--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Triumphant science and technology are…" description: "\"Triumphant science and technology are only at the threshold of man's command over sources of energy so stupendous that, if used for military purposes, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a8/cordell-hull-33556_civilization_triumphant-science-and-technology-are-on_456999.png" --- # Triumphant science and technology are only at the… ![“Triumphant science and technology are only at the threshold of man's command over sources of energy so stupendous that, if used for military purposes, they can wipe out our entire civilization.” quote by Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a8/cordell-hull-33556_civilization_triumphant-science-and-technology-are-on_456999.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a8/cordell-hull-33556_civilization_triumphant-science-and-technology-are-on_456999.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a8/cordell-hull-33556_civilization_triumphant-science-and-technology-are-on_456999.png) > “Triumphant science and technology are only at the threshold of man's command over sources of energy so stupendous that, if used for military purposes, they can wipe out our entire civilization.” [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Powerful new energy technologies could destroy civilization if weaponized, urging caution. **In simple terms:** Advanced energy can be dangerous if used for war. Key Takeaway Guard against militarizing science. Themes technology war responsibility Mood cautious urgent Type policy warning When to use this quote - policy planning - scientific research - military strategy - international relations Key Concepts energy policy global security Questions to Reflect On - How can societies harness energy safely? - What safeguards are needed for emerging tech? A Different Perspective Technological progress also brings benefits that may be overlooked. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science and technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-and-technology/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Triumphant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/triumphant/) ## Related quotes > [The notion of this universe, its heavens, hells, and everything within it, as a great dream dreamed by a single being in which all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-notion-of-this-universe-its-heavens-hells-and-everything-within/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Our entire civilization is built on a foundation of unfixable bullshit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rogan/our-entire-civilization-is-built-on-a-foundation-of-unfixable-bullshit/) [Joe Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rogan/) > [I'm not much interested in extrapolating science and technology; I merely use extrapolation as a means of putting people into new quandaries which produce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-bester/i-m-not-much-interested-in-extrapolating-science-and-technology-i/) [Alfred Bester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-bester/) > [“The truly apocalyptic view of the world is that things do not repeat themselves. 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Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [No industry or country can reach its full potential until women reach their full potential. 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As a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-keating/science-and-technology-have-been-embarrassed-by-two-world-wars-many/) [Thomas Keating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-keating/) > [Like many others, I have deep misgivings about the state of education in the United States. Too many of our students fail to graduate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/like-many-others-i-have-deep-misgivings-about-the-state-of-education/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Technology means the systematic application of scientific or other organized knowledge to practical tasks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/technology-means-the-systematic-application-of-scientific-or-other/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) ## More by Cordell Hull > [I am certain that, however great the hardships and the trials which loom ahead, our America will endure and the cause of human freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/i-am-certain-that-however-great-the-hardships-and-the-trials-which/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [Never insult an alligator until after you have crossed the river.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/never-insult-an-alligator-until-after-you-have-crossed-the-river/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [I fully realize that the new organization is a human rather than a perfect instrumentality for the attainment of its great objective. As time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/i-fully-realize-that-the-new-organization-is-a-human-rather-than-a/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [Fortunately, the war has brought with it not alone a stark realization of what another war would mean to the world, but as well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/fortunately-the-war-has-brought-with-it-not-alone-a-stark-realization/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [Within a few weeks the organization for the maintenance of international peace and security, established by the San Francisco Charter, will be formally launched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/within-a-few-weeks-the-organization-for-the-maintenance-of/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [I am firmly convinced that in the world of today all nations will be forced to the conclusion that cooperation for law, justice, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/i-am-firmly-convinced-that-in-the-world-of-today-all-nations-will-be/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [That war has brought with it a truly incredible development of means of destruction and a terrifying prospect of rapid and almost limitless development…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/that-war-has-brought-with-it-a-truly-incredible-development-of-means/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [Please let me assure you, however, that the keen disappointment and regret which I feel in this regard serve only to enhance my profound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/please-let-me-assure-you-however-that-the-keen-disappointment-and/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [To be sure, no piece of social machinery, however well constructed, can be effective unless there is back of it a will and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/to-be-sure-no-piece-of-social-machinery-however-well-constructed-can/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [There is no greater responsibility resting upon peoples and governments everywhere than to make sure that enduring peace will this time - at long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/there-is-no-greater-responsibility-resting-upon-peoples-and/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [Under the ominous shadow which the second World War and its attendant circumstances have cast on the world, peace has become as essential to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/under-the-ominous-shadow-which-the-second-world-war-and-its-attendant/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [Every good citizen should be willing to devote a brief time during some one day in the year, when necessary, to the making up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/every-good-citizen-should-be-willing-to-devote-a-brief-time-during/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) > [No achievement can be higher than that of working in harmony with other nations so that the lash of war may be lifted from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordell-hull/no-achievement-can-be-higher-than-that-of-working-in-harmony-with/) [Cordell Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) [Explore all 14 Cordell Hull quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordell-hull/) ## More Civilization quotes > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Sentiment is the mightiest force in civilization; not sentimentality, but sentiment. Women will bring this into politics. Home, sweet home, is as powerful on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-ellen-foster/sentiment-is-the-mightiest-force-in-civilization-not-sentimentality/) [Judith Ellen Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-ellen-foster/) > [Violence is not necessary to destroy a civilization. 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