James Randi Quotes

Philosophy is empty if it isn't based on science. Science discovers, philosophy interprets.

It turned out I was pretty good in science. But again, because of the small budget, in science class we couldn't afford to do experiments in order to prove theories. We just believed everything. Actually, I think that class was called Religion. Religion class was always an easy class. All you had to do was suspend the logic and reasoning you were being taught in all the other classes.

Science built the Academy, superstition the Inquisition.

Science, in the broadest sense, includes all reasonable claims to knowledge about ourselves and the world.

Science is the refusal to believe on the basis of hope.

The virtues of science are skepticism and independence of thought.

Generally, TED speakers are believers in the scientific method.

If there is any consistent enemy of science, it is not religion, but irrationalism.

The scientific method," Thomas Henry Huxley once wrote, "is nothing but the normal working of the human mind." That is to say, when the mind is working; that is to say further, when it is engaged in correcting its mistakes. Taking this point of view, we may conclude that science is not physics, biology, or chemistry — is not even a ”subject " — but a moral imperative drawn from a larger narrative whose purpose is to give perspective, balance, and humility to learning.

Science is a way to call the bluff of those who only pretend to knowledge. It is a bulwark against mysticism, against superstition, against religion misapplied to where it has no business being.

The method of scientific investigation is nothing but the expression of the necessary mode of working of the human mind.

Science is a philosophy of discovery; intelligent design is a philosophy of ignorance... Something fundamamental is going on in people's minds when they confront things they don't understnd.

As a scientist, I don't believe anything. Science shouldn't use the word belief. There are things more likely and less likely. Science can say nothing with absolute certainty.

It is in the best interests of civilization and our economy and our nation to understand what objective truths are as revealed by the methods and tools of science.

Skepticism is not an end in itself; it is a tool for the discovery of truths.

It was while teaching philosophy that I saw how easily one can say ... what one wants to say. ... In fact, I became particularly aware if the dangers of speculation ... It's so much easier than digging out the facts. You sit in your office and build a system. But with my training in biology, I felt this kind of undertaking precarious.

The really important thing is learning how to sceptically question and rely on empirical evidence.

A few drops of science will often disinfect an entire barrel full of ignorance and prejudice.

I believe science has a wonderful ability, in an unbiased way, to offer hope to many people who are confused, but it's not the only way to find hope.

Science begets knowledge; opinion, ignorance.

Science at its best is an open-minded method of inquiry, not a belief system.

All policies should be guided by science, not just whose voice is the loudest.

Science is about nothing but getting at the truth, and anything that gets in the way of that diminishes, in my experience, the science.

The scientist is not a person who gives the right answers, he is one who asks the right questions.

I'm a bit of a freak for evidence-based analysis. I strongly believe in data.