Wordle Word Art: 200 Einstein Quotations

JF Ptak Science Books LLC   Post 251

My thanks to Jeff De Cagna for the suggestion of Wordle-ing a favorite Einstein quotation--its a fine idea.  What I've done is take 200 or so quotes and made one large file of them and fed it into the Wordle-izer with the following results (below)  Again Wordle weights words in size according to the number of times it appears in a document, so the resulting image is a wort of word map, a lay of the land if you will of this collection of quotes, showing the words most often used by Einstein (at least in the quotes that I have selected).  The longish quote list is below in the continue reading section(unfortunately without source attribution). 
Clicking on the image will enlarge it and make it clearer.

It is interesting to note that the largest word here seems to be "can", followed closely by "one", which I think is really another way of his saying "you" or "us" or "we"--so, we get "you can" or "we can" or "one can", speaking to the possibility of possibility, of effort, of moving forward, of trying.  Imagination, effort, thought, creation--that's what the man was all about, and I think that's what we see in this word map. 

Albert Einstein Quotations:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

A man should look for what is, and not   for what he thinks should be.

A perfection of means, and confusion of   aims, seems to be our main problem.

A person who never made a mistake never   tried anything new.

A question that sometimes drives me hazy:   am I or are the others crazy?

A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a   violin; what else does a man need to be happy?

All religions, arts and sciences are   branches of the same tree.

All that is valuable in human society   depends upon the opportunity for development accorded the individual.

All these primary impulses, not easily   described in words, are the springs of man's actions.

An empty stomach is not a good political   adviser.

Anger dwells only in the bosom of fools.

Any fool can make things bigger, more   complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage   - to move in the opposite direction.

Any intelligent fool can make things   bigger and more complex... It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage   to move in the opposite direction.

Any man who can drive safely while   kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the kiss the attention it   deserves.

Any man who reads too much and uses his   own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking.

Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously   in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either.

Anyone who has never made a mistake has   never tried anything new.

As far as I'm concerned, I prefer silent   vice to ostentatious virtue.

As far as the laws of mathematics refer   to reality, they are not certain, and as far as they are certain, they do not   refer to reality.

Before God we are all equally wise - and   equally foolish.

Common sense is the collection of   prejudices acquired by age eighteen.

Concern for man and his fate must always   form the chief interest of all technical endeavors. Never forget this in the   midst of your diagrams and equations.

Confusion of goals and perfection of   means seems, in my opinion, to characterize our age.

Do not worry about your difficulties in   Mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater.

Education is what remains after one has   forgotten what one has learned in school.

Everyone should be respected as an   individual, but no one idolized.

Everything should be as simple as it is,   but not simpler.

Everything should be made as simple as   possible, but not simpler.

Everything that can be counted does not   necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted.

Few are those who see with their own eyes   and feel with their own hearts.

Few people are capable of expressing with   equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social   environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions.

Force always attracts men of low   morality.

God always takes the simplest way.

God does not play dice.

God may be subtle, but he isn't plain   mean.

Gravitation is not responsible for people   falling in love.

Great spirits have always encountered   violent opposition from mediocre minds.

He who can no longer pause to wonder and   stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.

He who joyfully marches in rank and file   has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake,   since for him the spinal cord would suffice.

He who joyfully marches to music in rank   and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by   mistake, since for him the spinal cord would suffice.

Heroism on command, senseless violence,   and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism - how   passionately I hate them!

Human beings must have action; and they   will make it if they cannot find it.

I am a deeply religious nonbeliever -   this is a somewhat new kind of religion.

I am enough of an artist to draw freely   upon my imagination.

I am enough of an artist to draw freely   upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge   is limited. Imagination encircles the world.

I am not only a pacifist but a militant   pacifist. I am willing to fight for peace. Nothing will end war unless the   people themselves refuse to go to war.

I believe that a simple and unassuming   manner of life is best for everyone, best both for the body and the mind.

I cannot imagine a God who rewards and   punishes the objects of his creation and is but a reflection of human   frailty.

I do not believe in immortality of the   individual, and I consider ethics to be an exclusively human concern with no   superhuman authority behind it.

I do not believe in the God of theology   who rewards good and punishes evil.

I do not believe that civilization will   be wiped out in a war fought with the atomic bomb. Perhaps two-thirds of the   people of the earth will be killed.

