‘Should you just be an algebraist or a geometer?’ is like saying ‘Would you rather be deaf or blind?’
“
| — | M. Atiyah |
Although not everyone is mindful of it, all cell biologists have two cells of interest: the one they are studying, and Escherichia coli.
“
| — | F. Neidhardt |
Regard the physical world as made of information, with energy and matter as incidentals.
“
| — | Jacob D. Bekenstein on John A. Wheeler’s new trend in physics |
It behooves us always to remember that in physics it has taken great minds to discover simple things. They are very great names indeed which we couple with the explanation of the path of a stone, the droop of a chain, the tints of a bubble, the shadows in a cup.
“
| — | D’ArcyThompson, 1917 |
At the dawn of the twentieth century, it was already clear that, chemically speaking, you and I are not much different from cans of soup. And yet we can do many complex and even fun things we do not usually see cans of soup doing.
“
| — | Phillip Nelson in Biological Physics: Energy, Information, Life |
The next [major] thrust [in biology], the one that may bring us closer to the Archimedian ideal of science, we may expect to come from information theory.
“
| — | Werner R. Loewenstein |
Microbiology and Eternal Life (A Short Play)
RNA: Grant me eternal life.
Genie: That's not in my power to give.
RNA: Grant me then at least a wish?
Genie: (laughing) One wish?
RNA: Yes, only one.
Genie: Go ahead...
RNA: (with great wile and guile) Make me thrifty.
Genie: (with a cherry nod and a wink) Granted!
RNA: Thank you!
...and the RNA lived forever after.
