‘Politicians only read books they have written, or those of colleagues they suspect might have mentioned them in their text.’ (JD)
|
… policemen always looked rather out of place in the presence of literature. (JD)
… a librarian must be prepared for any eventuality, including terrorists. When in doubt strike first, making certain no valuable volumes are harmed …. (JD)
‘The search for the truth might be flawed, but the search itself is priceless.’ (JD)
… you didn’t argue with a man with an axe, no matter how wise he seemed. (JD)
‘Nobody can tell wizards what to do – except of course other wizards! And even then they will argue and find fault, hurrah!’ (JD)
… centres of learning are almost always referred to as feminine; rather surprising considering the length of time it took for any women to get into one of them for a purpose higher than scrubbing the floors. (JD)
Biology isn’t just physics and chemistry with knobs on. It’s a whole new world. (JD)
… stupid clever people do much more damage than stupid untutored morons (JD)
… any philosophical remark that begins with ‘I reckon’ was probably unlikely to come up with a world-shattering insight or even a new un-shattered one. (JD)
She called it vamp-till-ready journalism, hanging back until the public position was overwhelming; in that way nobody would get into trouble with the public, or have nasty letters in their in-tray. (JD)
‘You get all sorts of people in the library, and the librarian gets it all…’ (JD)
‘Those who wish to tell us how we should think, and sometimes that we shouldn’t even think at all, must be ignored.’ (JD)
‘… all things must strive, and because we know how ignorant we actually are then we must strive hardest of all.’ (JD)
There appears to be no such thing as a snack in Unseen University. Indeed, the term was used, but you could probably stave off starvation for a week on a university ‘snack’. (JD)
‘… the important thing in life is to know exactly who you are. And I’m mine.’ (JD)
He was, Marjorie considered, one of the most useful people: a house-trained near-nerd, conscientious to the point of insanity but not any further, apparently. (JD)
… anybody who knew the Dewey decimal system by heart was a person not to panic until the situation had been most carefully considered. (JD)
Humans can think inhuman thoughts. (JD)
Scientific revolutions don’t change the universe. They change how humans interpret it. (JD)
Every scientific statement is provisional. Politicians hate this. How can anyone trust scientists? If new evidence comes along, they change their minds. (JD)
… it is the nature of Great Big Things that if the money isn’t spent on them, it isn’t spent on smaller scientific projects either. Small projects don’t advance bureaucratic or political careers as effectively as big ones. (JD)
She called it vamp-till-ready journalism, hanging back until the public position was overwhelming; in that way nobody would get into trouble with the public, or have nasty letters in their in-tray. (JD)She called it vamp-till-ready journalism, hanging back until the public position was overwhelming; in that way nobody would get into trouble with the public, or have nasty letters in their in-tray. (JD)
|
Author
The world has lost Sir Terry, and it's so much the poorer for that. Vale Sir Terry. Categories
All
Archives
March 2023
|
RSS Feed
