“I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death...”
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart...”
Nelson Mandela died today..
Victor: Nobody likes scientists.
Mr. Rzykruski: They like what science gives them, but not the questions, no. Not the questions that science asks.
Victor: [thinks for a second] Actually, I have a question.
Mr. Rzykruski: He, he. That is why you are a scientist.
Victor: I was doing my experiment, my project, and the first time it worked great, but the next time it didn't. I mean, it sort of worked, but then it didn't. And I don't know why.
Mr. Rzykruski: Then maybe you never really understood it the first time. People think science is here [points to his head], but it is also here [places his hand on his chest]. The first time, did you love your experiment?
Victor: Yes. [thinks of Sparky licking his hand]
Mr. Rzykruski: And the second time?
Victor: [Thinks of the invisible fish] No. I just wanted it over.
Mr. Rzykruski: Then you changed the variables.
Victor: I was doing it for the wrong reason.
Mr. Rzykruski: Science is not good or bad, Victor. But it can be used both ways. That is why you must always be careful...
Often referred to as the "Father of Science Fiction," Jules Verne wrote his first novel, Five Weeks in a Balloon, at the age of 35. He went on to be the second most translated author on earth, writing books about a variety of innovations and technological advancements years before they were practical realities...
Did you deliberately try for ambiguity as opposed to a specific meaning for any scene or image?
Stanley Kubrick: No, I didn’t have to try for ambiguity; it was inevitable… But it’s the ambiguity of all art, of a fine piece of music or a painting – you don’t need written instructions by the composer or painter accompanying such works to “explain” them. “Explaining” them contributes nothing but a superficial “cultural” value which has no value except for critics and teachers who have to earn a living. Reactions to art are always different because they are always deeply personal...
