You say you’re worried about children; I’m not worried about children, I’m worried about ‘grown-ups’. These are the ones who vote. These are the ones who tell you, ‘the world is coming to an end in 2012!’ Kids don’t say that, grown-ups do. Grown-ups say ‘read me my horoscope and tell me when I’ll find money tomorrow!’ Grown-ups say this, not children. Children do not read horoscopes. Children are perfectly happy counting through the number 13. Children aren’t afraid to walk under ladders. They see a black cat cross their path and they say ‘look! kitty, kitty’ and want to pet it, not run in the other direction. Children are not the problem here.

Kids are born curious. They are always exploring. We spend the first year of their life teaching them to walk and talk, and the rest of their life telling them to shut up and sit down.

Once you understand the role of innovation as an engine of economic growth, then you are left with no other choice but to value and respect not only those who go into sciences, but you value and respect the scientific literacy of the nation.