Quote of the Day (William James, on Life as a ‘Mass of Habits’)

“Our virtues are habits as much as our vices. All our life, so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits,—practical, emotional, and intellectual,—systematically organized for our weal or woe, and bearing us irresistibly toward our destiny, whatever the latter may be.” —American philosopher William James (1842-1910), The Principles of Psychology (1890)

Quote of the Day (Matthew Arnold, on ‘The Only Secret of Style’)

“People think that I can teach them style. What stuff it all is! Have something to say and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret of style.” —English critic-poet Matthew Arnold (1822-1888), quoted in G. W. E. Russell, Collections and Recollections (1904)

Quote of the Day (Ralph Waldo Emerson, on Beauty)

“Wherever snow falls or water flows or birds fly, wherever day and night meet in twilight, wherever the blue heaven is hung by clouds or sown with stars, wherever are forms with transparent boundaries, wherever are outlets into celestial space, wherever is danger, and awe, and love, — there is Beauty, plenteous as rain, shed for thee, and though thou shouldest walk the world over, thou shalt not be able to find a condition inopportune or ignoble.”— American philosopher, essayist, and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), “The Poet,” in Essays: Second Series (1844)

Quote of the Day (Martin Luther King Jr., on God’s Laws ‘Planted in the Fiber of the Universe’)

“God has planted in the fiber of the universe certain eternal laws which forever confront every man. They are absolute and not relative. There is an eternal and absolute distinction between right and wrong.” — American civil-rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), qualifying examination answers, “Theology of the Bible,” quoted in The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume II: Rediscovering Precious Values, July 1951-November 1955 (Senior Editor: Clayborne Carson; Volume Editors: Ralph E. Luker, Penny A. Russell, and Pete Holloran), 1994

Spiritual Quote of the Day (Abraham Joshua Heschel, on the Prophet Vs. His Corrupt Society)

“The prophet…said No to his society, condemning its habits and assumptions, its complacency, waywardness, and syncretism. He was often compelled to proclaim the very opposite of what his heart expected. His fundamental objective was to reconcile man and God. Why do the two need reconciliation? Perhaps it is due to man's false sense of sovereignty, to his abuse of freedom, to his aggressive, sprawling pride, resenting God's involvement in history.”— Polish-born American Jewish theologian Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972), The Prophets (1962)

Quote of the Day (Bill Nye, on the Uniqueness of Knots)

“Every knot is… its own little lesson in symmetry and the distribution of forces — a microcosm of mathematical elegance....Like mathematical equations, knots come in almost endless variations that may look superficially similar but have wildly different properties. Some are nearly impossible to untie, others look strong but easily slip apart, still others will easily but nearly unbreakably join two separate pieces of cord.”—“Science Guy” Bill Nye, Everything All at Once: How to Unleash Your Inner Nerd, Tap into Radical Curiosity, and Solve Any Problem (2017)

The photo accompanying this post, showing Bill Nye in his trademark blue lab coat and bowtie, was taken at the Natural Products Expo West 2010 on March 11, 2010, by lifescript and posted on Flickr. 

TV Quote of the Day (‘Arrested Development,’ on Why People Really Hate Hospitals)

Lucille Bluth [played by Jessica Walter]: “I'll be in the hospital bar.”

Michael Bluth [played by Jason Bateman]: “Uh, you know there isn't a hospital bar, Mother.”

Lucille: “Well, this is why people hate hospitals.” —Arrested Development, Season 1, Episode 4, "Key Decisions," original air date Nov. 23, 2003, teleplay by Brad Copeland, directed by Anthony Russo