--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some beliefs may be subject to such…" description: "\"Some beliefs may be subject to such instant, brutal and unambiguous rejection. For example: no left-coiling periwinkle has ever been found among millio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png" --- # Some beliefs may be subject to such instant, brutal and… ![“Some beliefs may be subject to such instant, brutal and unambiguous rejection. For example: no left-coiling periwinkle has ever been found among millions of snails examined. If I happen to find one during my walk on Nobska beach tomorrow morning, a century of well nurtured negative evidence will…” quote by Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png) > “Some beliefs may be subject to such instant, brutal and unambiguous rejection. For example: no left-coiling periwinkle has ever been found among millions of snails examined. If I happen to find one during my walk on Nobska beach tomorrow morning, a century of well nurtured negative evidence will collapse in an instant.” [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A single contradictory observation can overturn extensive negative evidence, showing how fragile some scientific beliefs are. **In simple terms:** One exception can collapse a long‑standing belief. Key Takeaway Seek evidence that challenges assumptions. Themes science epistemology uncertainty Mood critical thoughtful Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - research - education - policy making - public discourse Key Concepts falsifiability paradigm shift Questions to Reflect On - What evidence have you ignored? - How do you handle contradictory data? A Different Perspective Evidence may be dismissed if it conflicts with entrenched views. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beach/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Brutal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brutal/) [Collapse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collapse/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Periwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periwinkle/) [Rejection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Tomorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tomorrow/) [Tomorrow morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tomorrow-morning/) ## Related quotes > [“In all cases positive palaeontological evidence may be implicitly trusted; negative evidence is worthless, as experience has so often shown.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/in-all-cases-positive-palaeontological-evidence-may-be-implicitly/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“In a fallen world, it was hard to do unambiguous good.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-keneally/in-a-fallen-world-it-was-hard-to-do-unambiguous-good/) [Thomas Keneally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-keneally/) > [Let me be unambiguous. I prefer not to be photographed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/let-me-be-unambiguous-i-prefer-not-to-be-photographed/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [How rare it is to come across a piece of writing that is unambiguous, unqualified, and also unblurred by understatements or subtleties, and yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/how-rare-it-is-to-come-across-a-piece-of-writing-that-is-unambiguous/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The last person to achieve unambiguous victory in an air war was Zeus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-snow/the-last-person-to-achieve-unambiguous-victory-in-an-air-war-was-zeus/) [Tony Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-snow/) > [We need an unambiguous rule - a law - that nobody will step between the publisher and the consumer, full stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-diller/we-need-an-unambiguous-rule-a-law-that-nobody-will-step-between-the/) [Barry Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-diller/) > [“ATHEIST is really a thoroughly honest, unambiguous term, it admits of no paltering and no evasion, and the need of the world, now as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chapman-cohen/atheist-is-really-a-thoroughly-honest-unambiguous-term-it-admits-of/) [Chapman Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chapman-cohen/) > [“In general we are reminded that the word heimlich is not unambiguous, but belongs to two sets of ideas, which, without being contradictory, are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/in-general-we-are-reminded-that-the-word-heimlich-is-not-unambiguous/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“It doesn’t matter how many times I have to click, as long as each click is a mindless, unambiguous choice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-krug/it-doesn-t-matter-how-many-times-i-have-to-click-as-long-as-each/) [Steve Krug](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-krug/) > [It's easy in a novel to be completely unambiguous about the relationship between animal and daemon simply by stating it outright; whereas you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-weitz/it-s-easy-in-a-novel-to-be-completely-unambiguous-about-the/) [Chris Weitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-weitz/) > [Through primrose tufts, in that sweet bower, The periwinkle trailed its wreaths; And 'tis my faith that every flower Enjoys the air it breathes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/through-primrose-tufts-in-that-sweet-bower-the-periwinkle-trailed-its/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [I have no idea how he knows when I need him. We can go weeks without speaking, and then, when my blue moods threaten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-have-no-idea-how-he-knows-when-i-need-him-we-can-go-weeks-without/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [Through primrose tufts, in that green bower, The periwinkle trails its wreath; And 'tis my faith that every flower Enjoys the air it breathes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/through-primrose-tufts-in-that-green-bower-the-periwinkle-trails-its/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [My favorite name for a color is "puce." It's kind of a dried blood color. It's a hideous color. But I love the word.