The Quotation IndexThe trusted reference for quotations and the sources behind them
Tag Tag Scientific integrity
The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool.
Richard Feynman Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! · 1985

Quotes

“We’ve learned from experience that the truth will come out. Other experimenters will repeat your experiment and find out whether you were wrong or right. Nature’s phenomena will agree or they’ll disagree with your theory. And, although you may gain some temporary fame and excitement, you will not gain a good reputation as a scientist if you haven’t tried to be very careful in this kind of work.”

Richard Feynman · Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!, 1985 · Primary source

“The only way to have real success in science, the field I’m familiar with, is to describe the evidence very carefully without regard to the way you feel it should be. If you have a theory, you must try to explain what’s good and what’s bad about it equally. In science, you learn a kind of standard integrity and honesty.”

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

“By honest I don’t mean that you only tell what’s true. But you make clear the entire situation. You make clear all the information that is required for somebody else who is intelligent to make up their mind.”

Richard Feynman · The Meaning of It All, 1998 · Primary source

Related Tags

Self-deception 6 Bias 6 Critical thinking 12 Research ethics 3 Reproducibility 1 Empirical testing 2 Reputation 16 Evidence 18 Theory testing 1 Transparency 2 Disclosure 1 Informed judgement 1