--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that space flight is a condition…" description: "\"I think that space flight is a condition of Nature that comes into effect when an intelligent species reaches the saturation point of its planetary hab..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg" --- # I think that space flight is a condition of Nature that… ![“I think that space flight is a condition of Nature that comes into effect when an intelligent species reaches the saturation point of its planetary habitat combined with a certain level of technological ability... I think it is a built-in gene-directed drive for the spreading of the species and…” quote by Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg) > “I think that space flight is a condition of Nature that comes into effect when an intelligent species reaches the saturation point of its planetary habitat combined with a certain level of technological ability... I think it is a built-in gene-directed drive for the spreading of the species and its continuation.” [Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Space travel arises when a species exhausts its planet and gains enough technology, driven by a genetic urge to spread. **In simple terms:** Species expand when planet limits are reached. Key Takeaway Support sustainable space research. Themes space technology evolution survival Mood speculative optimistic Type philosophical scientific When to use this quote - policy planning - educational curricula - public outreach Key Concepts genetic drive planetary limits civilizational growth Questions to Reflect On - Is expansion inevitable? - What ethical limits exist? A Different Perspective Assumes all species share this drive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Exploration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exploration/) [Habitat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habitat/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Saturation point](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saturation-point/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Space exploration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space-exploration/) [Space flight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space-flight/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I don't believe that remixes will reach a saturation point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhushan-kumar/i-don-t-believe-that-remixes-will-reach-a-saturation-point/) [Bhushan Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhushan-kumar/) > [Parents make sure homework is returned without error, drill their kids on upcoming tests to the saturation point, and then complain if teachers do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rosemond/parents-make-sure-homework-is-returned-without-error-drill-their-kids/) [John Rosemond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rosemond/) > [The most beautiful thing about art is that there is no saturation point in creating!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/the-most-beautiful-thing-about-art-is-that-there-is-no-saturation/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [The superhero genre speaks to a vast swath of humanity these days, and studios are in the business of constantly renewing their money-printing licenses.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-frost/the-superhero-genre-speaks-to-a-vast-swath-of-humanity-these-days-and/) [Mark Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-frost/) > [The complete disregard for the camera's presence indicates its complete saturation in their lives. The subject neither notices nor seems to care that someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nan-goldin/the-complete-disregard-for-the-camera-s-presence-indicates-its/) [Nan Goldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nan-goldin/) > [You reach a saturation point where people resent having to share you more with people who they think are not as connected and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-owens/you-reach-a-saturation-point-where-people-resent-having-to-share-you/) [Rick Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-owens/) > [Use between three and five photos in your gallery. Galleries with more photos are more competitive, but after five they seem to pass a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-webb/use-between-three-and-five-photos-in-your-gallery-galleries-with-more/) [Amy Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-webb/) > [I believe both the mind and the body need to be strong. We practise so hard that even if we hit a saturation point,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satnam-singh-bhamara/i-believe-both-the-mind-and-the-body-need-to-be-strong-we-practise-so/) [Satnam Singh Bhamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satnam-singh-bhamara/) > [I think we have reached such saturation levels, the money at this point doesn't swing election.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-think-we-have-reached-such-saturation-levels-the-money-at-this/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Imagination must first be filled to the point of saturation with life of every kind before the moment arrives when the friction of free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/imagination-must-first-be-filled-to-the-point-of-saturation-with-life/) [Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/) > [The present war is the saturation point in violence. It spells, to my mind, also its doom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-present-war-is-the-saturation-point-in-violence-it-spells-to-my/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [There is no limit to beauty, no saturation point in design, no end to the material…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salvatore-ferragamo/there-is-no-limit-to-beauty-no-saturation-point-in-design-no-end-to/) Salvatore Ferragamo > [ I think for a lot of people, it's just where their saturation point was. Once you get into the \[Donald\] Trump stuff and the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cross/i-think-for-a-lot-of-people-it-s-just-where-their-saturation-point/) [David Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cross/) > [Wilderness is rapidly becoming one of those aspects of the American dream which is more of the past than of the present. Wilderness is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/wilderness-is-rapidly-becoming-one-of-those-aspects-of-the-american/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [We know nothing of the principle of health, the positive of which pathology is the negative, except from observation and experience. And nothing but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-nightingale/we-know-nothing-of-the-principle-of-health-the-positive-of-which/) [Florence Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-nightingale/) ## More by Donald A. Wollheim > [I think that the first men to land on Pluto are going to make some very astonishing discoveries. But I am also sure that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/i-think-that-the-first-men-to-land-on-pluto-are-going-to-make-some/) [Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) > [Once solved, the severe handicaps imposed on space exploration by the weight and chemical limitations of rockets would no longer apply. The whole timetable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/once-solved-the-severe-handicaps-imposed-on-space-exploration-by-the/) [Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) > [Human nature is violent, argumentative, fallible, and given to endless fantasizing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/human-nature-is-violent-argumentative-fallible-and-given-to-endless/) [Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) > [The years of space flight since the orbiting of Sputnik I back in 1957 had produced many fascinating results, but they had also brought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/the-years-of-space-flight-since-the-orbiting-of-sputnik-i-back-in/) [Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) > [While the circumnavigation of the solar system seems farfetched, it may not be once the problem of effective anti-gravitational control is solved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/while-the-circumnavigation-of-the-solar-system-seems-farfetched-it/) [Donald A. Wollheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) [Explore all 6 Donald A. Wollheim quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/) ## More Ability quotes > [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/) [Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/) > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/) [Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/) > [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) > [You can only do the work to the very best of your ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-baranski/you-can-only-do-the-work-to-the-very-best-of-your-ability/) [Christine Baranski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-baranski/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Bobby had faith in my ability as a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-london/bobby-had-faith-in-my-ability-as-a-singer/) [Julie London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-london/) [Browse all 9,990 Ability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think that space flight is a condition of Nature that comes into effect when an intelligent species reaches the saturation point of its planetary habitat combined with a certain level of technological ability... I think it is a built-in gene-directed drive for the spreading of the species and its continuation.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donald A. Wollheim" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition-of-nature-that-comes-into/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ability" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition-of-nature-that-comes-into/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63e/donald-a-wollheim-57690_ability_i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition_318394.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think that space flight is a condition of Nature that comes into effect when an intelligent species…” — Donald A. Wollheim", "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": "Donald A. Wollheim", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-a-wollheim/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think that space flight is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition-of-nature-that-comes-into/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-a-wollheim/i-think-that-space-flight-is-a-condition-of-nature-that-comes-into/#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 } } ] } ```