There are countless opportunities in this world for one to give of him- or herself. And doing so, says WuDunn, helps more than just the receiver, even if it's not immediately apparent.

"What is a scientist after all? It is a curious person looking through a keyhole, the keyhole of nature, trying to know what's going on."

Perel, a world-renowned psychologist and relationship expert, defines the division between sexuality and eroticism as similar to the difference between animals and human beings.

"The first step — especially for young people with energy and drive and talent, but not money — the first step to controlling your world is to control your culture. To model and demonstrate the kind of world you demand to live in. To write the books. Make the music. Shoot the films. Paint the art."

"A skateboarder’s way of thought is so different that I feel if somebody had some sort of dilemma in their life you could ask a skateboarder for an outside opinion.You may get something that is absolutely ridiculous or you could get something that’s absolutely brilliant." -From his recent Big Think interview

"I was the conductor of the Underground Railroad for eight years, and I can say what most conductors can't say — I never ran my train off the track and I never lost a passenger."

"The world and our perceptions have changed a lot, even since the '70s, but there are lingering stereotypes. If you ask an 11-year-old to draw a scientist, she's likely to draw a geeky guy with a pocket protector. That's just not an image an 11-year-old girl aspires to."