You Know Only Insofar As You Can

[referring To Fourier's Mathematical Theory Of The Conduction Of Heat] ... Fourier's Great Mathematical Poem.

I Have Not Had A Moment's Peace Or Happiness In Respect To Electromagnetic Theory Since November 28, 1846. All This Time I Have Been Liable To Fits Of Ether Dipsomania, Kept Away At Intervals Only By Rigorous Abstention From Thought On The Subject.

It Is Conceivable That Animal Life Might Have The Attribute Of Using The Heat Of Surrounding Matter, At Its Natural Temperature, As A Source Of Energy For Mechanical Effect . . . .the Influence Of Animal Or Vegetable Life On Matter Is Infinitely Beyond The Range Of Any Scientific Enquiry Hitherto Entered On. Its Power Of Directing The Motions Of Moving Particles, In The Demonstrated Daily Miracle Of Our Human Free-will, And In The Growth Of Generation After Generation Of Plants From A Single Seed, Are Infinitely Different From Any Possible Result Of The Fortuitous Concurrence Of Atoms.

Suppose That You Could Mark The Molecules In A Glass Of Water; Then Pour The Contents Of The Glass Into The Ocean And Stir The Latter Throughly So As To Distribute The Marked Molecules Uniformly Throughout The Seven Seas; If Then You Took A Glass Of Water Anywhere Out Of The Ocean, You Would Find In It About A Hundred Of Your Marked Molecules.

Large Increases In Cost With Questionable Increases In Performance Can Be Tolerated Only In Race Horses And Fancy Women.