---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard…"
description: "\"“I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard about it in a course in physical chemistry, not in physics. Step by step, the questions I asked led me into the ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg"
---

#  I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard about it in a course…

![“I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard about it in a course in physical chemistry, not in physics. Step by step, the questions I asked led me into the world of mechanical engineering. A reductionist path, yes, but a different one.” quote by Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg)

> ““I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard about it in a course in physical chemistry, not in physics. Step by step, the questions I asked led me into the world of mechanical engineering. A reductionist path, yes, but a different one.””

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A curiosity about a concept in one field can lead to a career shift into another, showing interdisciplinary learning’s power.

**In simple terms:** Cross‑field curiosity can change career paths.

Key Takeaway

Follow questions that spark new interests.

Themes

career development interdisciplinary learning curiosity physics engineering

Mood

inspirational thoughtful

Type

advice motivational

When to use this quote

- college class
- research project
- career counseling
- industry switch
- personal study

Key Concepts

reductionism mechanical engineering career transition

Questions to Reflect On

- What question could redirect your current work?
- How do you evaluate when to pursue a new field?

A Different Perspective

Not all questions lead to practical outcomes; some may be dead ends.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Mechanical Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mechanical-engineering/) [Step By Step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/step-by-step/)

## Related quotes

> [“Viscosity occurs on a cellular level. And so does velocity.In contrast to viscosity's cellular coma, velocity endows every platelet and muscle fiber with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-kaysen/viscosity-occurs-on-a-cellular-level-and-so-does-velocity-in-contrast/)

[Susanna Kaysen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-kaysen/)

> [“Air has very little viscosity. That is, it’s not gooey. That means things flying through the air experience drag because of the momentum of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-munroe/air-has-very-little-viscosity-that-is-it-s-not-gooey-that-means/)

[Randall Munroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-munroe/)

> [“This book intends to make the case for explanation by reduction to physics and mechanical engineering, to this alternative realm of explanation: not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/this-book-intends-to-make-the-case-for-explanation-by-reduction-to/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [My dad, was, by trade, he had a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering. He's a huge, huge jazz fan. He used to travel all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eldar-djangirov/my-dad-was-by-trade-he-had-a-ph-d-in-mechanical-engineering-he-s-a/)

[Eldar Djangirov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eldar-djangirov/)

> [“There are many, many types of books in the world, which makes good sense, because there are many, many types of people, and everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/there-are-many-many-types-of-books-in-the-world-which-makes-good-2/)

[Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/)

> [Communication is like the basics of mechanical engineering, the more moving parts you have the more likely it is to break down!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-wynn/communication-is-like-the-basics-of-mechanical-engineering-the-more/)

[Garrison Wynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-wynn/)

> [ “Second Law of Thermodynamics. The Second Law of Thermodynamics states, “\[A\]lthough the total energy in the cosmos remains constant, the amount of energy available… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-myers/second-law-of-thermodynamics-the-second-law-of-thermodynamics-states/)

Jeff Myers

> [“If you go back to a century ago, the major problems of electrical and mechanical engineering had to do with how to place a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-go-back-to-a-century-ago-the-major-problems-of-electrical-and/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [After I did my graduation in mechanical engineering, I got a scholarship to go to the U.S. to do my master's. So I did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karthi/after-i-did-my-graduation-in-mechanical-engineering-i-got-a/)

[Karthi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karthi/)

> [For me, I was always the only woman in my cohort, first as a mechanical engineering undergraduate student, then as a chemical engineering graduate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-arnold/for-me-i-was-always-the-only-woman-in-my-cohort-first-as-a-mechanical/)

[Frances Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-arnold/)

> [Russia and China also cooperate in mechanical engineering, high-speed railway transportation, lumber processing, nuclear energy production and so on. We have built the Tianwan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/russia-and-china-also-cooperate-in-mechanical-engineering-high-speed/)

[Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/)

> [Shiv Nadar University has five schools with 16 departments offering 14 undergraduate, 10 master's and 13 doctoral programmes. The demand for engineering courses -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shiv-nadar/shiv-nadar-university-has-five-schools-with-16-departments-offering/)

[Shiv Nadar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shiv-nadar/)

> [I have a daily call thats 2.5 hrs with the entire team: from materials, sourcing, manufacturing, design, sensor, firmware... mechanical engineering - all together and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosain-rahman/i-have-a-daily-call-thats-2-5-hrs-with-the-entire-team-from-materials/)

[Hosain Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosain-rahman/)

> [My grandfather on my mother's side was a professor of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; my other grandfather was a lawyer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-g-wilson/my-grandfather-on-my-mother-s-side-was-a-professor-of-mechanical/)

[Kenneth G. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-g-wilson/)

> [“Best4Automation is the industry marketplace, which combines all the advantages of a modern on-line shop with the fast logistics of large manufacturers. Our well-known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/best4automation/best4automation-is-the-industry-marketplace-which-combines-all-the/)

