problems into manageable parts, even if the approach may be incomplete. **In simple terms:** Scientists solve big problems by studying pieces. Key Takeaway Embrace incremental research. Themes science methodology incremental complexity Mood inquisitive analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - research projects - education - problem solving - policy making Key Concepts reductionism theory building Questions to Reflect On - What big question can be tackled piecewise? - When is a holistic approach necessary? A Different Perspective May miss holistic understanding; fragmented view can mislead. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Partial Theories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/partial-theories-2921842/) [Theories Describes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theories-describes-1565033/) [Theories Partial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theories-partial-4315086/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Theory Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory-universe-466311/) ## Related quotes > [“Now, if you believe that the universe is not arbitrary, but is governed by definite laws, you ultimately have to combine the partial theories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/now-if-you-believe-that-the-universe-is-not-arbitrary-but-is-governed/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“If one of the five theories describes our univers, who lives in the other four worlds”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-witten/if-one-of-the-five-theories-describes-our-univers-who-lives-in-the/) [Edward Witten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-witten/) > [According to 'M' theory, ours is not the only universe. Instead, 'M' theory predicts that a great many universes were created out of nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/according-to-m-theory-ours-is-not-the-only-universe-instead-m-theory/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [If we ever do find a complete theory of the universe, it would be a great triumph of human reason but it wouldn't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/if-we-ever-do-find-a-complete-theory-of-the-universe-it-would-be-a/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“You didn't simply deny the existence of a thing because it didn't fit into your theory of the universe; the existence of the thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pseudonymous-bosch/you-didn-t-simply-deny-the-existence-of-a-thing-because-it-didn-t-fit/) [Pseudonymous Bosch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pseudonymous-bosch/) > [By means of microscopic observation and astronomical projection the lotus flower can become the foundation for an entire theory of the universe and an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/by-means-of-microscopic-observation-and-astronomical-projection-the/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [So long as we use a certain language, all questions that we can ask will have to be formulated in it and will thereby…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-polanyi/so-long-as-we-use-a-certain-language-all-questions-that-we-can-ask/) [Michael Polanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-polanyi/) > [We don't have a solid theory of how the universe originated, but that doesn't mean we have to invoke a deity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-guth/we-don-t-have-a-solid-theory-of-how-the-universe-originated-but-that/) [Alan Guth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-guth/) > [What good is a theory of how the universe works if it’s a series of tensor equations that, even when understood, come nowhere tangential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/what-good-is-a-theory-of-how-the-universe-works-if-it-s-a-series-of/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [One theory is that the universe came from nothing. i.e. perhaps bubble-universes collided, as in a bubble bath, and gave birth to the universe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/one-theory-is-that-the-universe-came-from-nothing-i-e-perhaps-bubble/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [“ His Theory of the Universe seems to have been, that it consisted solely of a multitude of objects which could be weighed, numbered,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-wilson/his-theory-of-the-universe-seems-to-have-been-that-it-consisted/) [George Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-wilson/) > [The universe and the observer exist as a pair. I cannot imagine a consistent theory of the universe that ignores consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-linde/the-universe-and-the-observer-exist-as-a-pair-i-cannot-imagine-a/) [Andrei Linde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-linde/) > [The whole theory of the universe is directed unerringly to one single individual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/the-whole-theory-of-the-universe-is-directed-unerringly-to-one-single/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“The mass starts into a million suns; Earths round each sun with quick explosions burst, And second planets issue from the first. \[The first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erasmus-darwin/the-mass-starts-into-a-million-suns-earths-round-each-sun-with-quick/) [Erasmus Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erasmus-darwin/) > [A theory of the universe that states: If anyone finds out what the universe is for, it will disappear and be replaced by something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/a-theory-of-the-universe-that-states-if-anyone-finds-out-what-the/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) ## More by Stephen Hawking > [The doctor who diagnosed me with ALS, or motor neuron disease, told me that it would kill me in two or three years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-doctor-who-diagnosed-me-with-als-or-motor-neuron-disease-told-me/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [We are the product of quantum fluctuations in the very early universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-are-the-product-of-quantum-fluctuations-in-the-very-early-universe/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The human race does not have a very good record of intelligent behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-human-race-does-not-have-a-very-good-record-of-intelligent/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“We have finally found something that doesn’t have a cause, because there was no time for a cause to exist in. For me this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-have-finally-found-something-that-doesn-t-have-a-cause-because/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [ \[On President Bush's plan to get to Mars in 10 years\] Stupid. Robots would do a better job and be much cheaper because you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/on-president-bush-s-plan-to-get-to-mars-in-10-years-stupid-robots/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I