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In mathematics, in science, and in life, we constantly face the delicate, tricky task of separating design from happenstance.

— Ivars Peterson The Jungles of Randomness: A Mathematical Safari (1997)

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More quotes by Ivars Peterson

Most coincidences are simply chance events that turn out to be far more probable than many people imagine.

The Jungles of Randomness: A Mathematical Safari (1997)

More often than not, a piece of mathematics worked out years before—and believed to be totally without practical value—finds a role in the “real” world.

The Mathematical Tourist: New and Updated Snapshots of Modern Mathematics (1998)

Indeed, mathematics is full of conjectures—questions waiting for answers—with no assurance that the answers even exist.

The Jungles of Randomness: A Mathematical Safari (1997)

The aim of science is to reduce the scope of chance.

The Jungles of Randomness: A Mathematical Safari (1997)

The theory of probability combines commonsense reasoning with calculation. It domesticates luck, making it subservient to reason.

The Jungles of Randomness: A Mathematical Safari (1997)

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The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents.

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All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man's life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom.

Albert Einstein Moral Decay (1937)

Science and religion are two human enterprises sharing many features.

Freeman Dyson Infinite in All Directions (1988)

To doubt everything or to believe everything are two equally convenient solutions; both dispense with the necessity of reflection.

Henri Poincaré Science and Hypothesis (1901)

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