--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The scientific project starts by…" description: "\"“The scientific project starts by rejecting the fantasy of infallibility and proceeding to construct an information network that takes error to be ines..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba0/yuval-noah-harari-100_collaboration_the-scientific-project-starts-by-rejecti_520391.jpg" --- # The scientific project starts by rejecting the fantasy of… ![“The scientific project starts by rejecting the fantasy of infallibility and proceeding to construct an information network that takes error to be inescapable. Sure, there is much talk about the genius of Copernicus, Darwin, and Einstein, but none of them is considered faultless. They all made…” quote by Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba0/yuval-noah-harari-100_collaboration_the-scientific-project-starts-by-rejecti_520391.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba0/yuval-noah-harari-100_collaboration_the-scientific-project-starts-by-rejecti_520391.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba0/yuval-noah-harari-100_collaboration_the-scientific-project-starts-by-rejecti_520391.jpg) > ““The scientific project starts by rejecting the fantasy of infallibility and proceeding to construct an information network that takes error to be inescapable. Sure, there is much talk about the genius of Copernicus, Darwin, and Einstein, but none of them is considered faultless. They all made mistakes, and even the most celebrated scientific tracts are sure to contain errors and lacunae. Since even geniuses suffer from confirmation bias, you cannot trust them to correct their own errors. Science is a team effort, relying on institutional collaboration rather than on individual scientists or, say, a single infallible book. Of course, institutions too are prone to error. Scientific institutions are nevertheless different from religious institutions, inasmuch as they reward skepticism and innovation rather than conformity. Scientific institutions are also different from conspiracy theories, inasmuch as they reward self-skepticism. Conspiracy theorists tend to be extremely skeptical regarding the existing consensus, but when it comes to their own beliefs, they lose all their skepticism and fall prey to confirmation bias. The trademark of science is not merely skepticism but self-skepticism, and at the heart of every scientific institution we find a strong self-correcting mechanism. Scientific institutions do reach a broad consensus about the accuracy of certain theories—such as quantum mechanics or the theory of evolution—but only because these theories have managed to survive intense efforts to disprove them, launched not only by outsiders but by members of the institution itself.”” [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Science advances by acknowledging fallibility, building collaborative networks that constantly test and correct errors, unlike dogmatic or conspiratorial thinking. **In simple terms:** Science works through error‑checking and teamwork. Key Takeaway Embrace humility and peer review. Themes science collaboration skepticism self‑correction institutionalism Mood curious analytical optimistic Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - research labs - academic publishing - policy making - education reform Key Concepts confirmation bias self‑skepticism peer review error correction Questions to Reflect On - How do we ensure dissenting voices are heard? - What mechanisms guard against institutional inertia? A Different Perspective Reliance on consensus can stifle novel ideas if not balanced with openness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Collaboration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collaboration/) [Conspiracy theories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conspiracy-theories/) [Conspiracy Theorists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conspiracy-theorists/) [Efforts Disprove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/efforts-disprove-4391850/) [Infallibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infallibility/) [Institution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/institution/) [Quantum mechanics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quantum-mechanics/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Skepticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism/) [Skepticism Conspiracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism-conspiracy-4391849/) [Skepticism Innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism-innovation-1675292/) [Strong self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strong-self/) [Team effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/team-effort/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [Doubt, skepticism, innovation, and inquiry are the only means by which wonder, beauty, awe, and symmetry will be discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/doubt-skepticism-innovation-and-inquiry-are-the-only-means-by-which/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“An institution can call itself by whatever name it wants, but if it lacks a strong self-correcting mechanism, it is not a scientific institution.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/an-institution-can-call-itself-by-whatever-name-it-wants-but-if-it/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [I think the reason I was able to get the jobs I did is because I worked for some very strong, self-possessed filmmakers who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-gordon-levitt/i-think-the-reason-i-was-able-to-get-the-jobs-i-did-is-because-i/) [Joseph Gordon-Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-gordon-levitt/) > [Stay strong self harmers!!<3 you are strong!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patience/stay-strong-self-harmers-3-you-are-strong/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patience/) > [We see considerable strain in Russia, and that's obviously a matter of concern to us. 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There are joyous days and times of suffering. Sometimes unpleasant things occur. But that's what makes life so interesting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/many-things-happen-in-life-there-are-joyous-days-and-times-of/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Only the timid n the weak leave things to destiny but the strong and the self-confident never bank on destiny or luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-the-timid-n-the-weak-leave-things-to-destiny-but-the-strong-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Yuval Noah Harari > [“For similar reasons, archaic humans did not initiate any revolutions. 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There is no chance that gravity will cease to function tomorrow, even if people stop believing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/a-natural-order-is-a-stable-order-there-is-no-chance-that-gravity/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) [Explore all 1,200 Yuval Noah Harari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## More Collaboration quotes > [I like to collaborate with other people for studio recordings because I believe collaboration, in any form, makes music better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-barlow/i-like-to-collaborate-with-other-people-for-studio-recordings-because/) [Lou Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-barlow/) > [(I)f we are going to be kind, let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-f-we-are-going-to-be-kind-let-it-be-out-of-simple-generosity-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [MAC allowed me to have complete freedom on the collaborations—from the shades, the look-and-feel, to the campaign visuals. 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Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) [Browse all 1,240 Collaboration quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collaboration/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The scientific project starts by rejecting the fantasy of infallibility and proceeding to construct an information network that takes error to be inescapable. Sure, there is much talk about the genius of Copernicus, Darwin, and Einstein, but none of them is considered faultless. They all made mistakes, and even the most celebrated scientific tracts are sure to contain errors and lacunae. Since even geniuses suffer from confirmation bias, you cannot trust them to correct their own errors. Science is a team effort, relying on institutional collaboration rather than on individual scientists or, say, a single infallible book. Of course, institutions too are prone to error. Scientific institutions are nevertheless different from religious institutions, inasmuch as they reward skepticism and innovation rather than conformity. Scientific institutions are also different from conspiracy theories, inasmuch as they reward self-skepticism. Conspiracy theorists tend to be extremely skeptical regarding the existing consensus, but when it comes to their own beliefs, they lose all their skepticism and fall prey to confirmation bias. The trademark of science is not merely skepticism but self-skepticism, and at the heart of every scientific institution we find a strong self-correcting mechanism. 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