Best4automation

## More by Steven Vogel

> [“did of controlled burnings by the native population before the arrival of the first British explorers.29 And the history of that native population is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/did-of-controlled-burnings-by-the-native-population-before-the/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“Electrons and photons are still worse. In graduate school I roomed for a time with a particle physicist. He ended one attempt to explain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/electrons-and-photons-are-still-worse-in-graduate-school-i-roomed-for/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“I’m not even much of a gardener—my contribution to the family garden consists mainly of compost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/i-m-not-even-much-of-a-gardener-my-contribution-to-the-family-garden/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“the majority of our most serious environmental problems start right here, at home, and if we are to solve these problems, we need an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/the-majority-of-our-most-serious-environmental-problems-start-right/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“as I intend, you should begin to look with different eyes at your immediate surroundings, seeing not just leaves but yourself and everything around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/as-i-intend-you-should-begin-to-look-with-different-eyes-at-your/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“This book intends to make the case for explanation by reduction to physics and mechanical engineering, to this alternative realm of explanation: not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/this-book-intends-to-make-the-case-for-explanation-by-reduction-to/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“The search for predictive and explanatory general rules—that’s the crux of our game.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/the-search-for-predictive-and-explanatory-general-rules-that-s-the/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“Reductionism describes the scheme, and it has a long history of successes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/reductionism-describes-the-scheme-and-it-has-a-long-history-of/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“Recognize, though, that graphs and equations provide an economical and effective way of expressing things that torture the tongue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/recognize-though-that-graphs-and-equations-provide-an-economical-and/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

> [“science isn’t about the things but about the relationships among the things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/science-isn-t-about-the-things-but-about-the-relationships-among-the/)

[Steven Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

[Explore all 11 Steven Vogel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/)

## More Step By Step quotes

> [ “The worldly \[spiritual\] science is methodic (kramic) in nature; one progresses “step by step”; one has to ascent one step at a time. Whereas… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/the-worldly-spiritual-science-is-methodic-kramic-in-nature-one/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

> [“Even though every piece of today feels small. I’ll do today, glancing up and remembering a race is completed the same way this book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennie-allen/even-though-every-piece-of-today-feels-small-i-ll-do-today-glancing/)

[Jennie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennie-allen/)

> [“Life is open to us all. No one will ever see life exactly the same as another. Some folks will argue that one who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sereda-aleta-dailey/life-is-open-to-us-all-no-one-will-ever-see-life-exactly-the-same-as/)

[Sereda Aleta Dailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sereda-aleta-dailey/)

> [At first, I was playing in front of 10 people in a park, then 1,000, then 10,000, then 80,000 and you are on television.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-golo-kante/at-first-i-was-playing-in-front-of-10-people-in-a-park-then-1-000/)

[N'Golo Kante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-golo-kante/)

> [I always take things step by step and match by match.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-azarenka/i-always-take-things-step-by-step-and-match-by-match/)

[Victoria Azarenka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-azarenka/)

> [In the theory of gender I began from zero. There is no masculine power or privilege I did not covet. But slowly, step by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/in-the-theory-of-gender-i-began-from-zero-there-is-no-masculine-power/)

[Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/)

> [God leads us step by step, from event to event. Only afterward, as we look back over the way we have come and reconsider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tournier/god-leads-us-step-by-step-from-event-to-event-only-afterward-as-we/)

[Paul Tournier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tournier/)

> [Thank God I have the seeing eye, that is to say, as I lie in bed I can walk step by step on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatrix-potter/thank-god-i-have-the-seeing-eye-that-is-to-say-as-i-lie-in-bed-i-can/)

[Beatrix Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatrix-potter/)

> [My son understands a lot and he's pushing me really hard. He always tells me 'you need to win, you need to be good.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-massa/my-son-understands-a-lot-and-he-s-pushing-me-really-hard-he-always/)

[Felipe Massa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-massa/)

> [Doing all the little tricky things it takes to grow up, step by step, into an anxious and unsettling world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/doing-all-the-little-tricky-things-it-takes-to-grow-up-step-by-step/)

[Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/)

> [You don't just luck into things as much as you would like to think you do. You build step by step, whether it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-bush/you-don-t-just-luck-into-things-as-much-as-you-would-like-to-think/)

[Barbara Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bush/)

> [Pas a pas, se va luenh. Step by step, we make our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/pas-a-pas-se-va-luenh-step-by-step-we-make-our-way/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“\*I love climbing mountains in all fields (Whatever was this fields). \*I love tranquility and it is more for me precious than money. \*Honesty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens-hard-times/i-love-climbing-mountains-in-all-fields-whatever-was-this-fields-i/)

Charles Dickens - Hard Times

> [I think we do better as a country when we go step by step toward a goal, and the goal in this case should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamar-alexander/i-think-we-do-better-as-a-country-when-we-go-step-by-step-toward-a/)

[Lamar Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lamar-alexander/)

[Browse all 387 Step By Step quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/step-by-step/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard about it in a course in physical chemistry, not in physics. Step by step, the questions I asked led me into the world of mechanical engineering. A reductionist path, yes, but a different one.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Steven Vogel"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-about-it-in-a-course-in-physical/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Step By Step"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-about-it-in-a-course-in-physical/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/832/steven-vogel-39178_step-by-step_i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-abo_1206197.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I knew about viscosity, but I’d heard about it in a course in physical chemistry, not in physics. Step by…” — Steven Vogel",
                "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": "Steven Vogel",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-vogel/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“I knew about viscosity, but I’d...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-about-it-in-a-course-in-physical/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-vogel/i-knew-about-viscosity-but-i-d-heard-about-it-in-a-course-in-physical/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
