--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is a well-known established fact…" description: "\"“It is a well-known established fact throughout the many-dimensional worlds of the multiverse that most really great discoveries are owed to one brief ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e3/terry-pratchett-19_bad-luck_it-is-a-well-known-established-fact-thro_315296.jpg" --- # It is a well-known established fact throughout the… ![“It is a well-known established fact throughout the many-dimensional worlds of the multiverse that most really great discoveries are owed to one brief moment of inspiration. There's a lot of spadework first, of course, but what clinches the whole thing is the sight of, say, a falling apple or a…” quote by Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e3/terry-pratchett-19_bad-luck_it-is-a-well-known-established-fact-thro_315296.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e3/terry-pratchett-19_bad-luck_it-is-a-well-known-established-fact-thro_315296.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e3/terry-pratchett-19_bad-luck_it-is-a-well-known-established-fact-thro_315296.jpg) > ““It is a well-known established fact throughout the many-dimensional worlds of the multiverse that most really great discoveries are owed to one brief moment of inspiration. There's a lot of spadework first, of course, but what clinches the whole thing is the sight of, say, a falling apple or a boiling kettle or the water slipping over the edge of the bath. Something goes click inside the observer's head and then everything falls into place. The shape of DNA, it is popularly said, owes its discovery to the chance sight of a spiral staircase when the scientist‘s mind was just at the right receptive temperature. Had he used the elevator, the whole science of genetics might have been a good deal different. This is thought of as somehow wonderful. It isn't. It is tragic. Little particles of inspiration sleet through the universe all the time traveling through the densest matter in the same way that a neutrino passes through a candyfloss haystack, and most of them miss. Even worse, most of the ones that hit the exact cerebral target, hit the wrong one. For example, the weird dream about a lead doughnut on a mile-high gantry, which in the right mind would have been the catalyst for the invention of repressed-gravitational electricity generation (a cheap and inexhaustible and totally non-polluting form of power which the world in question had been seeking for centuries, and for the lack of which it was plunged into a terrible and pointless war) was in fact had by a small and bewildered duck. By another stroke of bad luck, the sight of a herd of wild horses galloping through a field of wild hyacinths would have led a struggling composer to write the famous Flying God Suite, bringing succor and balm to the souls of millions, had he not been at home in bed with shingles. The inspiration thereby fell to a nearby frog, who was not in much of a position to make a startling contributing to the field of tone poetry. Many civilizations have recognized this shocking waste and tried various methods to prevent it, most of them involving enjoyable but illegal attempts to tune the mind into the right wavelength by the use of exotic herbage or yeast products. It never works properly.”” [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Great discoveries often stem from fleeting moments of inspiration, yet most such moments are missed or misdirected, highlighting the randomness and tragedy of scientific progress. **In simple terms:** Inspiration sparks breakthroughs, but many are missed. Key Takeaway Seek environments that foster serendipity. Themes science creativity chance Mood curious thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - research labs - creative workshops - mindfulness practices - cross‑disciplinary meetings Key Concepts innovation serendipity cognitive triggers Questions to Reflect On - How can you increase chances of catching inspiration? - What structures support turning insight into discovery? A Different Perspective Inspiration alone rarely guarantees success; effort and timing matter. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-luck/) [Biology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biology/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Wild horses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wild-horses/) ## Related quotes > [You can't possibly be a scientist if you mind people thinking that you're a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/you-can-t-possibly-be-a-scientist-if-you-mind-people-thinking-that/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [To imagine is the characteristic act, not of the poet's mind, or the painter's, or the scientist's, but of the mind of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-bronowski/to-imagine-is-the-characteristic-act-not-of-the-poet-s-mind-or-the/) [Jacob Bronowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-bronowski/) > [“Maybe (Taoist story) A classic ancient story illustrates the importance of equanimity and emotional resilience beautifully. Once upon a time, there was a wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/maybe-taoist-story-a-classic-ancient-story-illustrates-the-importance/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [You don't know when inspiration is going to come. But you have to be aware of what's going on around you, so that at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-keller/you-don-t-know-when-inspiration-is-going-to-come-but-you-have-to-be/) [Thomas Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-keller/) > [“Here’s what the moment of inspiration did. It assembled these cultural meanings in this particular package for this particular group at this particular cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-millman/here-s-what-the-moment-of-inspiration-did-it-assembled-these-cultural/) [Debbie Millman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-millman/) > [The moment of inspiration can come from memory, or language, or the imagination, or experience - anything that makes an impression forcibly enough for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-ann-duffy/the-moment-of-inspiration-can-come-from-memory-or-language-or-the/) [Carol Ann Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-ann-duffy/) > [“A