Idealism is the highest form of reason.

It is folly to use as one's guide in the selection of fundamental science the criterion of utility. Not because (scientists)... despise utility. But because. .. useful outcomes are best identified after the making of discoveries, rather than before.

When, as we must often do, we fear science, we really fear ourselves. Human dignity is better served by embracing knowledge.

Science is a collection of stories, linking characters worthy of notice.

The respect for human rights, essential if we are to use technology wisely, is not something alien that must be grafted onto science. On the contrary, it is integral to science, as also to scholarship in general.

[Intellectual courage is] the quality that allows one to believe in one's judgement in the face of disappointment and widespread skepticism. Intellectual courage is even rarer than physical courage.

Today, Academies of Science use their influence around the world in support of human rights.