Thomas A. Edison Quotes
We don't know a millionth of one percent about anything.
Edison, Thomas A. The Diary and Sundry Observations of Thomas Alva Edison. Edited by Dagobert D. Runes, Philosophical Library, 1948.
Although most listeners had to spend some time parsing this famous quote, it actually was not a new notion. See Copernicus in linked quotes.
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld over a century later paraphrased this notion in discussing the problem with information from the intelligence agencies.
This statement as with others like it offended the religious authorities of the time as they claimed that they—-The Bible---knew everything important just as fundamentalist Muslims claim today about the Koran. So statements of this kind were considered heresy by some and still are.
press and public affairs officers
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman who has been described as America's greatest inventor. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, which include the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and early versions of the electric light bulb, have had a widespread impact on the modern industrialized world. He was one of the first inventors to apply the principles of organized science and teamwork to the process of invention, working with many researchers and employees. He established the first industrial research laboratory.