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/my-favorite-name-for-a-color-is-puce-it-s-kind-of-a-dried-blood-color/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) > [“I pinched tendrils of periwinkle at the roots until they hung in long, limp strands, and grabbed a dozen bright white spider mums. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-diffenbaugh/i-pinched-tendrils-of-periwinkle-at-the-roots-until-they-hung-in-long/) [Vanessa Diffenbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-diffenbaugh/) ## More by Stephen Jay Gould > [I strongly reject any conceptual scheme that places our options on a line, and holds that the only alternative to a pair of extreme…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/i-strongly-reject-any-conceptual-scheme-that-places-our-options-on-a/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [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/) > [In his anti-Darwinian book... (and eponymously named The Neck of the Giraffe ), Francis Hitching tells the story... "The need to survive by reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/in-his-anti-darwinian-book-and-eponymously-named-the-neck-of-the/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [... many folks take them seriously because they just 'know' that evolution can never be seen in the immediate here and now. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/many-folks-take-them-seriously-because-they-just-know-that-evolution/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Charles Darwin viewed the fossil record more as an embarrassment than as an aid to his theory ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/charles-darwin-viewed-the-fossil-record-more-as-an-embarrassment-than/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Zoocentrism is the primary fallacy of human sociobiology, for this view of human behavior rests on the argument that if the actions of "lower"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/zoocentrism-is-the-primary-fallacy-of-human-sociobiology-for-this/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The world, unfortunately, rarely matches our hopes and consistently refuses to behave in a reasonable manner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-world-unfortunately-rarely-matches-our-hopes-and-consistently/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The true beauty of nature is her amplitude; she exists neither for nor because of us, and possesses a staying power that all our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-true-beauty-of-nature-is-her-amplitude-she-exists-neither-for-nor/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [With copious evidence ranging from Plato's haughtiness to Beethoven's tirades, we may conclude that the most brilliant people of history tend to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/with-copious-evidence-ranging-from-plato-s-haughtiness-to-beethoven-s/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [When scientists need to explain difficult points of theory, illustration by hypothetical example - rather than by total abstraction - works well (perhaps indispensably)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/when-scientists-need-to-explain-difficult-points-of-theory/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The truly awesome intellectuals in our history have not merely made discoveries; they have woven variegated, but firm, tapestries of comprehensive coverage. The tapestries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-truly-awesome-intellectuals-in-our-history-have-not-merely-made/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [I believe that we can still have a genre of scientific books suitable for and accessible alike to professionals and interested laypeople. The concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/i-believe-that-we-can-still-have-a-genre-of-scientific-books-suitable/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Science simply cannot adjudicate the issue of God's possible superintendence of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/science-simply-cannot-adjudicate-the-issue-of-god-s-possible/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [But if we laugh with derision, we will never understand. Human intellectual capacity has not altered for thousands of years so far as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/but-if-we-laugh-with-derision-we-will-never-understand-human/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [We debase the richness of both nature and our own minds if we view the great pageant of our intellectual history as a compendium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/we-debase-the-richness-of-both-nature-and-our-own-minds-if-we-view/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) [Explore all 341 Stephen Jay Gould quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) ## More Beach quotes > [I love being in Malibu. It's so cool there, and the water is just, it's nice and, and I love the beach. And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-evancho/i-love-being-in-malibu-it-s-so-cool-there-and-the-water-is-just-it-s/) [Jackie Evancho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-evancho/) > [I love the sea, but I avoid any sort of seaside