Pierre Simon Laplace Quotes

Nature laughs at the difficulties of integration. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Napoleon: You have written this huge book on the system of the world without once mentioning the author of the universe. Laplace: Sire, I had no need of that hypothesis. Later when told by Napoleon about the incident, Lagrange commented: Ah, but that is a fine hypothesis. It explains so many things. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

The weight of evidence for an extraordinary claim must be proportioned to its strangeness. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Biot, who assisted Laplace in revising it [The Mécanique Céleste] for the press, says that Laplace himself was frequently unable to recover the details in the chain of reasoning, and if satisfied that the conclusions were correct, he was content to insert the constantly recurring formula, 'Il est àisé avoir' [it is easy to see]. ~ W.W. Rouse Ball

The first effect of the mind growing cultivated is that processes once multiple get to be performed in a single act. Lazarus has called this the progressive 'condensation' of thought. ... Steps really sink from sight. An advanced thinker sees the relations of his topics is such masses and so instantaneously that when he comes to explain to younger minds it is often hard ... Bowditch, who translated and annotated Laplace's Méchanique Céleste, said that whenever his author prefaced a proposition by the words 'it is evident,' he knew that many hours of hard study lay before him. ~ William James

We are so far from knowing all the forces of nature and their various modes of action that it would be unworthy of the philosopher to deny phenomena simply because they are inexplicable at the present state of our knowledge. The more difficult it is to acknowledge their existence, the greater the care with which we must study these phenomena. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

The simplicity of nature is not to be measured by that of our conceptions. Infinitely varied in its effects, nature is simple only in its causes, and its economy consists in producing a great number of phenomena, often very complicated, by means of a small number of general laws. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Man follows only phantoms. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

[Science] dissipates errors born of ignorance about our true relations with nature, errors the more damaging in that the social order should rest only on those relations. TRUTH! JUSTICE! Those are the immutable laws. Let us banish the dangerous maxim that it is sometimes useful to depart from them and to deceive or enslave mankind to assure its happiness. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Whenever I meet in Laplace with the words 'Thus it plainly appears', I am sure that hours and perhaps days, of hard study will alone enable me to discover how it plainly appears. ~ Nathaniel Bowditch

Truth and justice are the immutable laws of social order. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Read Euler, read Euler, he is the master of us all. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

I have lived long enough to know what I did not at one time believe
that no society can be upheld in happiness and honor without the sentiment of religion. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Napoleon, when hearing about Laplace's latest book, said, 'M. Laplace, they tell me you have written this large book on the system of the universe, and have never even mentioned its creator.'

Laplace responds, 'Je n'avais pas besoin de cette hypothèse-là. (I had no need of that hypothesis.) ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

All the effects of Nature are only the mathematical consequences of a small number of immutable laws. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

What we know is not much. What we don't know is enormous. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

...by shortening the labours doubled the life of the astronomer.

{On the benefit of John Napier's logarithms.} ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

The theory of probabilities is at bottom nothing but common sense reduced to calculus; it enables us to appreciate with exactness that which accurate minds feel with a sort of instinct for which of times they are unable to account. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

To Napoleon on why his works on celestial mechanics make no mention of God: Your Highness, I have no need of this hypothesis. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Without any doubt, the regularity which astronomy shows us in the movements of the comets takes place in all phenomena. The trajectory of a simple molecule of air or vapour is regulated in a manner as certain as that of the planetary orbits; the only difference between them is that which is contributed by our ignorance. Probability is relative in part to this ignorance, and in part to our knowledge. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

The theory of probabilities is basically only common sense reduced to a calculus. It makes one estimate accurately what right-minded people feel by a sort of instinct, often without being able to give a reason for it. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

statistical thinking is merely an artifact of human ignorance. we need to use statistics nature does not. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

How did Biot arrive at the partial differential equation? [the heat conduction equation] ... Perhaps Laplace gave Biot the equation and left him to sink or swim for a few years in trying to derive it. That would have been merely an instance of the way great mathematicians since the very beginnings of mathematical research have effortlessly maintained their superiority over ordinary mortals. ~ Clifford A. Truesdell

The simplicity of the law by which the celestial bodies move, and the relations of their masses and distances, permit analysis to follow their motions up to a certain point; and in order to determine the state of the system of these great bodies in past or future centuries, it suffices for the mathematician that their position and their velocity be given by observation for any moment in time. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

What we know is not much. What we do not know is immense. ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Probability theory is nothing more than common sense reduced to calculation. -1819 ~ Pierre-Simon Laplace

Magnus didn't look at her; he was looking down at the tent, where Clary sat talking with Tessa, where Alec stood side by side with Maia and Bat, laughing, where Isabelle and Simon were dancing to the music Jace was playing on the piano, the haunting sweet notes of Chopin reminding him of another time, and the sound of a violin at Christmas. ~ Cassandra Clare

I kind of stopped buying vinyl because I'm always on the road and you can never listen to it. ~ Simon Taylor-Davis

History, the way the teachers liked it, was a racetrack, a straight shot from start to finish line; life itself was more of a maze. ~ Cassandra Clare

But Pierre, who like all who have known the sea was a child at heart, broke into loud exclamations ~ Radclyffe Hall

That's a remarkable concept: only when individuals can trust the culture or organization will they take personal risks in order to advance that culture or organization as a whole. ~ Simon Sinek

From the day when Pierre, after leaving the Rostovs' with Natasha's grateful look fresh in his mind, had gazed at the comet that seemed to be fixed in the sky and felt that something new was appearing on his own horizon - from that day the problem of the vanity and uselessness of all earthly things, that had incessantly tormented him, no longer presented itself. That terrible question "Why?" "Wherefore?" which had come to him amid every occupation, was now replaced, not by another question or by a reply to the former question, but by her image. When he listened to, or himself took part in, trivial conversations, when he read or heard of human baseness or folly, he was not horrified as formerly, and did not ask himself why men struggled so about these things when all is so transient and incomprehensible - but ~ Leo Tolstoy

