--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Life on earth is hard. Competition for…" description: "\"Life on earth is hard. Competition for the necessities of life is fierce. How ridiculous to believe that the law of harsh survival would not be true el..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5b/greg-bear-12310_advanced-civilizatio_life-on-earth-is-hard-competition-for-th_284666.jpg" --- # Life on earth is hard. Competition for the necessities of… ![“Life on earth is hard. Competition for the necessities of life is fierce. How ridiculous to believe that the law of harsh survival would not be true elsewhere, or that it would be negated by the progress of technology in an advanced civilization.” quote by Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5b/greg-bear-12310_advanced-civilizatio_life-on-earth-is-hard-competition-for-th_284666.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5b/greg-bear-12310_advanced-civilizatio_life-on-earth-is-hard-competition-for-th_284666.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5b/greg-bear-12310_advanced-civilizatio_life-on-earth-is-hard-competition-for-th_284666.jpg) > “Life on earth is hard. Competition for the necessities of life is fierce. How ridiculous to believe that the law of harsh survival would not be true elsewhere, or that it would be negated by the progress of technology in an advanced civilization.” [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It argues that harsh competition is a universal law, unlikely to be avoided even with advanced technology. **In simple terms:** Survival competition is inevitable everywhere. Key Takeaway Prepare for competition in any environment. Themes survival competition technology philosophy Mood cautious thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - environmental policy - business strategy - space colonization - AI development Key Concepts evolution sociobiology future studies Questions to Reflect On - Is competition always detrimental? - Can cooperation outweigh competition in advanced societies? A Different Perspective Assumes all societies follow the same biological rules. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advanced civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advanced-civilization/) [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Competition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competition/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-tuchman/without-books-history-is-silent-literature-dumb-science-crippled/) [Barbara Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-tuchman/) > [“it could be accurately stated that one purpose of our lives, when taken in total, is to generate possible solutions to obstacles and problems,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-j-solomon/it-could-be-accurately-stated-that-one-purpose-of-our-lives-when/) Mark J. Solomon > [It seems to me far more likely that an advanced civilization would communicate inter dimensionally and telepathically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/it-seems-to-me-far-more-likely-that-an-advanced-civilization-would/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [The statistics of life out there and the statistics of intelligent beings and advanced civilization is a certainty, the way I look at it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/story-musgrave/the-statistics-of-life-out-there-and-the-statistics-of-intelligent/) [Story Musgrave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/story-musgrave/) > [“Being a noninvasive advanced civilization was the biggest mistake of Batak Kingdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/being-a-noninvasive-advanced-civilization-was-the-biggest-mistake-of/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [Lying under an acacia tree with the sound of the dawn around me, I realized more clearly the facts that man should never overlook:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/lying-under-an-acacia-tree-with-the-sound-of-the-dawn-around-me-i/) [Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/) > [Cardinal Arithmetics is much older than Number Theory. People used to exchange things way before there were numbers. Expressing numbers like 762 is already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saharon-shelah/cardinal-arithmetics-is-much-older-than-number-theory-people-used-to/) Saharon Shelah > [What can we expect from nations still less advanced in civilization than the Greeks?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baptiste-say/what-can-we-expect-from-nations-still-less-advanced-in-civilization/) [Jean-Baptiste Say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baptiste-say/) > [Several days in a row we sighted groups of metallic, saucer-shaped vehicles at great altitudes over the base Germany, 1951 and we tried to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-cooper/several-days-in-a-row-we-sighted-groups-of-metallic-saucer-shaped/) [Gordon Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-cooper/) > [It's worth remembering that all technology leaves a footprint. For example, our own technology is leaving a footprint in terms of global warming, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/it-s-worth-remembering-that-all-technology-leaves-a-footprint-for/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [For such an advanced civilization as ours to be without images that are adequate to it is as serious a defect as being without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/for-such-an-advanced-civilization-as-ours-to-be-without-images-that/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [“It is pointless to worry about the possible malevolent intentions of an advanced civilization with whom we might make contact. It is more likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-pointless-to-worry-about-the-possible-malevolent-intentions-of/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [We will never be an advanced civilization as long as rain showers can delay the launching of a space rocket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/we-will-never-be-an-advanced-civilization-as-long-as-rain-showers-can/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [The tendency of an advanced civilization is in truth monarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/the-tendency-of-an-advanced-civilization-is-in-truth-monarchy/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [“Review history, visionaries advanced our civilization. Without them, we'd have been still in a barbaric and chaotic world. Thank you!!!