“Ask always for proofs; proof is the elementary politeness we owe one another.”

Original: Demandez toujours des preuves, la preuve est la politesse élémentaire qu'on se doit. — Evidence is treated not merely as a logical requirement but as a form of respect between people. · Monsieur Teste (French)

• Courtesy
• Evidence
• Reason

“A competent man is a man who makes mistakes according to the rules.”

Original: Un homme compétent est un homme qui se trompe selon les règles. — A dry distinction between genuine competence and the illusion of being infallible. · Mauvaises pensées et autres (French)

• Competence
• Error
• Work

“The intelligence of Newton lay in saying that the moon falls, although everyone can see that it does not.”

Original: Le génie de Newton a consisté à dire que la lune tombe alors que tout le monde voit bien qu'elle ne tombe pas. — Scientific genius can consist in seeing a deeper reality beneath an apparently obvious fact. · Cahiers (French)

• Genius
• Perception
• Science