“Siphonophores do not convey the message a favorite theme of unthinking romanticism that nature is but one gigantic whole, all its parts intimately connected and interacting in some higher, ineffable harmony. Nature revels in boundaries and distinctions; we inhabit a universe of structure. But since our universe of structure has evolved historically, it must present us with fuzzy boundaries, where one kind of thing grades into another.” KindWholeUniverseHigherMessagesHarmonyStructureConnectedBoundariesThemeDistinctionGradesRomanticismInteractingIneffableFuzzy Book:The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History Source: The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History
“At some point I started getting published, and experienced a meager knock-kneed standing in the literary world, and I started to get almost everything that many of you graduates are hoping for--except for the money. I got a lot of things that society had promised would make me whole and fulfilled--all the things that the culture tells you, from preschool on, will quiet the throbbing anxiety inside you. I got some stature, the respect of other writers, even a low-grade fame. The culture says these things will save you, as long as you also manage to keep your weight down. But the culture lies.” WorldLongWholeLyingCultureFameQuietAnxietyLowsStandingWeightManageGradesGraduatesFulfilledStaturePreschool Book:Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith Source: Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith