"Of all escapes from reality,
mathematics is the most successful ever.
It is a
fantasy that becomes all the more addictive because
it works back to improve the same reality we are
trying to evade" (Gian-Carlo Rota)
"Counter-balance complexity with simplicity"
(Nassim Nicholas Taleb)
"Whatever is worth saying can be stated in fifty words or less"
(Stanislaw Ulam)
"I grew up in a country with lots of good students. Now I live in a country with lots of good teachers"
(Jerzy Dydak)
Pournelle's Iron Law of Bureaucracy states that in any bureaucratic organization there will be two kinds of people: those who work to further the actual goals of the organization, and those who work for the organization itself. Examples in education would be teachers who work and sacrifice to teach children, vs. union representative who work to protect any teacher including the most incompetent. The Iron Law states that in all cases, the second type of person will always gain control of the organization, and will always write the rules under which the organization functions.