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Tell them the universe is too complicated a toy for a sensibly cautious being to play with.

— Larry Niven Ringworld (1970)

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Space

More quotes by Larry Niven

The moral of this story is, anything you don’t understand is dangerous until you do understand it.

Neutron Star (1968)

The Gods do not protect fools. Fools are protected by more capable fools.

Ringworld (1970)

The Unexpected always comes at the most awkward times.

Scatterbrain (2003)

Everything starts as somebody's daydream.

The difference between a good man and a bad one is the choice of cause.

The Legacy of Heorot (1987)

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Since, in the long run, every planetary society will be endangered by impacts from space, every surviving civilization is obliged to become spacefaring — not because of exploratory or romantic zeal, but for the most practical reason imaginable: staying alive.

Carl Sagan Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space (1994)

The stars awaken a certain reverence, because though always present, they are inaccessible; but all natural objects make a kindred impression, when the mind is open to their influence. Nature never wears a mean appearance.

Ralph Waldo Emerson Nature (1836)

Her blue eyes sought the west afar,
For lovers love the western star.

Walter Scott The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805)

Einstein's space is no closer to reality than Van Gogh's sky.

Arthur Koestler The Act of Creation (1964)

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Larry Niven (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.