I have long held the opinion that the amount of noise that anyone can bear undisturbed stands in inverse proportion to his mental capacity and therefore be regarded as a pretty fair measure of it.

Empirical sciences prosecuted purely for their own sake, and without philosophic tendency are like a face without eyes.

Whoever wants his judgment to be believed, should express it coolly and dispassionately; for all vehemence springs from the will. And so the judgment might be attributed to the will and not to knowledge, which by its nature is cold.

Man shows his character best in trifles.

Still, instead of trusting what their own minds tell them, men have as a rule a weakness for trusting others who pretend to supernatural sources of knowledge.

Before you take anything away, you must have something better to put in its place.

Great men are like eagles, and build their nest on some lofty solitude.