--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: These are dangerous times. Never have so…" description: "\"“These are dangerous times. Never have so many people had so much access to so much knowledge and yet have been so resistant to learning anything.”\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f3a/thomas-m-nichols-8933_dangerous_these-are-dangerous-times-never-have-so_2621413.jpg" --- # These are dangerous times. Never have so many people had… ![“These are dangerous times. Never have so many people had so much access to so much knowledge and yet have been so resistant to learning anything.” quote by Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f3a/thomas-m-nichols-8933_dangerous_these-are-dangerous-times-never-have-so_2621413.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f3a/thomas-m-nichols-8933_dangerous_these-are-dangerous-times-never-have-so_2621413.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f3a/thomas-m-nichols-8933_dangerous_these-are-dangerous-times-never-have-so_2621413.jpg) > ““These are dangerous times. Never have so many people had so much access to so much knowledge and yet have been so resistant to learning anything.”” [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Abundant information access coexists with widespread resistance to learning, creating dangerous societal conditions. **In simple terms:** Too much info, too little learning. Key Takeaway Encourage active learning despite easy access to info. Themes education information overload resistance Mood concerned urgent Type social commentary warning When to use this quote - schools - workplace training - public policy - media consumption Key Concepts critical thinking digital literacy Questions to Reflect On - Why do people resist learning? - How can we turn access into knowledge? A Different Perspective Access alone doesn’t guarantee understanding; systemic barriers exist. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Usually I'm the one asking somebody to do something because I don't know how to finish it. I'm like, 'Do this for me' because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/usually-i-m-the-one-asking-somebody-to-do-something-because-i-don-t/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [I think my work is influenced by the fact that we're living in dangerous times. If I could put it in a sentence, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/i-think-my-work-is-influenced-by-the-fact-that-we-re-living-in/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [I've always felt that my subject was living in dangerous times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/i-ve-always-felt-that-my-subject-was-living-in-dangerous-times/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [Everyone, young and old, must have access to the knowledge and skills to participate in the evolving economy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-young-and-old-must-have-access-to-the-knowledge-and-skills/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Librarians are the bedrock of the public domain and the defenders of our fundamental right to access knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-malamud/librarians-are-the-bedrock-of-the-public-domain-and-the-defenders-of/) Carl Malamud > [For me, Sci-Hub has a value by itself, as a website where users can access knowledge. There are many websites where you can see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-elbakyan/for-me-sci-hub-has-a-value-by-itself-as-a-website-where-users-can/) [Alexandra Elbakyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-elbakyan/) > [“I like to share info & links to help access knowledge and possible solutions to situations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-woodman/i-like-to-share-info-links-to-help-access-knowledge-and-possible/) [Jay Woodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-woodman/) > [Access to communication in the widest sense is access to knowledge, and that is vitally important for us if we are not to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-braille/access-to-communication-in-the-widest-sense-is-access-to-knowledge/) Louis Braille > [Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-supreme-act-of-truly-great-2/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [The Earth is alive and contains the knowledge you seek. It is your consciousness that determines what it reveals. How to access this knowledge?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-marciniak/the-earth-is-alive-and-contains-the-knowledge-you-seek-it-is-your/) [Barbara Marciniak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-marciniak/) > [“Anyone can have access to knowledge but very few are chosen by the divine light to be guided.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/anyone-can-have-access-to-knowledge-but-very-few-are-chosen-by-the/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [Until very recently, most knowledge was inaccessible to people who couldn't read text. But this is changing. The computer opens up other channels of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-papert/until-very-recently-most-knowledge-was-inaccessible-to-people-who/) [Seymour Papert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-papert/) > [“We use other people's brains to navigate the world: to acquire skills and practices, and to access knowledge systems of long-dead strangers. We call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-earls/we-use-other-people-s-brains-to-navigate-the-world-to-acquire-skills/) Mark Earls > [“Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-supreme-act-of-truly-great/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [Access to communication in the widest sense is access to knowledge, and that is vitally important for us We do not need pity, nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-braille/access-to-communication-in-the-widest-sense-is-access-to-knowledge-2/) Louis Braille ## More by Thomas M. Nichols > [“Conspiracy theorists manipulate all tangible evidence to fit their explanation, but worse, they will also point to the absence of evidence as even stronger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/conspiracy-theorists-manipulate-all-tangible-evidence-to-fit-their/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“Today, by contrast, students explode over imagined slights that are not even remotely in the same category as fighting for civil rights or being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/today-by-contrast-students-explode-over-imagined-slights-that-are-not/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“And when voters lose control of these important decisions, they risk the hijacking of their democracy by ignorant demagogues, or the more quiet and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/and-when-voters-lose-control-of-these-important-decisions-they-risk/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“As the economic writer Ben Casselman pointed out in 2016, most college applicants “never have to write a college entrance essay, pad a résumé…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/as-the-economic-writer-ben-casselman-pointed-out-in-2016-most-college/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“People do not come to the Internet so that their bad information can be corrected or their cherished theories disproven. Rather, they