Whenever a system of communication evolves, there is always the danger that some will exploit the system for their own ends. - Richard Dawkins

... the true utility function of life, that which is being maximised in the natural world, is DNA survival. But DNA is not floating free; it is locked up in living bodies and it has made the most of the levers of power at its disposal.

The habit of questioning authority is one of the most valuable gifts that a book, or a teacher, can give a young would-be scientist.

Reason has built the modern world. It is a precious but also a fragile thing, which can be corroded by apparently harmless irrationality. We must favor verifiable evidence over private feeling. Otherwise we leave ourselves vulnerable to those who would obscure the truth.