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About this quote

What does it mean?
Human faculties recognize small intricate structures better than vast universal ones.
In plain terms
We see a beetle's structure more clearly than the whole universe.
What can you take from it?
Scale limits human comprehension.

Where it applies

  • philosophy
  • science
  • learning

Putting it to work

  • start small when studying big things

Questions to consider

  • Why is the universe harder to grasp?
  • What fits our minds best?

Another view

Humans can model the universe through abstraction.

More from Charles Darwin

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