One may say that predictions are dangerous particularly for the future. If the danger involved in a prediction is not incurred, no consequence follows and the uncertainty principle is not violated.
Edward TellerIn the history of physics, there have been three great revolutions in thought that first seemed absurd yet proved to be true. The first proposed that the earth, instead of being stationary, was moving around at a great and variable speed in a universe that is much bigger than it appears to our immediate perception. That proposal, I believe, was first made by Aristarchos two millenia ago ... Remarkably enough, the name Aristarchos in Greek means best beginning.
Edward TellerThe scientist is not responsible for the laws of nature. It is his job to find out how these laws operate. It is the scientist's job to find the ways in which these laws can serve the human will. However, it is not the scientist's job to determine whether a hydrogen bomb should be constructed, whether it should be used, or how it should be used. This responsibility rests with the American people and with their chosen representatives.
Edward TellerIn the theater you create a moment, but in that moment, there is a touch, a twinkle of eternity. And not just eternity, but community. . . . That connection is a sense of life for me.
Edward TellerKnowing he [Bob Serber] was going to the [first atom bomb] test, I asked him how he planned to deal with the danger of rattlesnakes. He said, 'I'll take along a bottle of whiskey.' … I ended by asking, 'What would you do about those possibilities [of what unknown phenomena might cause a nuclear explosion to propagate in the atmosphere]?' Bob replied, 'Take a second bottle of whiskey.'
Edward TellerI claim that relativity and the rest of modern physics is not complicated. It can be explained very simply. It is only unusual or, put another way, it is contrary to common sense.
Edward TellerMy experience has been in a short 77 years that in the end when you fight for a desperate cause and have good reasons to fight, you usually win.
Edward TellerThe best weapon of a dictatorship is secrecy; the best weapon of a democracy is openness.
Edward TellerIf not for me, the H-bomb would have been developed in Russia first. In the U.S., we'd now be speaking Russian.
Edward TellerWhen Columbus took off, the purpose was to improve trade relations with China. That problem has not been solved to this very day, but just look at the by-products.
Edward TellerToday, nothing is unusual about a scientific discovery's being followed soon after by a technical application: The discovery of electrons led to electronics; fission led to nuclear energy. But before the 1880's, science played almost no role in the advances of technology. For example, James Watt developed the first efficient steam engine long before science established the equivalence between mechanical heat and energy.
Edward TellerHad we not pursued the hydrogen bomb, there is a very real threat that we would now all be speaking Russian. I have no regrets.
Edward Teller[Chemistry] laboratory work was my first challenge. ... I still carry the scars of my first discovery-that test-tubes are fragile.
Edward TellerI think that intellectuals who end up in hell will have to read page proofs and check indexes there.
Edward TellerReally exotic methods of propulsion . . . will have to be devised to get there. How it will be done, I do not know. Whether it will be done, I am not quite certain. But I would bet it can be done.
Edward TellerIf there ever was a misnomer, it is "exact science." Science has always been full of mistakes. The present day is no exception. And our mistakes are good mistakes; they require a genius to correct. Of course, we do not see our own mistakes.
Edward TellerIn our educational institutions applied science may almost be described as a "no-man's land."
Edward TellerA fact is a simple statement that everyone believes. It is innocent, unless found guilty. A hypothesis is a novel suggestion that no one wants to believe. It is guilty, until found effective.
Edward TellerOn May 7, a few weeks after the accident at Three-Mile Island, I was in Washington. I was there to refute some of that propaganda that Ralph Nader, Jane Fonda and their kind are spewing to the news media in their attempt to frighten people away from nuclear power. I am 71 years old, and I was working 20 hours a day. The strain was too much. The next day, I suffered a heart attack. You might say that I was the only one whose health was affected by that reactor near Harrisburg. No, that would be wrong. It was not the reactor. It was Jane Fonda. Reactors are not dangerous.
Edward TellerThe main purpose of science is simplicity and as we understand more things, everything is becoming simpler.
Edward TellerScience attempts to find logic and simplicity in nature. Mathematics attempts to establish order and simplicity in human thought.
Edward TellerI tried to contribute to the defeat of the Soviets. If I contributed 1%, it is 1% of something enormous.
Edward TellerThe extinction of the human race will come from its inability to EMOTIONALLY comprehend the exponential function.
Edward TellerIt is often claimed that knowledge multiplies so rapidly that nobody can follow it. I believe this is incorrect. At least in science it is not true. The main purpose of science is simplicity and as we understand more things, everything is becoming simpler. This, of course, goes contrary to what everyone accepts.
Edward TellerNo endeavor that is worthwhile is simple in prospect; if it is right, it will be simple in retrospect.
Edward TellerSociety's emissions of carbon dioxide may or may not turn out to have something significant to do with global warming-the jury is still out.
Edward TellerA state-of-the-art calculation requires 100 hours of CPU time on the state-of-the-art computer, independent of the decade.
Edward TellerWhen you come to the end of all the light you know, and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on or you will be taught to fly.
Edward Teller