Nightingale, Florence (1820-1910)
[Of her:]
Her
statistics were more
than a study, they
were indeed her
religion. For her
Quetelet was the
hero as scientist,
and the presentation
copy of his Physique
sociale is annotated
by her on every
page. Florence
Nightingale believed
-- and in all the
actions of her life
acted upon that
belief -- that the
administrator could
only be successful
if he were guided by
statistical
knowledge. The
legislator -- to say
nothing of the
politician -- too
often failed for
want of this
knowledge. Nay, she
went further; she
held that the
universe --
including human
communities -- was
evolving in
accordance with a
divine plan; that it
was man's business
to endeavor to
understand this plan
and guide his
actions in sympathy
with it. But to
understand God's
thoughts, she held
we must study
statistics, for
these are the
measure of His
purpose. Thus the
study of statistics
was for her a
religious duty.
K. Pearson, The
Life, Letters and
Labours for Francis
Galton, vol. 2,
1924.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)
[His epitaph:]
Who, by vigor of
mind almost divine,
the motions and
figures of the
planets, the paths
of comets, and the
tides of the seas
first demonstrated.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)
The latest authors, like the most ancient, strove to subordinate the phenomena of nature to the laws of mathematics.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)
The description of right lines and circles, upon which geometry is founded, belongs to mechanics. Geometry does not teach us to draw these lines, but requires them to be drawn.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)
Hypotheses non fingo.
I feign no hypotheses.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)
To explain all
nature is too
difficult a task for
any one man or even
for any one age.
'Tis much better to
do a little with
certainty, and leave
the rest for others
that come after you,
than to explain all
things.
In G. Simmons,
Calculus Gems, New
York: McGraw Hill
Inc., 1992.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)
[F]rom the same
principles, I now
demonstrate the
frame of the System
of the World.
Newman, James R.
Games are among the most interesting creations of the human mind, and the analysis of their structure is full of adventure and surprises. Unfortunately there is never a lack of mathematicians for the job of transforming delectable ingredients into a dish that tastes like a damp blanket.
In J. R. Newman (ed.) The World of Mathematics, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1956.
Newman, James R.
The Theory of Groups is a branch of mathematics in which one does something to something and then compares the result with the result obtained from doing the same thing to something else, or something else to the same thing.
In J. R. Newman (ed.) The World of Mathematics, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1956.
Newman, James R.
To be sure, mathematics can be extended to any branch of knowledge, including economics, provided the concepts are so clearly defined as to permit accurate symbolic representation. That is only another way of saying that in some branches of discourse it is desirable to know what you are talking about.
In J. R. Newman (ed.) The World of Mathematics, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1956.