believe the simplest explanation is, there is no God. No one created the universe and no one directs our fate. This leads me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-believe-the-simplest-explanation-is-there-is-no-god-no-one-created/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-paralympic-games-is-about-transforming-our-perception-of-the-world/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The increase of disorder or entropy is what distinguishes the past from the future, giving a direction to time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-increase-of-disorder-or-entropy-is-what-distinguishes-the-past/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Most sets of values would give rise to universes that, although they might be very beautiful, would contain no one able to wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/most-sets-of-values-would-give-rise-to-universes-that-although-they/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [There is a fundamental difference between religion, which is based on authority, and science, which is based on observation and reason. Science will win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/there-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-religion-which-is-based-on/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“In the eighteenth century, philosophers considered the whole of human knowledge, including science, to be their field and discussed questions such as: Did the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/in-the-eighteenth-century-philosophers-considered-the-whole-of-human/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [A model is a good model if first it interprets a wide range of observations in terms of a simple and elegant model, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/a-model-is-a-good-model-if-first-it-interprets-a-wide-range-of/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“Empedocles noticed that if you cover the neck before you immerse it, a clepsydra does not fill. He reasoned that something invisible must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/empedocles-noticed-that-if-you-cover-the-neck-before-you-immerse-it-a/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The human race shouldn't have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet. Let's hope we can avoid dropping the basket until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-human-race-shouldn-t-have-all-its-eggs-in-one-basket-or-on-one/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I hope I have helped to raise the profile of science and to show that physics is not a mystery but can be understood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-hope-i-have-helped-to-raise-the-profile-of-science-and-to-show-that/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) [Explore all 601 Stephen Hawking quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## More Theory quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [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/) > [I have a tendency to often share the point of view of the conspiracy theory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-have-a-tendency-to-often-share-the-point-of-view-of-the-conspiracy/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) > [“The generalized theory of relativity has furnished still more remarkable results. This considers not only uniform but also accelerated motion. In particular, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-michelson/the-generalized-theory-of-relativity-has-furnished-still-more/) [A.A. Michelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-michelson/) > [“Quantum Technology Is No Longer Theoretical The quantum revolution is not the discovery of quantum physics. It is the transition from understanding quantum reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludmila-morozova-buss/quantum-technology-is-no-longer-theoretical-the-quantum-revolution-is/) [Ludmila Morozova-Buss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludmila-morozova-buss/) > [It is human to search for the theory of everything and it is superhuman to find it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kedar-joshi/it-is-human-to-search-for-the-theory-of-everything-and-it-is/) [Kedar Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kedar-joshi/) > [Physicist Isador Isaac Rabi, who won a Nobel Prize for inventing a technique that permitted scientists to probe the structure of atoms and molecules…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-saul-wurman/physicist-isador-isaac-rabi-who-won-a-nobel-prize-for-inventing-a/) [Richard Saul Wurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-saul-wurman/) > [Throughout my work, I have assumed that the standard model is correct, and hence, the Higgs boson should be found. Although this is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashoke-sen/throughout-my-work-i-have-assumed-that-the-standard-model-is-correct/) [Ashoke Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashoke-sen/) > [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [Observation and theory get on best when they are mixed together, both helping one another in the pursuit of truth. It is a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-eddington/observation-and-theory-get-on-best-when-they-are-mixed-together-both/) [Arthur Eddington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-eddington/) > [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [I'm a fan of supersymmetry, largely because it seems to be the only route by which gravity can be brought into the scheme. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/i-m-a-fan-of-supersymmetry-largely-because-it-seems-to-be-the-only/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [The laws of thermodynamics, as empirically determined, express the approximate and probable behavior of systems of a great number of particles, or, more precisely,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-willard-gibbs/the-laws-of-thermodynamics-as-empirically-determined-express-the/) [J. Willard Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-willard-gibbs/) > [For a physicist mathematics is not just a tool by means of which phenomena can be calculated, it is the main source of concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/for-a-physicist-mathematics-is-not-just-a-tool-by-means-of-which/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) [Browse all 6,338 Theory quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It turns out to be very difficult to devise a theory to describe the universe all in one go. Instead, we break the problem up into bits and invent a number of partial theories. Each of these partial theories describes and predicts a certain limited class of observations, neglecting the effects of other quantities, or representing them by simple sets of numbers. It may be that this approach is completely wrong. 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