In some ways, I had a traditional ‘old South’ upbringing, meaning that I spent some time in a military school, and acquired an
E. O. WILSONIn some ways, I had a traditional ‘old South’ upbringing, meaning that I spent some time in a military school, and acquired an
E. O. WILSONOur brain is mapping the world. Often that map is distorted, but it’s a map with constant immediate sensory input.
E. O. WILSONNature holds the key to our aesthetic, intellectual, cognitive and even spiritual satisfaction.
E. O. WILSONEvery kid has a bug period… I never grew out of mine.
E. O. WILSONA very Faustian choice is upon us: whether to accept our corrosive and risky behavior as the unavoidable price of population and economic growth, or to take stock of ourselves and search for a new environmental ethic.
E. O. WILSONBy any reasonable measure of achievement, the faith of the Enlightenment thinkers in science was justified.
E. O. WILSONOne thing I did was grow up as an ardent naturalist. I never grew out of my bug period.
E. O. WILSONAnts have the most complicated social organization on earth next to humans.
E. O. WILSONAim high. Behave honorably. Prepare to be alone at times, and to endure failure.
E. O. WILSONReligious beliefs evolved by group-selection, tribe competing against tribe, and the illogic of religions is not a weakness but their essential strength.
E. O. WILSONIf all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago.
E. O. WILSONCompeting is intense among humans, and within a group, selfish individuals always win. But in contests between groups, groups of altruists always beat groups of selfish individuals.
E. O. WILSONThe world depends on fungi, because they are major players in the cycling of materials and energy around the world.
E. O. WILSONPeople need a sacred narrative. They must have a sense of larger purpose, in one form or another, however intellectualized. They will find a way to keep ancestral spirits alive.
E. O. WILSONIf those committed to the quest fail, they will be forgiven. When lost, they will find another way.
E. O. WILSONBlind faith, no matter how passionately expressed, will not suffice.
E. O. WILSON