--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We should ask, critically and with appeal…" description: "\"We should ask, critically and with appeal to the numbers, whether the best site for a growing advancing industrial society is Earth, the Moon, Mars, so..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66b/gerard-k-o-neill-12872_advancing_we-should-ask-critically-and-with-appeal_420445.jpg" --- # We should ask, critically and with appeal to the numbers… ![“We should ask, critically and with appeal to the numbers, whether the best site for a growing advancing industrial society is Earth, the Moon, Mars, some other planet, or somewhere else entirely. Surprisingly, the answer will be inescapable - the best site is "somewhere else entirely.” quote by Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66b/gerard-k-o-neill-12872_advancing_we-should-ask-critically-and-with-appeal_420445.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66b/gerard-k-o-neill-12872_advancing_we-should-ask-critically-and-with-appeal_420445.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66b/gerard-k-o-neill-12872_advancing_we-should-ask-critically-and-with-appeal_420445.jpg) > “We should ask, critically and with appeal to the numbers, whether the best site for a growing advancing industrial society is Earth, the Moon, Mars, some other planet, or somewhere else entirely. Surprisingly, the answer will be inescapable - the best site is "somewhere else entirely.” [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We must evaluate where humanity should expand based on data, not nostalgia, and the optimal location may be beyond known planets. **In simple terms:** Data‑driven choice of future habitat may be off Earth. Key Takeaway Consider alternatives beyond traditional planets. Themes exploration future habitat Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type analytical speculative When to use this quote - policy planning - space agency strategy - investment decisions - educational curricula Key Concepts space colonization resource allocation long‑term survival Questions to Reflect On - What data should guide our choice? - How do we balance risk and opportunity? A Different Perspective Assumes technology will allow settlement elsewhere soon. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Mars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mars/) [Moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moon/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) ## Related quotes > [I can't think of a society on Earth where people don't take drugs that any of us would want anything to do with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/i-can-t-think-of-a-society-on-earth-where-people-don-t-take-drugs/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [There is One great society alone on earth: The noble living and the noble dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/there-is-one-great-society-alone-on-earth-the-noble-living-and-the/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [Industrial society seems likely to be entering a period of severe stress, due in part to problems of human behavior and in part to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-connolly/industrial-society-seems-likely-to-be-entering-a-period-of-severe/) [Cyril Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-connolly/) > [Contemporary industrial society is now characterised more than ever by the need for stupefying work where it is no longer a real necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/contemporary-industrial-society-is-now-characterised-more-than-ever/) [Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/) > [In an industrial society which confuses work and productivity, the necessity of producing has always been an enemy of the desire to create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raoul-vaneigem/in-an-industrial-society-which-confuses-work-and-productivity-the/) [Raoul Vaneigem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raoul-vaneigem/) > [In modern industrial society only minimal effort is necessary to satisfy one's physical needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-kaczynski/in-modern-industrial-society-only-minimal-effort-is-necessary-to/) [Theodore Kaczynski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-kaczynski/) > [Every major industrial society believes it has a serious youth problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-friedenberg/every-major-industrial-society-believes-it-has-a-serious-youth-problem/) [Edgar Friedenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-friedenberg/) > [Among the abnormal conditions present in modern industrial society are excessive density of population, isolation of man from nature, excessive rapidity of social change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-crawford/among-the-abnormal-conditions-present-in-modern-industrial-society/) [Cindy Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-crawford/) > [The important thing to understand is that the case for pollution control isn't based on some kind of aesthetic distaste for industrial society. Pollution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-krugman/the-important-thing-to-understand-is-that-the-case-for-pollution/) [Paul Krugman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-krugman/) > [The wealth of the well-to-do of an industrial society is both the cause and effect of the masses' well-being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-wealth-of-the-well-to-do-of-an-industrial-society-is-both-the/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Every major industrial society believes that it has a serious youth problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-friedenberg/every-major-industrial-society-believes-that-it-has-a-serious-youth/) [Edgar Friedenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-friedenberg/) > [Obstruction of mobility, where it occurs, is one of the most serious and intractable problems of industrial society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gellner/obstruction-of-mobility-where-it-occurs-is-one-of-the-most-serious/) [Ernest Gellner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gellner/) > [“Finally, “industrial society,” to use a genteel euphemism for capitalism, has also become an easy explanation for the environmental ills that afflict our time.