A person's genetic endowment, a product of the evolution of the species, is said to explain part of the workings of his mind and his personal history the rest.

We admire people to the extent that we cannot explain what they do, and the word 'admire' then means 'marvel at.'

Those who have had anything useful to say have said it far too often, and those who have had nothing to say have been no more reticent.

Somehow people get the idea I think we should be given gumdrops whenever we do anything of value.

Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten.

The human species took a crucial step forward when its vocal musculature came under operant control in the production of speech sounds. Indeed, it is possible that all the distinctive achievements of the species can be traced to that one genetic change.

I will be dead in a few months. But it hasn't given me the slightest anxiety or worry. I always knew I was going to die.