--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I conceive that the leading…" description: "\"I conceive that the leading characteristic of the nineteenth century has been the rapid growth of the scientific spirit, the consequent application of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/thomas-huxley-1183_application_i-conceive-that-the-leading-characterist_1313346.jpg" --- # I conceive that the leading characteristic of the… ![“I conceive that the leading characteristic of the nineteenth century has been the rapid growth of the scientific spirit, the consequent application of scientific methods of investigation to all the problems with which the human mind is occupied, and the correlative rejection of traditional beliefs…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/thomas-huxley-1183_application_i-conceive-that-the-leading-characterist_1313346.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/thomas-huxley-1183_application_i-conceive-that-the-leading-characterist_1313346.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/thomas-huxley-1183_application_i-conceive-that-the-leading-characterist_1313346.jpg) > “I conceive that the leading characteristic of the nineteenth century has been the rapid growth of the scientific spirit, the consequent application of scientific methods of investigation to all the problems with which the human mind is occupied, and the correlative rejection of traditional beliefs which have proved their incompetence to bear such investigation.” [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The 19th century was defined by the rise of scientific inquiry and the rejection of outdated beliefs. **In simple terms:** Science grew, old ideas fell. Key Takeaway Embrace scientific methods. Themes science progress skepticism Mood analytical inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education reform - policy making - public discourse - technology development Key Concepts empiricism rationalism Questions to Reflect On - How do we balance scientific progress with ethical considerations? - What role do traditions play in modern society? A Different Perspective Science alone cannot address moral or aesthetic questions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bears/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-mind/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Incompetence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incompetence/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Nineteenth century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nineteenth-century/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Rapid growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rapid-growth/) [Rejection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Scientific method](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientific-method/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) ## Related quotes > [For far too long economists have sought to define themselves in terms of their supposedly scientific methods. In fact, those methods rely on an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-piketty/for-far-too-long-economists-have-sought-to-define-themselves-in-terms/) [Thomas Piketty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-piketty/) > [Science is what scientists do, and there are as many scientific methods as there are individual scientists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/science-is-what-scientists-do-and-there-are-as-many-scientific/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [After years of work in both areas of study, I concluded that the social sciences were different, in many important ways, from the natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carroll-quigley/after-years-of-work-in-both-areas-of-study-i-concluded-that-the/) [Carroll Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carroll-quigley/) > [Nevertheless, scientific method is not the same as the scientific spirit. The scientific spirit does not rest content with applying that which is already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nevertheless-scientific-method-is-not-the-same-as-the-scientific/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is one great fact, characteristic of this our nineteenth century, a fact which no party dares deny. 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Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-j-muller/) > [Without initiation into the scientific spirit one is not in possession of the best tools which humanity has so far devised for effectively directed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/without-initiation-into-the-scientific-spirit-one-is-not-in/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [“The scientific spirit, the contempt of tradition, the lack of discipline and the exaltation of the individual have very nearly made an end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenyon-cox/the-scientific-spirit-the-contempt-of-tradition-the-lack-of/) Kenyon Cox > [I like the scientific spirit-the holding off, the being sure but not too sure, the willingness to surrender ideas when the evidence is against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-like-the-scientific-spirit-the-holding-off-the-being-sure-but-not-2/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) ## More by Thomas Huxley > [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/) > [There is nothing of permanent value (putting aside a few human affections) nothing that satisfies quiet reflection--except the sense of having worked according to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/there-is-nothing-of-permanent-value-putting-aside-a-few-human/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Economy does not lie in sparing money, but in spending it wisely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/economy-does-not-lie-in-sparing-money-but-in-spending-it-wisely/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [It is not to be forgotten that what we call rational grounds for our beliefs are often extremely irrational attempts to justify our instincts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/it-is-not-to-be-forgotten-that-what-we-call-rational-grounds-for-our/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Only a scientific people can survive in a scientific future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/only-a-scientific-people-can-survive-in-a-scientific-future/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Our reverence for the nobility of manhood will not be lessened by the knowledge that man is in substance and in structure, one with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/our-reverence-for-the-nobility-of-manhood-will-not-be-lessened-by-the/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [In science, as in art, and, as I believe, in every other sphere of human activity, there may be wisdom in a multitude of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/in-science-as-in-art-and-as-i-believe-in-every-other-sphere-of-human/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Science is simply common sense at its best, that is, rigidly accurate in observation, and merciless to fallacy in logic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/science-is-simply-common-sense-at-its-best-that-is-rigidly-accurate/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Oh devil! truth is better than much profit. 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