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/finally-industrial-society-to-use-a-genteel-euphemism-for-capitalism/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [“The phrase "consumer society" complements the description of the present social order as an "industrial society." Needs are tailored by the mass media to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/the-phrase-consumer-society-complements-the-description-of-the/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [Money is what fueled the industrial society. But in the informational society, the fuel, the power, is knowledge. One has now come to see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/money-is-what-fueled-the-industrial-society-but-in-the-informational/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) ## More by Gerard K. O'Neill > [“Next my guide explained that we would travel to Erie on an underground high-speed vehicle called a "floater," which ran in vacuum through a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/next-my-guide-explained-that-we-would-travel-to-erie-on-an/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“At the other extreme, and far less threatening, will be the "house computer" of 2081. It will store all the information from all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/at-the-other-extreme-and-far-less-threatening-will-be-the-house/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“few dozen" wise, unselfish sages,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/few-dozen-wise-unselfish-sages/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“To minimize the sense of confinement, one of our video channels provided a breathtaking view of our journey, as seen from a helicopter flying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/to-minimize-the-sense-of-confinement-one-of-our-video-channels/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“She showed me the controls for the stereo, the video, and the lights, and added that if I just spoke in a normal tone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/she-showed-me-the-controls-for-the-stereo-the-video-and-the-lights/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“We is still banned in the USSR.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/we-is-still-banned-in-the-ussr/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“It would be quite feasible to project materials from the Moon's surface down to Earth by means of electrically powered catapults or launching tracks,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/it-would-be-quite-feasible-to-project-materials-from-the-moon-s/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“It's an established fact that the very few naturally gifted "born teachers" are enormously more effective than the great mass of those in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/it-s-an-established-fact-that-the-very-few-naturally-gifted-born/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [It is the hope of those who work toward the breakout from planet Earth that the establishment of permanent, self-sustaining colonies of humans off-Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/it-is-the-hope-of-those-who-work-toward-the-breakout-from-planet/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“The venerable Walt Disney commercial empire had established around the turn of the century one of the largest "theme parks" in the country, on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/the-venerable-walt-disney-commercial-empire-had-established-around/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“All of the homes, shops, and office buildings in Waterford are linked by an underground package-transfer network that uses the "floater" technology. It takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/all-of-the-homes-shops-and-office-buildings-in-waterford-are-linked/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“Once that day a chime sounded and the video told us of congestion two hundred kilometers ahead, near Chicago.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/once-that-day-a-chime-sounded-and-the-video-told-us-of-congestion-two/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“Before engineers and scientists had acquired experience with large quantities of liquid hydrogen, they were fearful of its explosive properties. Now, though, after several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/before-engineers-and-scientists-had-acquired-experience-with-large/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“Electricity has just two disadvantages: it is difficult to store cheaply, and it can be transmitted easily only on high-voltage lines, above the ground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/electricity-has-just-two-disadvantages-it-is-difficult-to-store/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“The crew advised us to learn the locator and security identifier methods that were so common on Earth. In most nations we would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/the-crew-advised-us-to-learn-the-locator-and-security-identifier/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) [Explore all 51 Gerard K. O'Neill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) ## More Advancing quotes > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. 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Every next mission takes you farther out in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-believe-that-the-manned-space-program-can-engage-the-public-by/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Five qualities there are wine's praise advancing; Strong, beautiful, fragrant, cool and dancing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-harington/five-qualities-there-are-wine-s-praise-advancing-strong-beautiful/) [John Harington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-harington/) > [Ladies: Anne Hathaway is a feminist and she has amazing teeth. Let's save our bad attitudes for the ones who aren't advancing the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-hathaway/ladies-anne-hathaway-is-a-feminist-and-she-has-amazing-teeth-let-s/) [Anne Hathaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-hathaway/) > [Increasingly constructive doubt is the sign of advancing civilization. We must put question marks along many of our inherited legal dogmas, since they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/increasingly-constructive-doubt-is-the-sign-of-advancing-civilization/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [What's important is how we use our time on this earth, not how conspicuously we give our money away. What's important is the energy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-pallotta/what-s-important-is-how-we-use-our-time-on-this-earth-not-how/) [Dan Pallotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-pallotta/) > [Advancing bourgeois society liquidates memory, time, recollection as irrational leftovers of the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodor-adorno/advancing-bourgeois-society-liquidates-memory-time-recollection-as/) [Theodor Adorno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodor-adorno/) > [The real debate is we've had an activist court, and the American people don't want an activist court. 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