ask the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/people-do-not-come-to-the-internet-so-that-their-bad-information-can/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“If the public has no idea about the substance of an issue, and will vote based on who they like rather than what they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/if-the-public-has-no-idea-about-the-substance-of-an-issue-and-will/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“The issue is not indifference to established knowledge; it’s the emergence of a positive hostility to such knowledge. This is new in American culture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/the-issue-is-not-indifference-to-established-knowledge-it-s-the/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“At the root of all this is an inability among laypeople to understand that experts being wrong on occasion about certain issues is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/at-the-root-of-all-this-is-an-inability-among-laypeople-to-understand/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“The requirements of a degree in a STEM field (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), a demanding foreign language, or a rigorous degree in the humanities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/the-requirements-of-a-degree-in-a-stem-field-science-technology/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“In 2015, a Massachusetts accountant named Stephen Pasceri lost his seventy-eight-year-old mother to cardiovascular disease. Mrs. Pasceri had a long history of health trouble,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/in-2015-a-massachusetts-accountant-named-stephen-pasceri-lost-his/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/there-is-a-cult-of-ignorance-in-the-united-states-and-there-always/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“The modern media, with so many options tailored to particular views, is a huge exercise in confirmation bias. This means that Americans are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/the-modern-media-with-so-many-options-tailored-to-particular-views-is/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“Americans no longer distinguish the phrase “you’re wrong” from the phrase “you’re stupid.” To disagree is to disrespect. To correct another is to insult.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/americans-no-longer-distinguish-the-phrase-you-re-wrong-from-the/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“There aren’t enough pages in this or any other book to catalog the amount of bad information on the Internet. Miracle cures, conspiracy theories,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/there-aren-t-enough-pages-in-this-or-any-other-book-to-catalog-the/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [“Populism actually reinforces this elitism, because the celebration of ignorance cannot launch communications satellites, negotiate the rights of US citizens overseas, or provide for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/populism-actually-reinforces-this-elitism-because-the-celebration-of/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) [Explore all 76 Thomas M. Nichols quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) ## More Dangerous quotes > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Every one knows that the exercise of military power is forever dangerous to civil rights; and we have had recent instances of violences that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-adams/every-one-knows-that-the-exercise-of-military-power-is-forever/) [Samuel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-adams/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [We're not very dangerous animals; we don't have a horn like a rhino or quills like a porcupine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/we-re-not-very-dangerous-animals-we-don-t-have-a-horn-like-a-rhino-or/) [Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/) > [“It is dangerous to lock oneself away and lose track of what is happening outside.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/it-is-dangerous-to-lock-oneself-away-and-lose-track-of-what-is/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [In my youth-team days, I was always a left-winger who would stay close to the byline and put crosses in the box, so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arjen-robben/in-my-youth-team-days-i-was-always-a-left-winger-who-would-stay-close/) [Arjen Robben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arjen-robben/) > [The temptations of God were always more dangerous for mankind than those of Satan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-temptations-of-god-were-always-more-dangerous-for-mankind-than/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [When you start talking about elections being rigged, you're pushing people beyond democratic governance. And it's a very, very dangerous thing to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/when-you-start-talking-about-elections-being-rigged-you-re-pushing/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [The Patriot Act is certainly a concern; all of those things are dangerous. I think more important than me preaching is that we as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/the-patriot-act-is-certainly-a-concern-all-of-those-things-are/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [Die gefährlichste Weltanschauung ist die Weltanschauung derer, die die Welt nie angeschaut haben. (The most dangerous worldview is the worldview of those who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-von-humboldt/die-gef-hrlichste-weltanschauung-ist-die-weltanschauung-derer-die-die/) [Alexander von Humboldt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-von-humboldt/) > [The most dangerous creature here would have to be me. So maybe I'm just scared of my own shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-most-dangerous-creature-here-would-have-to-be-me-so-maybe-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The more people that learn about you, even if you're an underdog, then you can come under fire a lot and the more attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-way/the-more-people-that-learn-about-you-even-if-you-re-an-underdog-then/) [Gerard Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-way/) > [Anyone who maintains absolute standards of good and evil is dangerous. As dangerous as a maniac with a loaded revolver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/anyone-who-maintains-absolute-standards-of-good-and-evil-is-dangerous/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [The proliferation of right-to-carry laws throughout the states has drawn plaintive complaints from the criminal element. They feel that it makes their profession too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-cooper/the-proliferation-of-right-to-carry-laws-throughout-the-states-has/) [Jeff Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-cooper/) Browse all 6,450 Dangerous quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“These are dangerous times. Never have so many people had so much access to so much knowledge and yet have been so resistant to learning anything.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas M. 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