--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Forecasts have been fundamental to…" description: "\"Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's journey from a small tribe on the African savannah to a species that can sling objects across the solar sy..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg" --- # Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's journey from… ![“Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's journey from a small tribe on the African savannah to a species that can sling objects across the solar system with extreme precision.” quote by Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg) > “Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's journey from a small tribe on the African savannah to a species that can sling objects across the solar system with extreme precision.” [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Forecasting is essential for human progress, enabling technological advances from early societies to modern space endeavors **In simple terms:** Forecasting drives progress and innovation Key Takeaway Invest in predictive tools and data analysis Themes innovation technology history Mood cautious analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - policy making - business development - space exploration Key Concepts Predictive modeling strategic planning Questions to Reflect On - What are the risks of over-reliance on forecasts? - How can we improve forecast reliability? A Different Perspective Forecasts can be inaccurate, leading to misallocation of resources ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Extreme Precision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extreme-precision-4114555/) [Forecasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forecasts/) [Forecasts Fundamental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forecasts-fundamental-4114554/) [Fundamental Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fundamental-mankind-4114553/) [Journey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journey/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Mankind Journey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind-journey-4114556/) [Precision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precision/) [Solar system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solar-system/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Tribe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tribe/) ## Related quotes > [Mankind's journey into space, like every great voyage of discovery, will become part of our unending journey of liberation. In the limitless reaches of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/mankind-s-journey-into-space-like-every-great-voyage-of-discovery/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [To render my works properly requires a combination of extreme precision and irresistible verve, a regulated vehemence, a dreamy tenderness, and an almost morbid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hector-berlioz/to-render-my-works-properly-requires-a-combination-of-extreme/) [Hector Berlioz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hector-berlioz/) > [One of the soundest rules to remember when making forecasts in the field of economics is that whatever is to happen is happening already.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-porter/one-of-the-soundest-rules-to-remember-when-making-forecasts-in-the/) [Sylvia Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-porter/) > [Dont tell me dreams, or expectations, or forecasts. Just tell me the facts, and the truth. I want to know exactly where we stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-tell-me-dreams-or-expectations-or-forecasts-just-tell-me-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Saudi Arabian oil production is at or very near its peak sustainable volume (if it did not, in fact peak almost 25 years ago),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-simmons/saudi-arabian-oil-production-is-at-or-very-near-its-peak-sustainable/) [Matthew Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-simmons/) > [I once read about a meeting of economists who agreed that if their forecasts were 33 1/3 % correct, that was considered a high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-m-loeb/i-once-read-about-a-meeting-of-economists-who-agreed-that-if-their/) [Gerald M. Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-m-loeb/) > [Hope differs from optimism. Hope does not arise from being told to "think positively," or from hearing an overly rosy forecast. Hope, unlike optimism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-groopman/hope-differs-from-optimism-hope-does-not-arise-from-being-told-to/) [Jerome Groopman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-groopman/) > [I find my past in my present, and from these forecast my future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-bronson-alcott/i-find-my-past-in-my-present-and-from-these-forecast-my-future/) [Amos Bronson Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-bronson-alcott/) > [There are poems about the internet and about the shipping forecast but very few by women celebrating men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germaine-greer/there-are-poems-about-the-internet-and-about-the-shipping-forecast/) [Germaine Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germaine-greer/) > ["(Big name research firm) says our market will be $50 billion in 2010." Every entrepreneur has a few slides about how the market potential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-kawasaki/big-name-research-firm-says-our-market-will-be-50-billion-in-2010/) [Guy Kawasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-kawasaki/) > [A commonplace of political rhetoric has it that the quality of a civilization may be measured by how it cares for its elderly. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-patrick-moynihan/a-commonplace-of-political-rhetoric-has-it-that-the-quality-of-a/) [Daniel Patrick Moynihan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-patrick-moynihan/) > [Confidence in a forecast rises with the amount of information that goes into it. But the accuracy of the forecast stays the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-williams/confidence-in-a-forecast-rises-with-the-amount-of-information-that/) [Dean Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-williams/) > [The federal government is starting to plan for climate change by making extended forecasts that can help people plan for extreme weather - because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/the-federal-government-is-starting-to-plan-for-climate-change-by/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [It's impossible for us to forecast what's going to happen ten years from now and make a decision today to say what we're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rangel/it-s-impossible-for-us-to-forecast-what-s-going-to-happen-ten-years/) [Charles Rangel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rangel/) > [Weathermen merely forecast rain to keep everyone else off the golf course](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-david/weathermen-merely-forecast-rain-to-keep-everyone-else-off-the-golf/) [Larry David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-david/) ## More by Dominic Cummings > [The reason why Whitehall is full of people failing in predictable ways on an hourly basis is because, first, there is general system-wide failure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/the-reason-why-whitehall-is-full-of-people-failing-in-predictable/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [The audience for facts, evidence and research about microtargeting, Facebook and Brexit is tiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/the-audience-for-facts-evidence-and-research-about-microtargeting/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [In the commercial world, big companies mostly die within a few decades because they cannot maintain an internal system to keep them aligned to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/in-the-commercial-world-big-companies-mostly-die-within-a-few-decades/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [Physicists and mathematicians regularly invade other fields but other fields do not invade theirs so we can see which fields are hardest for very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/physicists-and-mathematicians-regularly-invade-other-fields-but-other/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [Fundamental to real expertise is 1: whether the informational structure of the environment is sufficiently regular that it's possible to make good predictions and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/fundamental-to-real-expertise-is-1-whether-the-informational/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [The