Scientia potentia est Scientia potentia est The phrase "scientia potentia est"" (or "scientia est potentia" or also "scientia potestas est")" is a Latin aphorism meaning "knowledge is power". It is commonly attributed to Sir Francis Bacon, although there is no known occurrence of this precise phrase in Bacon's English or Latin writings. However, the expression ""ipsa scientia potestas est"" ('knowledge itself is power') occurs in Bacon's "Meditationes Sacrae" (1597). The exact phrase ""scientia potentia est"" was written for the first time in the 1668 version of the work "Leviathan" by Thomas Hobbes, who was secretary to Bacon as a young man. The related
Radix malorum est cupiditas Radix malorum est cupiditas Radix malorum est cupiditas is a Biblical quotation in Latin that means "greed is the root of evil" (or, in sentence order, the root of evil is greed). This Latin phrase is a translation of the original Greek manuscripts of the Bible. The most reliable Greek manuscripts cite "ῥίζα γὰρ πάντων τῶν κακῶν ἐστιν ἡ φιλαργυρία (1Ti 6:10 BGT)". This is literally translated into English, "Root for all the evil is the love of money." Daniel Wallace states that ῥίζα (root) is qualitative, since it lacks an article. A more idiomatic understanding of this phrase is,