lot of people wait for their moment of inspiration before they start, but what they don’t realize is that simply by starting, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-meier/a-lot-of-people-wait-for-their-moment-of-inspiration-before-they/) J.D. Meier > [“In a belated moment of inspiration, I decided to finish it with the announcement that with this column I was bringing to a happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/in-a-belated-moment-of-inspiration-i-decided-to-finish-it-with-the/) [Gabriel García Márquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [Live each moment from your own inspiration, not from your desire to look good in the eyes of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-marston/live-each-moment-from-your-own-inspiration-not-from-your-desire-to/) [Ralph Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-marston/) > [When I'm recording, which is synonymous with writing, I'll play things over and over again until it sounds like I've got the right guitar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-hackett/when-i-m-recording-which-is-synonymous-with-writing-i-ll-play-things/) [Steve Hackett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-hackett/) > [He who is best prepared can best serve his moment of inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/he-who-is-best-prepared-can-best-serve-his-moment-of-inspiration/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [I feel like you only need one moment of inspiration to turn your life around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-franklin/i-feel-like-you-only-need-one-moment-of-inspiration-to-turn-your-life/) [DeVon Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-franklin/) > [“One of my ancestors fought in the War of the Roses“, she announced haughtily, without looking round, “and in those wars you were supposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/one-of-my-ancestors-fought-in-the-war-of-the-roses-she-announced/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“If you need to improve your concentration, try thinking about this quote: The mind is like a chariot pulled by wild horses and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-need-to-improve-your-concentration-try-thinking-about-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was fearless. Wild horses couldn't stop me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-vanderbilt/i-was-fearless-wild-horses-couldn-t-stop-me/) [Gloria Vanderbilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-vanderbilt/) ## More by Terry Pratchett > [“This one’s mental.’ ‘Eccentric.’ ‘What’s the difference?’ ‘A bag of cash.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/this-one-s-mental-eccentric-what-s-the-difference-a-bag-of-cash/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“But I did not return until half past four this morning and I distinctly remember stubbing my toe on the stairs. I am as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/but-i-did-not-return-until-half-past-four-this-morning-and-i/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Someone broke from the scrum and, punching and kicking, staggered towards the Klatchian goal. "Isn't that man your butler?" said Ahmed. "Yes." "One of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/someone-broke-from-the-scrum-and-punching-and-kicking-staggered/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [You can't trust folk songs. They always sneak up on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-can-t-trust-folk-songs-they-always-sneak-up-on-you/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Either dragons should exist completely or fail to exist at all, he felt. A dragon only half-existing was worse than the extremes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/either-dragons-should-exist-completely-or-fail-to-exist-at-all-he/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Magrat wondered what it was like, spending your whole life doing something you didn’t want to do. Like being dead, she considered, only worse,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/magrat-wondered-what-it-was-like-spending-your-whole-life-doing/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [A hardback's harder at Christmas time because that's a good hardback buying time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/a-hardback-s-harder-at-christmas-time-because-that-s-a-good-hardback/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“There were more old people. The world was full of them,' said the wizard. 'Yes, I know. And now it's full of young people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-were-more-old-people-the-world-was-full-of-them-said-the-wizard/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Hobson was big and heavyset, but not exactly fat; he was probably what you’d get if you shaved a bear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/hobson-was-big-and-heavyset-but-not-exactly-fat-he-was-probably-what/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“There is a night that never comes to an end… The clock of the world turns under its own shadow. Midnight is a moving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-is-a-night-that-never-comes-to-an-end-the-clock-of-the-world/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“You'd like Freedom, Truth, and Justice, wouldn't you, Comrade Sergeant?' said Reg encouragingly. 