Disassemble the cells of a sponge (by passing them through a sieve, for instance), then dump them into a solution, and they will find their way back together and build themselves into a sponge again. You can do this to them over and over, and they will doggedly reassemble because, like you and me and every other living thing, they have one overwhelming impulse: to continue to be.

Taxonomy is described sometimes as a science and sometimes as an art, but really it’s a battleground.

The great failure in education, much of the time, is the lack of excitement and stimulus

It's an unnerving thought that we may be the living universe's supreme achievement and its worst nightmare simultaneously.

England was full of words I'd never heard before - streaky bacon, short back and sides, Belisha beacon, serviettes, high tea, ice-cream cornet.

Yes, U.S. travelers dress better. The British are always so conspicuous in hot climates. They don't seem to wear shorts. American men seem to be comfortable wearing hot-weather clothing.

... it occurred to me that never again would he be seven years, one month and six days old, so we had better catch these moments while we can.