A curious consequence is that I have become a minor celebrity.
Edward Tufte

A practical part of my teaching is to provide demonstrative, hands-on experiences.
Edward Tufte

Beautiful Evidence is about the theory and practice of analytical design.
Edward Tufte

I am certainly not an intellectual relativist, nor a moral relativist.
Edward Tufte

I do believe that there are some universal cognitive tasks that are deep and profound - indeed, so deep and profound that it is worthwhile to understand them in order to design our displays in accord with those tasks.
Edward Tufte

I hope that I am generous and tolerant, but certainly on the intellectual side I think that there are discoverable truths, and some things that are closer approximations to the truth than others.
Edward Tufte

I think it is important for software to avoiding imposing a cognitive style on workers and their work.
Edward Tufte

I was writing a chapter of Beautiful Evidence on the subject of the sculptural pedestal, which led to my thinking about what's up on the pedestal - the great leader.
Edward Tufte

If you like overheads, you'll love PowerPoint.
Edward Tufte

It is straightforward for me to be ethical, responsible, and kind-hearted because I have the resources to support that.
Edward Tufte


My father worked for governments all his life as an engineer and public works director.
Edward Tufte

My idea here is that, inasmuch as certain cognitive tasks and principles are tied to nature's laws, these tasks and principles are indifferent to language, culture, gender, or the particular mode of information that is provided.
Edward Tufte

Public discussions are part of what it takes to make changes in the trillions of graphics published each year.
Edward Tufte

That is to say, nature's laws are causal; they reveal themselves by comparison and difference, and they operate at every multivariate space/time point.
Edward Tufte

The commonality between science and art is in trying to see profoundly - to develop strategies of seeing and showing.
Edward Tufte

The goal is to provide analytical tools that will last students a lifetime.
Edward Tufte

The idea of trying to create things that last - forever knowledge - has guided my work for a long time now.
Edward Tufte

The leading edge in evidence presentation is in science; the leading edge in beauty is in high art.
Edward Tufte

The minimum we should hope for with any display technology is that it should do no harm.
Edward Tufte

The point of the essay is to change things.
Edward Tufte