Many kinds of men devote themselves to Science, and not all for the sake of Science herself. There are some who come into her temple because it offers them the opportunity to display their particular talents. To this class of men science is a kind of sport in the practice of which they exult, just as an athlete exults in the exercise of his muscular prowess. There is another class of men who come into the temple to make an offering of their brain pulp in the hope of securing a profitable return. These men are scientists only by the chance of some circumstance which offered itself when making a choice of career. If the attending circumstance had been different they might become politicians or captains of business. Should an angel of God descend and drive from the Temple of Science all those who belong to the categories I have mentioned, I fear the temple would be nearly emptied. But a few worshipers would still remain...Let us fix our gaze on those who have found favour with the angel. For the most part, they are strange, taciturn and lonely fellows...What has led them to devote their lives to the pursuit of science? Personally I am inclined to agree with Schopenhauer in thinking that one of the strongest motives that lead people to give their lives to arts and sciences is the urge to flee from everyday life, with its drab and deadly dullness, and thus to unshackle the chains of one's own transient desires...
But to this negative motive a positive one must be added. Human nature has always tried to form for itself a simple and synoptic imagine of the surrounding world.
- Max Karl Ernst Ludwig Planck (1858-1947)
