Albert Einstein? Wernher von Braun? Max Planck? Charlie Munger? Ezekiel Landau? Jacob ben Wolf Kranz? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A humorous anecdote describes a brilliant person who has been invited by many organizations to deliver a lecture about their esoteric work. After successfully delivering lectures in multiple venues the person becomes bored and open …
Author Archives: quoteresearch
Motto Origin: Good, Fast, Cheap — Pick Any Two
James M. Wallace? Erwin Frand? Gary Davis? Burt Reynolds? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Buyers always want products to be constructed with the highest quality, manufactured at the fastest speed, and priced at the lowest cost. Frustrated sellers assert that only two of those objectives can be achieved at the same time. The buyer must …
Continue reading “Motto Origin: Good, Fast, Cheap — Pick Any Two”
Slogan Origin: Take Nothing But Pictures. Leave Nothing But Footprints
Museum Sign? Park Sign? Boy Scout Adage? Sierra Club Motto? Spelunkers Adage? Conrad L. Wirth? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Humans are now visiting remote and pristine locations around the globe. People are drawn to beautiful, historic, memorable, scenic, and enigmatic locales. A crucial admonition is impressed on visitors to these significant places. Here are …
Continue reading “Slogan Origin: Take Nothing But Pictures. Leave Nothing But Footprints”
Quote Origin: It Was Only a Sunny Smile, and Little It Cost in the Giving
F. Scott Fitzgerald? Aubrey Grey? Harriett G. Hancock? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A smile can raise the spirits of oneself and others. This thought has been conveyed as follows: It was only a sunny smile, and little it cost in the giving, but like morning light, it scattered the night and made the …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: It Was Only a Sunny Smile, and Little It Cost in the Giving”
Quote Origin: I Never Was Ruined But Twice, Once When I Gained a Lawsuit, and Once When I Lost It
Voltaire? Mark Twain? Richard Brinsley Sheridan? John Bright? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Legal conflicts are extraordinarily expensive and time-consuming for all the participants. Even the winner of a lawsuit can suffer financially. The ill-fated contender in two legal entanglements once said something like the following. Here are two versions. The word “gained” is …
Quote Origin: Life Is Not Complex. We Are Complex. Life Is Simple, and the Simple Thing Is the Right Thing
Oscar Wilde? Robert Ross? Rudolf Flesch? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Modern life seems to be extremely complicated, but the underlying principles of a worthwhile life are quite simple. I am reminded of the following quotation: Life is not complex. We are complex. Life is simple, and the simple thing is the right thing. These …
Quote Origin: If Our American Way of Life Fails the Child, It Fails Us All
Pearl S. Buck? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The following statement has been attributed to the prominent U.S. writer Pearl S. Buck: If our American way of life fails the child, it fails us all. Would you please help me to find the context of this remark together with a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: If Our American Way of Life Fails the Child, It Fails Us All”
Quote Origin: We Live in a Science Fiction Age. Yesterday’s Fantasy Is Already Today’s Fact
Isaac Asimov? Leonard Nimoy? Allen Ginsberg? Jane Kramer? Donald A. Wollheim? Chester Whitehorn? Ric Ocasek? Greg Hawkes? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Nowadays technological changes are occurring with vertiginous rapidity, and I am reminded of statements like these: We live in a science-fiction age. Yesterday’s fantasy is already today’s fact. There’s nothing to be learned …
Quote Origin: Look for Three Qualities: Integrity, Intelligence and Energy. And If They Don’t Have the First, the Other Two Will Kill You
Warren Buffett? Anonymous? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Famous U.S. investor Warren Buffett once described the three traits he looked for in new employees. A worker should have integrity, intelligence, and energy. Apparently, Buffett believed that the first trait was crucial because its absence would cause the other two traits to kill a business. Would …
Quote Origin: Measure Their Progress, Not From the Heights to Which They May In Time Attain, But From the Depths From Which They Have Come
Frederick Douglass? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Whenever a person is being evaluated it is necessary to consider the adversities that have impeded their progress. One should measure the heights achieved, but one should also consider the original challenging depths experienced by an individual. The famous orator Frederick Douglass said something like this. Would you …