panic over Sputnik brought many good things such as a huge increase in science funding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/the-panic-over-sputnik-brought-many-good-things-such-as-a-huge/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [In history books, luck is always underplayed and the talent of individuals is usually overplayed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/in-history-books-luck-is-always-underplayed-and-the-talent-of/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [Changing the world in a profound and beneficial way is not enough to put a dint in bureaucracies which operate on their own dynamics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/changing-the-world-in-a-profound-and-beneficial-way-is-not-enough-to/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [I make judgments about people and ideas individually - for me, parties are just a vehicle of convenience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/i-make-judgments-about-people-and-ideas-individually-for-me-parties/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [Usually in politics everything is done on hunches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/usually-in-politics-everything-is-done-on-hunches/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [Technology enables people to improve communication with unprecedented speed, scale and iterative testing. It also allows people to wreak chaos with high leverage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/technology-enables-people-to-improve-communication-with-unprecedented/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [If you want to avoid the usual fate in politics of failure, you need to understand some basic principles about why people make mistakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/if-you-want-to-avoid-the-usual-fate-in-politics-of-failure-you-need/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [It is hard to change people's minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/it-is-hard-to-change-people-s-minds/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [Music is similar to sport. There is very fast feedback, learning, and a clear hierarchy of expertise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/music-is-similar-to-sport-there-is-very-fast-feedback-learning-and-a/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) > [MPs have no real knowledge of how to function other than via gimmick and briefings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/mps-have-no-real-knowledge-of-how-to-function-other-than-via-gimmick/) [Dominic Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) [Explore all 100 Dominic Cummings quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/) ## More Forecasts quotes > [Weathermen merely forecast rain to keep everyone else off the golf course](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-david/weathermen-merely-forecast-rain-to-keep-everyone-else-off-the-golf/) [Larry David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-david/) > [It's impossible for us to forecast what's going to happen ten years from now and make a decision today to say what we're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rangel/it-s-impossible-for-us-to-forecast-what-s-going-to-happen-ten-years/) [Charles Rangel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rangel/) > [The federal government is starting to plan for climate change by making extended forecasts that can help people plan for extreme weather - because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/the-federal-government-is-starting-to-plan-for-climate-change-by/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [Confidence in a forecast rises with the amount of information that goes into it. But the accuracy of the forecast stays the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-williams/confidence-in-a-forecast-rises-with-the-amount-of-information-that/) [Dean Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-williams/) > [A commonplace of political rhetoric has it that the quality of a civilization may be measured by how it cares for its elderly. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-patrick-moynihan/a-commonplace-of-political-rhetoric-has-it-that-the-quality-of-a/) [Daniel Patrick Moynihan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-patrick-moynihan/) > ["(Big name research firm) says our market will be $50 billion in 2010." Every entrepreneur has a few slides about how the market potential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-kawasaki/big-name-research-firm-says-our-market-will-be-50-billion-in-2010/) [Guy Kawasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-kawasaki/) > [There are poems about the internet and about the shipping forecast but very few by women celebrating men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germaine-greer/there-are-poems-about-the-internet-and-about-the-shipping-forecast/) [Germaine Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germaine-greer/) > [I find my past in my present, and from these forecast my future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-bronson-alcott/i-find-my-past-in-my-present-and-from-these-forecast-my-future/) [Amos Bronson Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-bronson-alcott/) > [Hope differs from optimism. Hope does not arise from being told to "think positively," or from hearing an overly rosy forecast. Hope, unlike optimism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-groopman/hope-differs-from-optimism-hope-does-not-arise-from-being-told-to/) [Jerome Groopman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-groopman/) > [I once read about a meeting of economists who agreed that if their forecasts were 33 1/3 % correct, that was considered a high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-m-loeb/i-once-read-about-a-meeting-of-economists-who-agreed-that-if-their/) [Gerald M. Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-m-loeb/) > [Saudi Arabian oil production is at or very near its peak sustainable volume (if it did not, in fact peak almost 25 years ago),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-simmons/saudi-arabian-oil-production-is-at-or-very-near-its-peak-sustainable/) [Matthew Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-simmons/) > [Dont tell me dreams, or expectations, or forecasts. Just tell me the facts, and the truth. I want to know exactly where we stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-tell-me-dreams-or-expectations-or-forecasts-just-tell-me-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [One of the soundest rules to remember when making forecasts in the field of economics is that whatever is to happen is happening already.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-porter/one-of-the-soundest-rules-to-remember-when-making-forecasts-in-the/) [Sylvia Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-porter/) > [The MD is well aware that the forecasts are no good but he needs them for planning purposes ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-arrow/the-md-is-well-aware-that-the-forecasts-are-no-good-but-he-needs-them/) [Kenneth Arrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-arrow/) > [Laughter on American television has taken the place of the chorus in Greek tragedy. It is unrelenting; the news, the stock-exchange reports, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/laughter-on-american-television-has-taken-the-place-of-the-chorus-in/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) [Browse all 107 Forecasts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forecasts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's journey from a small tribe on the African savannah to a species that can sling objects across the solar system with extreme precision.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dominic Cummings" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-mankind-s-journey-from-a-small/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Forecasts" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-mankind-s-journey-from-a-small/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/dominic-cummings-5896_journey_forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-manki_2088210.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's journey from a small tribe on the African savannah to a species…” — Dominic Cummings", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Dominic Cummings", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-cummings/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Forecasts have been fundamental to mankind's...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-mankind-s-journey-from-a-small/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-cummings/forecasts-have-been-fundamental-to-mankind-s-journey-from-a-small/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```