The Latin American has no tribe to fall back on, as the African does, no reliable judiciary to defend his rights as the European does, no social ideal or sacred constitution as the North American does, no pervasive mythology to soften life as it does in Asia, and no even an ideology to subscribe to, as does the Russian or Chinese. Without wealth, what is there left to him but his manhood, to be flaunted and defended at every occasion? ~ Ted Simon

Respect is the most important thing. Be respectful toward others and have respect for yourself. ~ Georges St-Pierre

It was Eric's voice not Simon's, on the recorded message. "Ladies, ladies " he said. Though it was the millionth time she'd heard the recording, Clary couldn't help rolling her eyes. "If you've reached this message that means our boy Simon is out partying. But please don't fight among yourselves. There's always enough Simon to go around." There was a muffled yell, some laughter, and then the long sound of the beep. ~ Cassandra Clare

We have to fight the past to survive. ~ Pierre Boulez

Wounds and hardships provoke our courage, and when our fortunes are at the lowest, our wits and minds are commonly at the best. ~ Pierre Charron

She felt so lovely in his hands. She felt so loved in his eyes. ~ Rachel Simon

Love is like life but longer. ~ Simon Van Booy

For some years, I've been very interested in the relationship between science and art. ~ Simon McBurney

A person who rejects Christ may choose to say that I do not accept it, he may not choose to say there is not enough evidence. ~ Simon Greenleaf

Who's got my Jaffa Cakes? You know I can't function without Jaffa Cakes. ~ Simon R. Green

I bear solemn witness to the fact that NATO heads of state and of government meet only to go through the tedious motions of reading speeches, drafted by others, with the principal objective of not rocking the boat. ~ Pierre Trudeau

Pierre Curie voluntarily exposed his arm to the action of radium for several hours. This resulted in damage resembling a burn that developed progressively and required several months to heal. Henri Becquerel had by accident a similar burn as a result of carrying in his vest pocket a glass tube containing radium salt. He came to tell us of this evil effect of radium, exclaiming in a manner at once delighted and annoyed: "I love it, but I owe it a grudge." ~ Marie Curie

Your computer needn't be the first thing your see in the morning and the last thing you see at night. ~ Simon Mainwaring

Leaders don't complain about what's not working. Leaders celebrate what is working and work to amplify it. ~ Simon Sinek

The moment they met, Simon had decided that if looks matched personalities, Jon Cartwright would look like a horse's ass. Unfortunately, there is no justice in the world, and he looked instead like a walking Ken doll. Sometimes first impressions were misleading; sometimes they peered straight through to a person's inner soul. Simon was as sure now as he'd ever been: Jon's inner soul was a horse's ass. ~ Cassandra Clare

President John F. Kennedy's Cigars
On February 7, 1962, President Kennedy announced to his staff that he needed some help finding as many of the prestigious Cuban Petit Upmann cigars as possible. He let it be known that he would like to have 1,000 of these cigars by the next morning. Being the President of the United States, his wish was granted when, on the morning of February 8th, his Press Secretary Pierre Salinger came in and deposited 1,200 cigars on Kennedy's desk. Smiling, Kennedy opened his desk, took out a document and signed it, banning importation of all Cuban-made products into the United States. Some years later when asked about that moment, Salinger said that there were actually 1,201 cigars. ~ Hank Bracker

What's important is not who YOU love but WHO loves you. ~ Simon Sebag Montefiore

The greatest barrier to someone achieving their potential is their denial of it. ~ Simon Travaglia

An awkward pause fell across the conversation. Daphne was shifting from foot to foot, not at all certain what to say to the duke, when Nigel exhibited stellar timing for the first time in his life, and sat up.
"Daphne?" he said, blinking as if he couldn't see straight. "Daphne, is that you?"
"Good God, Miss Bridgerton," the duke swore, "how hard did you hit him?"
"Hard enough to knock him down, but no worse than that, I swear!" Her brow furrowed. "Maybe he is drunk."
"Oh, Daphne," Nigel moaned.
The duke crouched next to him, then reeled back, coughing.
"Is he drunk?" Daphne asked.
The duke staggered back. "He must have drunk an entire bottle of whiskey just to get up the nerve to propose."
"Who would have thought I could be so terrifying?" Daphne murmured, thinking of all the men who thought of her as a jolly good friend and nothing more. "How wonderful."
Simon stared at her as if she were insane, then muttered, "I'm not even going to question that statement. ~ Julia Quinn

What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention, and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it. ~ Herbert Simon

Do you see that man?" Isabelle asked, pointing at Simon. Apparently she was talking about him. "That's Simon Lewis, and he is my boyfriend. So if any of you think about trying to hurt him because he's a mundie or - may the Angel have mercy on your soul - pursuing him romantically, I will come after you, I will hunt you down, and I will crush you ~ Cassandra Clare

Writers feel like a middleman, standing with pen in hand over the page. A force greater than me stands above telling me what to write. That may sound romantic, but that's how it feels. ~ Neil Simon

Henry Ford summed it up best. "If I had asked people what they wanted," he said, "they would have said a faster horse." This is the genius of great leadership. Great leaders and great organizations are good at seeing what most of us can't see. ~ Simon Sinek

I was incredibly determined - I wrote short stories, I wrote the beginnings of novels. I wrote a little children's book and sent it to the editor-in-chief of the children's division of Simon and Schuster and she asked me to write a little children's book for a series she was doing. ~ Candace Bushnell

Hire people inspired to achieve something big over people who demand something big before they feel inspired. ~ Simon Sinek