When beauty is universal, it loses its power to move the heart, and only its absence can produce any emotional effect.

One of the great tragedies of mankind is that morality has been hijacked by religion. So now people assume that religion and morality have a necessary connection. But the basis of morality is really very simple and doesn't require religion at all.

It is really quite amazing by what margins competent but conservative scientists and engineers can miss the mark, when they start with the preconceived idea that what they are investigating is impossible.

The moment when one first meets a great work of art has an impact that can never again be recaptured.

Any smoothly functioning technology will have the appearance of magic.

The Shuttle is to space flight what Lindbergh was to commercial aviation.

I'm sure we would not have had men on the Moon if it had not been for Wells and Verne and the people who write about this and made people think about it. I'm rather proud of the fact that I know several astronauts who became astronauts through reading my books.