Vera Rubin
In a spiral galaxy, the ratio of dark-to-light matter is about a factor of ten. That's probably a good number for the ratio of our ignorance to knowledge. We're out of kindergarten, but only in about third grade.Collection: Knowledge
I try to do my science in a moral way, and, I believe that, ideally, science should be looked upon as something that helps us understand our role in the universe.Collection: Science
By about age 12, I would prefer to stay up and watch the stars than go to sleep. I started learning. I started going to the library and reading. But it was initially just watching the stars from my bedroom that I really did. There was just nothing as interesting in my life as watching the stars every night.Collection: Age
There is no problem in science that can be solved by a man that cannot be solved by a woman.Collection: Science
Science progresses best when observations force us to alter our preconceptions.Collection: Science
Don't let anyone keep you down for silly reasons such as who you are.
Worldwide, half of all brains are in women.
The conclusion is inescapable that non-luminous matter exists beyond the optical galaxy.
So important is this dark matter to our understanding of the size, shape, and ultimate fate of the universe that the search for it will very likely dominate astronomy for the next few decades.
No observational problem will not be solved by more data.
We need senators who have studied physics and representatives who understand ecology.
I knew there was a school where women could study astronomy. So... it never occurred to me that I couldn't be an astronomer.
I think the question is, are there women and have there been women who want to do science and could be doing great science, but they never really got the opportunity?
Fame is fleeting. My numbers mean more to me than my name.
My childhood bedroom - if childhood could be about ten years old - had a bed which was under windows which faced north. At about age 10, I started watching the stars just move through the night.
We all need permission to do science, but for reasons that are deeply ingrained in history, this permission is more often given to men than to women.
I would prefer to stay up and watch the stars than sleep.
In my own life, my science and my religion are separate.
The real prize is finding something new out there.
My father was an electrical engineer. He's presently 92 and still could be holding down a job. He had a very analytical way of looking at things, and I enjoyed that very much. I think that was a very large influence.
Does Sex Matter? Of course it does. But does it matter enough to Matter? That's a different question.
I'm Jewish, and so religion, to me, is a kind of moral code and a kind of history.
I had the usual friends who pointed out constellations of stars. But it really was watching the stars. It was getting some sense of the motion of the earth. I found it a remarkable thing.
Nobody ever told us all matter radiated. We just assumed it did.
There was just nothing as interesting in my life as watching the stars every night.
We know very little about the universe. I personally don't believe it's uniform and the same everywhere. That's like saying the earth is flat.
Science is competitive, aggressive, demanding. It is also imaginative, inspiring, uplifting.Collection: Uplifting
In a spiral galaxy, the ratio of dark-to-light matter is about a factor of ten. That's probably a good number for the ratio of our ignorance-to-knowledge. We're out of kindergarten, but only in about third grade.Collection: Ignorance
We became astronomers thinking we were studying the universe, and now we learn that we are just studying the 5 or 10 percent that is luminous.Collection: Thinking
I guess to me religion is a kind of moral code.Collection: Moral
I decided I needed to give up something, so I gave up teaching.Collection: Giving Up
Three of my children married Jewish people. One did not and that marriage didn't last more than half a dozen years or so. The others are still very close.Collection: Children
Religion is not the most important thing.Collection: Important
It's certainly true that most of my close friends are Jewish.Collection: Close Friends