resort that has skyscrapers or seaside entertainments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-blake/i-love-the-sea-but-i-avoid-any-sort-of-seaside-resort-that-has/) [Quentin Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-blake/) > [“I’ve always seen this in you, ever since you were a little girl — this hunger to love other people into their highest selves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-elisabeth/i-ve-always-seen-this-in-you-ever-since-you-were-a-little-girl-this/) [Jennifer Elisabeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-elisabeth/) > [I've said many times before that Pebble Beach is a wonderful thinking-man's golf course. That is why it is such a great U.S. Open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicklaus/i-ve-said-many-times-before-that-pebble-beach-is-a-wonderful-thinking/) [Jack Nicklaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicklaus/) > [Here about the beach I wandered, nourishing a youth sublime With the fairy tales of science, and the long result of Time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/here-about-the-beach-i-wandered-nourishing-a-youth-sublime-with-the/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [I love going to the beach and just sitting and watching the sunset by myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tayshia-adams/i-love-going-to-the-beach-and-just-sitting-and-watching-the-sunset-by/) [Tayshia Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tayshia-adams/) > [Carolina beach music," Dupree said, coming up on the porch. "The holiest sound on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/carolina-beach-music-dupree-said-coming-up-on-the-porch-the-holiest/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [I like trekking and staying in tents, meeting new people and eating good food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tripti-dimri/i-like-trekking-and-staying-in-tents-meeting-new-people-and-eating/) [Tripti Dimri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tripti-dimri/) > [The biggest part of painting perhaps is faith, and waiting receptively, content to go any way, not planning or forcing. The fear, though, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-carr/the-biggest-part-of-painting-perhaps-is-faith-and-waiting-receptively/) [Emily Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-carr/) > [If I'm on holiday, I'm active on the beach, I play tennis, I run, I swim a lot. It's just about making the workouts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candice-swanepoel/if-i-m-on-holiday-i-m-active-on-the-beach-i-play-tennis-i-run-i-swim/) [Candice Swanepoel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candice-swanepoel/) > [The holy grail is right here in this gem of a book. Tosha Silver’s wisdom goes down as easy as a mint milkshake and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lissa-rankin/the-holy-grail-is-right-here-in-this-gem-of-a-book-tosha-silver-s/) [Lissa Rankin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lissa-rankin/) > [Couples without kids have each other, their friends, families, and Siri to talk to. It's not like they're quarantining themselves in an underground bunker,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-kirkman/couples-without-kids-have-each-other-their-friends-families-and-siri/) [Jen Kirkman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-kirkman/) > [They had me doing Beach Boys remakes and all that. I was basically a marionette.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leif-garrett/they-had-me-doing-beach-boys-remakes-and-all-that-i-was-basically-a/) [Leif Garrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leif-garrett/) > [When did an old white guy yelling at me, telling me what to think become news? What gives him the right to tell me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-ling/when-did-an-old-white-guy-yelling-at-me-telling-me-what-to-think/) [Lisa Ling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-ling/) > [Yes, there was one thing that I missed not being able to do - walk on a beach. I've always had this romantic image…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-carr/yes-there-was-one-thing-that-i-missed-not-being-able-to-do-walk-on-a/) [Liz Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-carr/) [Browse all 2,185 Beach quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beach/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Some beliefs may be subject to such instant, brutal and unambiguous rejection. For example: no left-coiling periwinkle has ever been found among millions of snails examined. If I happen to find one during my walk on Nobska beach tomorrow morning, a century of well nurtured negative evidence will collapse in an instant.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Jay Gould" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-instant-brutal-and-unambiguous/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beach" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-instant-brutal-and-unambiguous/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/227/stephen-jay-gould-885_beach_some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-inst_385899.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Some beliefs may be subject to such instant, brutal and unambiguous rejection. For example: no left-coiling…” — Stephen Jay Gould", "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": "Stephen Jay Gould", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Some beliefs may be subject to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-instant-brutal-and-unambiguous/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/some-beliefs-may-be-subject-to-such-instant-brutal-and-unambiguous/#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 } } ] } ```