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Tag Tag Curiosity
I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.
Albert Einstein Letter to Carl Seelig · 1952

Quotes

“The search for truth is more precious than its possession.”

Albert Einstein · Ideas and Opinions , 1954 · Primary source

“I think a life properly lived is just learn, learn, learn all the time.”

Charlie Munger · 2017 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting, 2017 · Primary source

“The prize is the pleasure of finding the thing out.”

Richard Feynman · Horizon: The Pleasure of Finding Things Out, 1981 · Primary source

“It is, in fact, nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry; for this delicate little plant, aside from stimulation, stands mainly in need of freedom; without this it goes to wrack and ruin without fail.”

Albert Einstein · Autobiographical Notes, 1949 · Primary source

“The thing to do is not to get scared, but to learn.”

Ayn Rand · Atlas Shrugged, 1957 · Primary source

“Never say ‘no’ to adventures.”

Ian Fleming · Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, 1964 · Primary source

“Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“If you cannot read them [books], at any rate handle them and, as it were, fondle them. Peer into them. Let them fall open where they will. Read on from the first sentence that arrests the eye. Then turn to another. Make a voyage of discovery, taking soundings of uncharted seas. Set them back on their shelves with your own hands. Arrange them on your own plan, so that if you do not know what is in them, you at least know where they are. If they cannot be your friends, let them at any rate be your acquaintances. If they cannot enter the circle of your life, do not deny them at least a nod of recognition.”

Winston Churchill · Painting as a Pastime, 1948 · Primary source

“I would study, I would know, I would admire forever.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Harvard Divinity School Address, 1838 · Primary source

“We are by nature observers, and thereby learners. This is our permanent state.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Love, 1841 · Primary source

“I’m afraid that’s the way it [reality] is. If there are twenty factors and they interact some, you’ll have to learn to handle it—because that’s the way the world is. But you won’t find it that hard if you go at it Darwin-like, step by step with curious persistence. You’ll be amazed at how good you can get.”

Charlie Munger · Poor Charlie’s Almanack, 2005 · Primary source

“Just as food eaten without caring for it is turned into loathsome nourishment, so study without a taste for it spoils memory, by retaining nothing which it has taken in.”

Leonardo da Vinci · The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, 1888 · Primary source

“Just as eating against one’s will is injurious to health, so study without a liking for it spoils the memory, and it retains nothing it takes in.”

Leonardo da Vinci · The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, 1888 · Primary source

“I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something.”

Richard Feynman · What Do You Care What Other People Think?, 1986 · Primary source

“No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land.”

Helen Keller · Optimism, 1903 · Primary source

“Life was meant to be lived, and curiosity must be kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life.”

Eleanor Roosevelt · The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt, 1961 · Primary source

“Learning never exhausts the mind.”

Leonardo da Vinci · No reliable source

Works

Albert Einstein · 1952
Letter to Carl Seelig

Einstein's account of his own motivation, attributing his work to persistent curiosity rather than to any unusual natural ability.

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Purpose 31 Experience 30 Courage 25 Initiative 21 Persistence 19 Learning 19 Knowledge 18 Observation 17 Understanding 15 Problem-solving 15 Complexity 15 Reading 14 Fear 12 Motivation 11 Attention 11 Books 10 Self-improvement 9 Optimism 9 Adventure 7 Memory 7 Humility 6 Continuous improvement 6 Discovery 6 Intellectual freedom 5 Talent 5 Self-assessment 5 Self-education 5 Intrinsic motivation 5 Exploration 5 Certainty 4 Lifelong learning 4 Intellectual growth 4 Scientific discovery 4 Growth 4 Rote learning 3 Inquiry 3 Doubt 3 Open-mindedness 3 Libraries 3 Openness 3 Wonder 3 Recognition 3 Scientific method 2 Ignorance 2 Natural order 2 Human nature 2 Charles Darwin 2 Study 2 Nobel Prize 2 Einstein Archives 2 Compulsion in schooling 1 Scientific motivation 1 Systems thinking 1 Mental activity 1 Terminology 1 Conceptual knowledge 1 Engagement 1 Carl Seelig 1