I have just got a new theory of eternity.

I have no special talent. I am only   passionately curious.

I know not with what weapons World War   III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.

I live in that solitude which is painful   in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity.

I never think of the future - it comes   soon enough.

I shall never believe that God plays dice   with the world.

I think and think for months and years.   Ninety-nine times, the conclusion is false. The hundredth time I am right.

I used to go away for weeks in a state of   confusion.

I want to know all Gods thoughts; all the   rest are just details.

If people are good only because they fear   punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed.

If the facts don't fit the theory, change   the facts.

If we knew what it was we were doing, it   would not be called research, would it?

If you are out to describe the truth,   leave elegance to the tailor.

If you can't explain it simply, you don't   understand it well enough.

Imagination is everything. It is the   preview of life's coming attractions.

Imagination is more important than   knowledge.

In matters of truth and justice, there is   no difference between large and small problems, for issues concerning the   treatment of people are all the same.

In order to be an immaculate member of a   flock of sheep, one must above all be a sheep oneself.

Information is not knowledge.

Insanity: doing the same thing over and   over again and expecting different results.

Intellectual growth should commence at   birth and cease only at death.

Intellectuals solve problems, geniuses   prevent them.

Isn't it strange that I who have written   only unpopular books should be such a popular fellow?

It gives me great pleasure indeed to see   the stubbornness of an incorrigible nonconformist warmly acclaimed.

It has become appallingly obvious that   our technology has exceeded our humanity.

It is a miracle that curiosity survives   formal education.

It is my conviction that killing under   the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder.

It is only to the individual that a soul   is given.

It is strange to be known so universally   and yet to be so lonely.

It is the supreme art of the teacher to   awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.

It should be possible to explain the laws   of physics to a barmaid.

It stands to the everlasting credit of   science that by acting on the human mind it has overcome man's insecurity   before himself and before nature.

It was the experience of mystery - even   if mixed with fear - that engendered religion.

It's not that I'm so smart, it's just   that I stay with problems longer.

Joy in looking and comprehending is   nature's most beautiful gift.

Knowledge of what is does not open the   door directly to what should be.

Learn from yesterday, live for today,   hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.

Let every man be respected as an   individual and no man idolized.

Logic will get you from A to B.   Imagination will take you everywhere.

Look deep into nature, and then you will   understand everything better.

Love is a better teacher than duty.

Make everything as simple as possible,   but not simpler.

Memory is deceptive because it is colored   by today's events.

Morality is of the highest importance -   but for us, not for God.

Most of the fundamental ideas of science   are essentially simple, and may, as a rule, be expressed in a language   comprehensible to everyone.

Most people say that is it is the   intellect which makes a great scientist. They are wrong: it is character.

My religion consists of a humble   admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the   slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.

Nationalism is an infantile disease. It   is the measles of mankind.

Nationalism is an infantile sickness. It   is the measles of the human race.

Never do anything against conscience even   if the state demands it.

Never lose a holy curiosity.

No amount of experimentation can ever   prove me right; a single experiment can prove me wrong.

No problem can be solved from the same   level of consciousness that created it.

Not everything that can be counted   counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.

Nothing is more destructive of respect   for the government and the law of the land than passing laws which cannot be   enforced.

Occurrences in this domain are beyond the   reach of exact prediction because of the variety of factors in operation, not   because of any lack of order in nature.

Once we accept our limits, we go beyond   them.

One may say the eternal mystery of the   world is its comprehensibility.

One strength of the communist system of   the East is that it has some of the character of a religion and inspires the   emotions of a religion.

Only a life lived for others is a life   worthwhile.

Only one who devotes himself to a cause   with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason   mastery demands all of a person.

Only two things are infinite, the   universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.

Our task must be to free ourselves by   widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the   whole of nature and its beauty.

Peace cannot be kept by force; it can   only be achieved by understanding.

People love chopping wood. In this   activity one immediately sees results.

Perfection of means and confusion of ends   seem to characterize our age.

Politics is for the present, but an   equation is for eternity.

Pure mathematics is, in its way, the   poetry of logical ideas.

Reading , after a certain age, diverts the mind too much from its creative   pursuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls   into lazy habits of thinking.

Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a   very persistent one.

Science is a wonderful thing if one does   not have to earn one's living at it.

