Nullius in verba Nullius in verba The Royal Society website explains the motto thus: It is an expression of the determination of Fellows to withstand the domination of authority and to verify all statements by an appeal to facts determined by experiment. The phrase came from Horace's "Epistle" to his benefactor Maecenas, where he claims not to be devoted to any particular sect but is rather an eclectic by nature. These are the words, forming two hexameters in the original context: The minor planet known as 11059 Nulliusinverba in the asteroid belt is named after the expression. The phrase is also widely used
Verba volant, scripta manent Verba volant, scripta manent Verba volant, scripta manent is a Latin proverb. Literally translated, it means "spoken words fly away, written words remain". This apparently much older anonymous proverb seems to have been quoted in a speech of the Emperor Titus to the Roman Senate; the general meaning is that spoken words might easily be forgotten but written documents can always be relied on for conclusive proof. The legal meaning could be an extension of the usage of the old proverb. A related meaning is that if two people want to establish a formal agreement about something, it is better