--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We can distinguish three groups of…" description: "\"We can distinguish three groups of scientific men. In the first and very small group we have the men who discover fundamental relations. Among these ar..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/wilder-dwight-bancroft-86198_discovery_we-can-distinguish-three-groups-of-scien_1508861.jpg" --- # We can distinguish three groups of scientific men. In the… ![“We can distinguish three groups of scientific men. In the first and very small group we have the men who discover fundamental relations. Among these are van't Hoff, Arrhenius and Nernst. In the second group we have the men who do not make the great discovery but who see the importance and bearing…” quote by Wilder Dwight Bancroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/wilder-dwight-bancroft-86198_discovery_we-can-distinguish-three-groups-of-scien_1508861.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/wilder-dwight-bancroft-86198_discovery_we-can-distinguish-three-groups-of-scien_1508861.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/wilder-dwight-bancroft-86198_discovery_we-can-distinguish-three-groups-of-scien_1508861.jpg) > “We can distinguish three groups of scientific men. In the first and very small group we have the men who discover fundamental relations. Among these are van't Hoff, Arrhenius and Nernst. In the second group we have the men who do not make the great discovery but who see the importance and bearing of it, and who preach the gospel to the heathen. Ostwald stands absolutely at the head of this group. The last group contains the rest of us, the men who have to have things explained to us.” [Wilder Dwight Bancroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilder-dwight-bancroft/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Scientists fall into three categories: those who discover fundamentals, those who interpret and spread them, and those who need explanations. **In simple terms:** Three scientist types: discoverers, interpreters, learners. Key Takeaway Recognize your role and seek growth. Themes education science knowledge communication learning Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - research labs - academic conferences - public lectures - mentoring programs Key Concepts Fundamental research knowledge dissemination scientific literacy Questions to Reflect On - How can scientists balance discovery with outreach? - What methods improve scientific literacy? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on discovery can undervalue communication and teaching. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Discovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) [Discovery Importance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery-importance-2477361/) [Distinguish Groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinguish-groups-5549032/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Fundamentals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fundamentals/) [Groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/groups/) [Groups Scientific](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/groups-scientific-5549031/) [He man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he-man/) [Heathen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heathen/) [Importance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/importance/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men Discover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-discover-848125/) [Relation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relation/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Scientific Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientific-men-415003/) [Small Group](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-group/) [Small groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-groups/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [Vans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vans/) ## Related quotes > [The seers of ancient India had, in their experiments and efforts at spiritual training and the conquest of the body, perfected a discovery which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-seers-of-ancient-india-had-in-their-experiments-and-efforts-at/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [“Men can not discover oceans until they leave the shore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-can-not-discover-oceans-until-they-leave-the-shore/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is in games that many men discover their paradise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-wilson-lynd/it-is-in-games-that-many-men-discover-their-paradise/) [Robert Wilson Lynd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-wilson-lynd/) > [Men often discover their affinity to each other by the mutual love they have for a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-smiles/men-often-discover-their-affinity-to-each-other-by-the-mutual-love/) [Samuel Smiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-smiles/) > [“A day will come when men will discover an alphabet in the eyes of chalcedonies, in the markings of the moth, and will learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejo-carpentier/a-day-will-come-when-men-will-discover-an-alphabet-in-the-eyes-of/) [Alejo Carpentier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejo-carpentier/) > [In praising science, it does not follow that we must adopt the very poor philosophies which scientific men have constructed. 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They know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/only-to-often-on-meeting-scientific-men-even-those-of-genuine/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [What struck me most in England was the perception that only those works which have a practical tendency awake attention and command respect, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justus-von-liebig/what-struck-me-most-in-england-was-the-perception-that-only-those/) [Justus von Liebig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justus-von-liebig/) > [Of course it must, and our scientific men must be criticized boldly. They will not feel comfortable when you and I are through with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luther-burbank/of-course-it-must-and-our-scientific-men-must-be-criticized-boldly/) [Luther Burbank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luther-burbank/) > [“Now against the specialist, against the man who studies only art or electricity, or the violin, or the thumbscrew or what not, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton-3/now-against-the-specialist-against-the-man-who-studies-only-art-or/) [G K Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton-3/) > [ \[A\]ll the ingenious men, and all the scientific men, and all the fanciful men, in the world,... could never invent, if all their wits… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kingsley/a-ll-the-ingenious-men-and-all-the-scientific-men-and-all-the/) [Charles Kingsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kingsley/) > [This passion, so unordered and yet so potent, explains the capacity for teaching that one frequently observes in scientific men of high attainments in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/this-passion-so-unordered-and-yet-so-potent-explains-the-capacity-for/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) ## More by Wilder Dwight Bancroft > [Ostwald was a great protagonist and an inspiring teacher. He had the gift of saying the right thing in the right way. When we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilder-dwight-bancroft/ostwald-was-a-great-protagonist-and-an-inspiring-teacher-he-had-the/) [Wilder Dwight Bancroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilder-dwight-bancroft/) > [There is one experiment which I always like to try, because it proves something whichever way it goes. A solution of iodine in water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilder-dwight-bancroft/there-is-one-experiment-which-i-always-like-to-try-because-it-proves/) [Wilder Dwight Bancroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilder-dwight-bancroft/) [Explore all 3 Wilder Dwight Bancroft quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilder-dwight-bancroft/) ## More Discovery quotes > [ Next came the Patent laws. 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Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“In December of 2007 human bones including skulls, which have been radiocarbon dated back to between 1304 and 1424, were found in a museum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/in-december-of-2007-human-bones-including-skulls-which-have-been/) [Captain Hank Bracker, "Seawater One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/) > [The European talks of progress because by the aid of a few scientific discoveries he has established a society which has mistaken comfort for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/the-european-talks-of-progress-because-by-the-aid-of-a-few-scientific/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-durant/education-is-a-progressive-discovery-of-our-own-ignorance/) [Will Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-durant/) > [The characters in my novels are my own unrealized possibilities. That is why I am equally fond of them all and equally horrified by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-characters-in-my-novels-are-my-own-unrealized-possibilities-that/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) [Browse all 3,125 Discovery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We can distinguish three groups of scientific men. In the first and very small group we have the men who discover fundamental relations. Among these are van't Hoff, Arrhenius and Nernst. In the second group we have the men who do not make the great discovery but who see the importance and bearing of it, and who preach the gospel to the heathen. Ostwald stands absolutely at the head of this group. 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