Knowledge, discovery and freedom

From Robert Oppenheimer in Science and the Common Understanding (1953)

The open society, the unrestricted access to knowledge, the unplanned and uninhibited association of men for its furtherance — these are what may make a vast, complex, ever growing, ever changing, ever more specialized and expert technological world, nevertheless a world of human community.

From Robert Oppenheimer in Science and the Common Understanding (1954); based on 1953 Reith lectures.

The history of science is rich in the example of the fruitfulness of bringing two sets of techniques, two sets of ideas, developed in separate contexts for the pursuit of new truth, into touch with one another.