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    There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still have to prove our worth anew each day: we have to prove that we are as good today as we were yesterday. But when we have a valid alibi for not achieving anything we are fixed, so to speak, for life. Moreover, when we have an alibi for not writing a book, painting a picture, and so on, we have an alibi for not writing the greatest book and not painting the greatest picture. Small wonder that the effort expended and the punishment endured in obtaining a good alibi often exceed the effort and grief requisite for the attainment of a most marked achievement.

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  18  /  12  

Dare to be wrong and to dream.

Dare to be wrong and to dream.

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  17  /  24  

...it is curiosity, initiative, originality, and the ruthless application of honesty that count in research- much more than feats of read more

...it is curiosity, initiative, originality, and the ruthless application of honesty that count in research- much more than feats of logic and memory alone.

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I know how men in exile feed on dreams.

I know how men in exile feed on dreams.

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  48  /  31  

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

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  6  /  12  

To know truly is to know by causes.

To know truly is to know by causes.

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  14  /  10  

It's amazing how much "mature wisdom" resembles being too tired.

It's amazing how much "mature wisdom" resembles being too tired.

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  6  /  11  

I don't use drugs, my dreams are frightening enough.

I don't use drugs, my dreams are frightening enough.

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  6  /  9  

Considering the enormous range of human knowledge, from intimate personal knowledge of specific individuals to the complexities of organizations and read more

Considering the enormous range of human knowledge, from intimate personal knowledge of specific individuals to the complexities of organizations and the subtleties of feelings, it is remarkable that one speck in this firmament should be the sole determinant of whether someone is considered knowledgeable or ignorant in general. Yet it is a fact of life that an unlettered person is considered ignorant, however much he may know about nature and man, and a Ph.D. is never considered ignorant, however barren his mind might be outside his narrow specialty and however little he grasps about human feeling or social complexities.

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  6  /  11  

Being intelligent is not a felony. But most societies evaluate it as at least a misdemeanor.

Being intelligent is not a felony. But most societies evaluate it as at least a misdemeanor.

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