“First, if we believe that nothing can be created from nothing.”Lucretius · Despre natura lucrurilor · -55 · Cartea I, versul 159
Everything that exists has a natural cause; it does not arise from nothing.
Lucretius restates the atomist principle as a starting point for a scientific worldview. Believing that nothing comes from nothing means rejecting miracles and arbitrary divine interventions. Everything that exists arises from prior combinations of matter. For instance, a plant grows from a seed, not from thin air. This premise underlies rational investigation of nature.
Why it matters Today, this principle anchors us in critical thinking and helps us distinguish facts from fictions.