Science without religion is lame,   religion without science is blind.

Small is the number of people who see   with their eyes and think with their minds.

Solitude is painful when one is young,   but delightful when one is more mature.

Sometimes one pays most for the things   one gets for nothing.

Strive not to be a success, but rather to   be of value.

Technological progress is like an axe in   the hands of a pathological criminal.

That deep emotional conviction of the   presence of a superior reasoning power, which is revealed in the   incomprehensible universe, forms my idea of God.

The attempt to combine wisdom and power   has only rarely been successful and then only for a short while.

The devil has put a penalty on all things   we enjoy in life. Either we suffer in health or we suffer in soul or we get   fat.

The difference between stupidity and   genius is that genius has its limits.

The distinction between the past, present   and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.

The environment is everything that isn't   me.

The faster you go, the shorter you are.

The fear of death is the most unjustified   of all fears, for there's no risk of accident for someone who's dead.

The gift of fantasy has meant more to me   than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge.

The grand aim of all science is to cover   the greatest number of empirical facts by logical deduction from the smallest   number of hypotheses or axioms.

The hardest thing to understand in the   world is the income tax.

The high destiny of the individual is to   serve rather than to rule.

The important thing is not to stop   questioning.

The important thing is not to stop   questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.

The man of science is a poor philosopher.

The monotony and solitude of a quiet life   stimulates the creative mind.

The most beautiful thing we can   experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.

The most incomprehensible thing about the   world is that it is comprehensible.

The only real valuable thing is   intuition.

The only reason for time is so that   everything doesn't happen at once.

The only source of knowledge is   experience.

The only thing that interferes with my   learning is my education.

The process of scientific discovery is,   in effect, a continual flight from wonder.

The pursuit of truth and beauty is a   sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our   lives.

The release of atomic energy has not   created a new problem. It has merely made more urgent the necessity of   solving an existing one.

The road to perdition has ever been   accompanied by lip service to an ideal.

The secret to creativity is knowing how   to hide your sources.

The true sign of intelligence is not   knowledge but imagination.

The unleashed power of the atom has   changed everything save our modes of thinking and we thus drift toward   unparalleled catastrophe.

The value of a man should be seen in what   he gives and not in what he is able to receive.

The whole of science is nothing more than   a refinement of everyday thinking.

The world is a dangerous place to live;   not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't   do anything about it.

The world is a dangerous place, not   because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do   nothing.

The world is not dangerous because of   those who do harm but because of those who look at it without doing anything.

There are two ways to live: you can live   as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle.

There comes a time when the mind takes a   higher plane of knowledge but can never prove how it got there.

There could be no fairer destiny for any   physical theory than that it should point the way to a more comprehensive   theory in which it lives on as a limiting case.

There is no logical way to the discovery   of these elemental laws. There is only the way of intuition, which is helped   by a feeling for the order lying behind the appearance.

Things should be made as simple as   possible, but not any simpler.

To raise new questions, new   possibilities, to regard old problems from a new angle, requires creative   imagination and marks real advance in science.

To the Master's honor all must turn, each   in its track, without a sound, forever tracing Newton 's ground.

Too many of us look upon Americans as   dollar chasers. This is a cruel libel, even if it is reiterated thoughtlessly   by the Americans themselves.

True art is characterized by an   irresistible urge in the creative artist.

True religion is real living; living with   all one's soul, with all one's goodness and righteousness.

Try not to become a man of success, but   rather try to become a man of value.

Two things are infinite: the universe and   human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.

We cannot despair of humanity, since we   ourselves are human beings.

We cannot solve our problems with the   same thinking we used when we created them.

We can't solve problems by using the same   kind of thinking we used when we created them.

We shall require a substantially new   manner of thinking if mankind is to survive.

We should take care not to make the   intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality.

We still do not know one thousandth of   one percent of what nature has revealed to us.

Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of   character.

When I examine myself and my methods of   thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to   me than any talent for abstract, positive thinking.

When the solution is simple, God is   answering.

When you are courting a nice girl an hour   seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an   hour. That's relativity.

Whoever is careless with the truth in   small matters cannot be trusted with important matters.

Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a   judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.

Without deep reflection one knows from   daily life that one exists for other people.

You ask me if I keep a notebook to record   my great ideas. I've only ever had one.

You can never solve a problem on the   level on which it was created.