“Imagine if we could combine the power of a global ethic with our new power to communicate and organize globally.” – UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown

“Next time you see someone in a Ferrari, don’t think: ‘They’re greedy.” Think: “This is someone incredibly vulnerable and in need of love.” – Alain De Botton, on the challenge of modern society, in which we — and others — measure our worth by what we “do” and what we own

“I thought it might be helpful to cut five years from retirement and intersperse them in my working years.” – Designer Stefan Sagmeister on taking sabbaticals every seven years

“You wouldn’t expect a black hole to be a kind neighbor to a stellar nursery.” – Astronomer Andrea Ghez on the curious fact that the stars closest to super-massive black holes appear to be relatively young, in contradiction to what she predicted

“What we call intellectual inquiry is often the pursuit of the abstract over the real and tangible.” – Comedian Stephen Fry on the need to combine intellect and passion in all our pursuits

“I have to be careful I don’t inhale my work. That’s happened to me.” – Willard Wigan on manipulating the tiny shards of glass and shreds of fiber from which he creates sculptures so small they fit in the eye of a needle

“I have a global vision for vision: To get 1 billion people wearing the eyeglasses they need by the year 2020.” – Josh Silver on the roll-out plan for his low-cost, adjustable eyeglasses

“Great music and art are just moments in time. But we can use them to bring people together.” – Mark Johnson, producer of “Playing for Change,” videos of musicians around the world, playing a single song

“I’d like to tell you about the greatest stunt on earth: a parachute jump from space” – stuntman Steve Truglia