The best programmers are not marginally better than merely good ones. They are an order-of-magnitude better, measured by whatever standard: conceptual creativity, speed, ingenuity of design, or problem-solving ability. -- Randall E. Stross

Whatever is worth doing at all, is worth doing well. -- Earl of Chesterfield

An interpreter raises the machine to the level of the user program; a compiler lowers the user program to the level of the machine language. -- SICP

I was talking recently to a friend who teaches at MIT. His field is hot now and every year he is inundated by applications from would-be graduate students. "A lot of them seem smart," he said. "What I can't tell is whether they have any kind of taste." -- Paul Graham

The greatest of all weaknesses is the fear of appearing weak. -- J. B. Bossuet, Politics from Holy Writ, 1709

Opportunities that present themselves to you are the consequence -- at least partially -- of being in the right place at the right time. They tend to present themselves when you're not expecting it -- and often when you are engaged in other activities that would seem to preclude you from pursuing them. And they come and go quickly -- if you don't jump all over an opportunity, someone else generally will and it will vanish. -- Marc Andreessen (http://blog.pmarca.com/)

We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained. –Marie Curie

People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing. ~Dale Carnegie

The number one reason people fail in life is because they listen to their friends, family, and neighbors. ~Napoleon Hill

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up. –Pablo Picasso