My own prejudices are exactly the opposite of the functionalists': "If you want to understand function, study structure". Francis Crick More Quotes by Francis Crick More Quotes From Francis Crick There is no scientific study more vital to man than the study of his own brain. Our entire view of the universe depends on it. Francis Crick views men science The dangerous man is the one who has only one idea, because then he'll fight and die for it. Francis Crick fighting men ideas It is essential to understand our brains in some detail if we are to assess correctly our place in this vast and complicated universe we see all around us. Francis Crick details essentials brain Avoid the temptation to work so hard that there is no time left for serious thinking. Francis Crick serious temptation thinking A good scientist values criticism almost higher than friendship: no, in science criticism is the height and measure of friendship. Francis Crick height scientist criticism A theory should not attempt to explain all the facts, because some of the facts are wrong Francis Crick theory should facts Consciousness is somehow a by-product of the simultaneous, high frequency firing of neurons in different parts of the brain. It's the meshing of these frequencies that generates consciousness, just as tones from individual instruments produce the rich, complex, & seamless sounds of a symphony orchestra Francis Crick symphony inspiration brain Since I essentially knew nothing, I had an almost completely free choice. Francis Crick free-choice choices Christianity may be OK between consenting adults in private but should not be taught to young children. Francis Crick christian-education children religion To produce a really good biological theory one must try to see through the clutter produced by evolution to the basic mechanisms lying beneath them, realizing that they are likely to be overlaid by other, secondary mechanisms. What seems to physicists to be a hopelessly complicated process may have been what nature found simplest, because nature could only build on what was already there. Francis Crick nature science lying The ultimate aim of the modern movement in biology is in fact to explain all biology in terms of physics and chemistry. Francis Crick chemistry movement facts If revealed religions have revealed anything it is that they are usually wrong. Francis Crick positive-atheism atheist ifs Biologists must constantly keep in mind that what they see was not designed, but rather evolved. Francis Crick origin-of-life mind science While Occam's razor is a useful tool in the physical sciences, it can be a very dangerous implement in biology. It is thus very rash to use simplicity and elegance as a guide in biological research. Francis Crick simplicity tools use The major credit I think Jim and I deserve is for selecting the right problem and sticking to it. It's true that by blundering about we stumbled on gold, but the fact remains that we were looking for gold. Francis Crick vision gold thinking It is not easy to convey, unless one has experienced it, the dramatic feeling of sudden enlightenment that floods the mind when the right idea finally clicks into place. One immediately sees how many previously puzzling facts are neatly explained by the new hypothesis. One could kick oneself for not having the idea earlier, it now seems so obvious. Yet before, everything was in a fog. Francis Crick fog feelings ideas One of the most frightening things in the Western world, and in this country in particular, is the number of people who believe in things that are scientifically false. If someone tells me that the earth is less than 10,000 years old, in my opinion he should see a psychiatrist. Francis Crick believe country years A busy life is a wasted life. Francis Crick busy life science Chance is the only source of true novelty. Francis Crick novelty life science The balance of evidence both from the cell-free system and from the study of mutation, suggests that this does not occur at random, and that triplets coding the same amino acid may well be rather similar. Francis Crick balance cells doe