'I'd like a hard-boiled egg,' said Vimes, shaking the match out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-d-like-freedom-truth-and-justice-wouldn-t-you-comrade-sergeant/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“You are not apprehensive, are you? I can't detect no trace of fear none whatsoever Roomy cranium all possible videos of all possible outcomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-are-not-apprehensive-are-you-i-can-t-detect-no-trace-of-fear-none/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Imagination, not intelligence, made us human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/imagination-not-intelligence-made-us-human/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) [Explore all 3,328 Terry Pratchett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## More Bad luck quotes > [“You never talk to the pitcher when…” He shook his head. “You just never talk to the pitcher when--” “I just wanted to congratulate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-hawthorne/you-never-talk-to-the-pitcher-when-he-shook-his-head-you-just-never/) [Rachel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-hawthorne/) > [Bad luck isn't brought by broken mirrors, but by broken minds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramandeep-singh/bad-luck-isn-t-brought-by-broken-mirrors-but-by-broken-minds/) [Ramandeep Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramandeep-singh/) > [I never knew an early-rising, hard-working, prudent man, careful of his earnings, and strictly honest who complained of bad luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/i-never-knew-an-early-rising-hard-working-prudent-man-careful-of-his/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [“I didn't do any of what they told me,' she said, 'because the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/i-didn-t-do-any-of-what-they-told-me-she-said-because-the-more-i/) [Gabriel García Márquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [“Everyone knows it is bad luck to step on a toad or on the shadow of a tree, to walk under a ladder,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-knows-it-is-bad-luck-to-step-on-a-toad-or-on-the-shadow-of-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Because the core of my personal philosophy is that everything that happens to us benefits us, I was also spared the futility of cursing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/because-the-core-of-my-personal-philosophy-is-that-everything-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There is no bad luck in the world but whitefolks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-is-no-bad-luck-in-the-world-but-whitefolks/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [The biggest trap, the biggest dungeon in life isn't laziness or bad luck, it's comfort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/the-biggest-trap-the-biggest-dungeon-in-life-isn-t-laziness-or-bad/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [All of us have bad luck and good luck. The man who persists through the bad luck - who keeps right on going -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-collier/all-of-us-have-bad-luck-and-good-luck-the-man-who-persists-through/) [Robert Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-collier/) > [“I was just beginning to wonder how long I would have to wait when finally a guard sauntered up and said, “Galloway, get your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-galloway/i-was-just-beginning-to-wonder-how-long-i-would-have-to-wait-when/) [Noah Galloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-galloway/) > [“Oh, I don’t buy lottery tickets... because if I won, and I was capable of that kind of odd luck, then I would also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrissi-sepe/oh-i-don-t-buy-lottery-tickets-because-if-i-won-and-i-was-capable-of/) Chrissi Sepe > [“Before Tessa could answer, there was a knock at the door, and a familiar voice. "It's Jem. Tessa, are you there?" Charlotte sat bolt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/before-tessa-could-answer-there-was-a-knock-at-the-door-and-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“If you were crossing the road and saw a black cat passing, you may possibly get hit by a car, or a mail boy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/basma-salem/if-you-were-crossing-the-road-and-saw-a-black-cat-passing-you-may/) [Basma Salem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/basma-salem/) > [I'm very superstitious, and I think it's bad luck. You don't have to show your love by tattooing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priya-sachdev/i-m-very-superstitious-and-i-think-it-s-bad-luck-you-don-t-have-to/) [Priya Sachdev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priya-sachdev/) > [To my bad luck, my first schedule for 'Natasaarvabhowma' was in Kolkata and I was not really introduced to the language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anupama-parameswaran/to-my-bad-luck-my-first-schedule-for-natasaarvabhowma-was-in-kolkata/) [Anupama Parameswaran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anupama-parameswaran/) [Browse all 529 Bad luck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-luck/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is a well-known established fact throughout the many-dimensional worlds of the multiverse that most really great discoveries are owed to one brief moment of inspiration. There's a lot of spadework first, of course, but what clinches the whole thing is the sight of, say, a falling apple or a boiling kettle or the water slipping over the edge of the bath. Something goes click inside the observer's head and then everything falls into place. The shape of DNA, it is popularly said, owes its discovery to the chance sight of a spiral staircase when the scientist‘s mind was just at the right receptive temperature. Had he used the elevator, the whole science of genetics might have been a good deal different. This is thought of as somehow wonderful. It isn't. It is tragic. Little particles of inspiration sleet through the universe all the time traveling through the densest matter in the same way that a neutrino passes through a candyfloss haystack, and most of them miss. Even worse, most of the ones that hit the exact cerebral target, hit the wrong one. For example, the weird dream about a lead doughnut on a mile-high gantry, which in the right mind would have been the catalyst for the invention of repressed-gravitational electricity generation (a cheap and inexhaustible and totally non-polluting form of power which the world in question had been seeking for centuries, and for the lack of which it was plunged into a terrible and pointless war) was in fact had by a small and bewildered duck. By another stroke of bad luck, the sight of a herd of wild horses galloping through a field of wild hyacinths would have led a struggling composer to write the famous Flying God Suite, bringing succor and balm to the souls of millions, had he not been at home in bed with shingles. The inspiration thereby fell to a nearby frog, who was not in much of a position to make a startling contributing to the field of tone poetry. 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