How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Even at the worst, I'll have proved that man can't be kept in quarantine forever. I'll have created a precedent that will compel Karellen to take some action. (12.32)
The word precedent means any act or decision that guides future actions. If you've ever been to a trial or watched a court drama on television, then you've heard this word brought up a lot. But every precedent starts with some sort of change to the way things were before it became the norm.
Quote #8
The history of the cinema gave the clue to their actions. First sound, then color, then stereoscopy, then Cinerama, had made the old "moving pictures" more and more like reality itself. (15.59)
The transformation of the human species can be seen parallel to the evolution of art. Caveman drawings become canvas paintings become photography becomes moving pictures. Notice the connection to technology as well.
Quote #9
"It had to happen to someone. There is nothing exceptional about you, any more than there is about the first neutron that starts the chain reaction in an atomic bomb. It simply happens to be the first." (18.77)
Can we even add to this quote? It kind of stands alone. From the smallest atom to the largest planet, once change starts, nothing else in the system remains the same. It's like one of those universal laws or something...