One of the greatest joys known to man is to take a flight into ignorance in search of knowledge.

Knowledge is power only if man knows what facts not to bother with.

Most of us believe in trying to make other people happy only if they can be happy in ways which we approve.

When the last Puritan has disappeared from the earth, the man of science will take his place as a killjoy, and we shall be given the same old advice but for different reasons.

[History is] the story of the magnificent rear-guard action fought during several thousand years by dogma against curiosity.

I sometimes suspect that half our difficulties are imaginary and that if we kept quiet about them they would disappear.

There are some people who want to throw their arms round you simply because it is Christmas; there are other people who want to strangle you simply because it is Christmas.