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External Forces Quotes

Browse 35 quotes about External Forces.

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External Forces Quotes

“In the American hemisphere the cause of freedom and independence has continued to prevail, and if signalized by none of those splendid triumphs which had crowned with glory some of the preceding years it has only been from the banishment of all external force against which the struggle had been maintained. The shout of victory has been superseded by the expulsion of the enemy over whom it could have been achieved.”

IfsYearsHas BeensForceCausesEnemyStruggleVictoryGloryIndependenceTriumphCould Have BeenSplendidHemisphereExpulsionBanishmentExternal Forces
Book:John Quincy Adams, 1767-1848; chronology, documents, bibliographical aids
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“A complete theory of evolution must acknowledge a balance between "external" forces of environment imposing selection for local adaptation and "internal" forces representing constraints of inheritance and development. Vavilov placed too much emphasis on internal constraints and downgraded the power of selection. But Western Darwinians have erred equally in practically ignoring (while acknowledging in theory) the limits placed on selection by structure and development what Vavilov and the older biologists would have called "laws of form.”

FormLawForceEnvironmentToo MuchTheoryDevelopmentEvolutionBalanceLimitsStructureWesternLocalsAcknowledgeInternalsEmphasisSelectionAdaptationInheritanceConstraintsRepresentingImposingBiologistTheory Of EvolutionExternal Forces
Book:Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes: Further Reflections in Natural History
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“I wish my life and decisions to depend upon myself, not on external forces of whatever kind. I wish to be the instrument of my own, not other men's, acts of will. I wish to be the subject, not an object...I wish to be somebody, not nobody; a doer - deciding, not being decided for, slef-directed and not acted upon by external nature or by other men as if I were a thing, or an animal, or a slave incapable of playing a human role, that is, of conceiving goals and policies of my own and realizing them.”

IfsMenHumansKindForceWishGoalRealizingMy OwnDecisionAnimalRolesSubjectsPolicyObjectsDependsDecidedInstrumentsSlaveIncapableDoersConceivingExternal Forces
Author:Isaiah Berlin
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“Man is a machine which reacts blindly to external forces and, this being so, he has no will, and very little control of himself, if any at all. What we have to study, therefore, is not psychology-for that applies only to a developed man-but mechanics. Man is not only a machine but a machine which works very much below the standard it would be capable of maintaining if it were working properly.”

IfsMenLittlesWould BeForceStudyPsychologyCapableStandardsMachinesMechanicMaintainingExternal Forces
Author:P.D. Ouspensky
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“There are two big forces at work, external and internal. We have very little control over external forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, disasters, illness and pain. What really matters is the internal force. How do I respond to those disasters? Over that I have complete control.”

LittlesTwoMatterBigsPainForceWorkAttitudePositiveGratitudeIllnessDisasterPositive AttitudeInternalsFloodEarthquakesTornadoesExternal Forces
Book:LIVING, LOVING & LEARNING
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“Civilization is to groups what intelligence is to individuals. It is a means of combining the intelligence of many to achieve ongoing group adaptation. Civilization, like intelligence, may serve well, serve adequately, or fail to serve its adaptive function. When civilization fails to serve, it must disintegrate unless it is acted upon by unifying internal or external forces.”

WellsMayMeanIndividualForceFailingGroupsAchieveCivilizationFunctionIntelligenceInternalsAdaptationOngoingCombiningUnifyingAdaptiveExternal Forces
Book:Earthseed: The Complete Series
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“There is also purpose in life which is almost barren of both creation and enjoyment and which admits of but one possibility of high moral behavior: namely, in man's attitude to his existence, an existence restricted by external forces.”

MenLifePurposeForceExistenceAttitudeMoralCreationPossibilityBehaviorEnjoymentPurpose Of LifeBarrenSearch For MeaningMans Search For MeaningExternal ForcesMoral Behavior
Book:Man's Search for Meaning
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“If outside forces and culture were the reasons behind declining and non-influential churches, we would likely have no churches today. The greatest periods of growth, particularly the first-century growth, took place in adversarial cultures. We are not hindered by external forces; we are hindered by our own lack of commitment and selflessness.”

IfsFirstsReasonTodayCultureForceGrowthChurchBehindsCenturyPeriodsCommitmentSelflessnessInfluentialChurch TodayExternal ForcesLack Of Commitment
Author:Thom S. Rainer
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“Believers often forget that most atheists used to be religious, that many non-believers used to think they had a personal relationship with their God and they used to 'feel' the power of prayer. They've since learned that it was all a farce, that their feelings were internal emotions and not some external force.”

ThinkingFeelsFeelingsUsedForceReligiousPrayerForgetEmotionAtheistBelieverUsed To BeInternalsPersonal RelationshipsFarceNon BelieverExternal Forces
Author:David G. McAfee
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“In the magical universe there are no coincidences and there are no accidents. Nothing happens unless someone wills it to happen. The dogma of science is that the will cannot possibly affect external forces, and I think that’s just ridiculous. It’s as bad as the church. My viewpoint is the exact contrary of the scientific viewpoint. I believe that if you run into somebody in the street it’s for a reason.”

IfsThinkingBelieveReasonHappensRunningUniverseForceI BelieveChurchStreetsAccidentsContraryRidiculousThings HappenDogmaCoincidenceViewpointsExternal Forces
Author:William S. Burroughs
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“When he tries to extend his power over objects, those objects gain control of him. He who is controlled by objects loses possession of his inner self... Prisoners in the world of object, they have no choice but to submit to the demands of matter! They are pressed down and crushed by external forces: fashion, the market, events, public opinion. Never in a whole lifetime do they recover their right mind!... What a pity!”

WorldTryingMindSelfMatterWholeChoicesForceLosesOpinionFashionEventsObjectsDemandGainsDown AndLifetimePossessionWhole LifePityControlledPrisonerSubmitPublic OpinionCrushedInner SelfExternal Forces
Author:Zhuangzi
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“Organisms are not billiard balls, propelled by simple and measurable external forces to predictable new positions on life's pool table. Sufficiently complex systems have greater richness. Organisms have a history that constrains their future in myriad, subtle ways.”

WayForceSimpleGreaterPositionBallsTablesComplexesSubtlePoolOrganismsRichnessPredictableConstrainComplex SystemsExternal ForcesNew PositionPool Table
Book:The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History
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“It is true that water will flow indifferently to east and west, but will it flow equally well up and down? Human nature is disposed toward goodness, just as water tends to flow downwards. There is no water but flows downwards, and no man but shows his tendency to be good. Now, by striking water hard, you may splash it higher than your forehead, and by damming it, you may make it go uphill. But, is that the nature of water? It is external force that causes it to do so. Likewise, if a man is made to do what is not good, his nature is being similarly forced.”

IfsMenHumansWellsMayMadeHardShowsForceCausesWaterHuman NatureHigherGoodnessFlowWestEastBe GoodTendenciesUp And DownForeheadsEast And WestExternal Forces
Author:Mencius
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