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/review-history-visionaries-advanced-our-civilization-without-them-we/) [Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/) ## More by Greg Bear > [Man is the poet who kills, Woman the angel who eats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/man-is-the-poet-who-kills-woman-the-angel-who-eats/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [It's kind of a misnomer about science fiction that science fiction is about anything other than people. It's about people doing stuff, sometimes doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/it-s-kind-of-a-misnomer-about-science-fiction-that-science-fiction-is/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [“Nature is a bitch goddess.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/nature-is-a-bitch-goddess/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [“The sorrow never dies; it is merely pearled by time. No”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/the-sorrow-never-dies-it-is-merely-pearled-by-time-no/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [Sometimes I feel like a beetle crawling through a fusion power plant. I can feel a certain amount, see a certain amount, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/sometimes-i-feel-like-a-beetle-crawling-through-a-fusion-power-plant/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [Welcome to the truth of our world-a massive seed shot out to the stars, filled with deadly children. A seed designed to slay everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/welcome-to-the-truth-of-our-world-a-massive-seed-shot-out-to-the/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [Apocalypse could not be repealed by the democratic process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/apocalypse-could-not-be-repealed-by-the-democratic-process/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [“BBQ Grills There are a number of gas grills which might be obtainable to the market. Grill professionals from different manufactures point out that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/bbq-grills-there-are-a-number-of-gas-grills-which-might-be-obtainable/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [“You seem to like helping, taking care of people," he said. "That is admirable." "You enjoy being nurtured?" "Well, that isn’t all you promise.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/you-seem-to-like-helping-taking-care-of-people-he-said-that-is/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [For years, even before 9/11, I've been trying to warn that the threat from amateur biolabs will ultimately turn out to be far more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/for-years-even-before-9-11-i-ve-been-trying-to-warn-that-the-threat/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [Nothing is lost. Nothing is forgotten.It was in the blood, the flesh,And now it is forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/nothing-is-lost-nothing-is-forgotten-it-was-in-the-blood-the-flesh/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [To fight an enemy properly, you have to know what they are. Ignorance is defeat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/to-fight-an-enemy-properly-you-have-to-know-what-they-are-ignorance/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [“the children were no longer fast gods, but pigeons in the head of a very quiet, dark bomb,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/the-children-were-no-longer-fast-gods-but-pigeons-in-the-head-of-a/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [Once, poets were magicians. Poets were strong, stronger than warriors or kings — stronger than old hapless gods. And they will be strong once again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/once-poets-were-magicians-poets-were-strong-stronger-than-warriors-or/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) > [“The blade of grass was alone. Together, they were alone. They were alone together. The ground of the Realm was alone. The blade of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-bear/the-blade-of-grass-was-alone-together-they-were-alone-they-were-alone/) [Greg Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) [Explore all 55 Greg Bear quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-bear/) ## More Advanced civilization quotes > [Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-tuchman/without-books-history-is-silent-literature-dumb-science-crippled/) [Barbara Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-tuchman/) > [The tendency of an advanced civilization is in truth monarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/the-tendency-of-an-advanced-civilization-is-in-truth-monarchy/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [We will never be an advanced civilization as long as rain showers can delay the launching of a space rocket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/we-will-never-be-an-advanced-civilization-as-long-as-rain-showers-can/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [“It is pointless to worry about the possible malevolent intentions of an advanced civilization with whom we might make contact. It is more likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-pointless-to-worry-about-the-possible-malevolent-intentions-of/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [For such an advanced civilization as ours to be without images that are adequate to it is as serious a defect as being without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/for-such-an-advanced-civilization-as-ours-to-be-without-images-that/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [It's worth remembering that all technology leaves a footprint. For example, our own technology is leaving a footprint in terms of global warming, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/it-s-worth-remembering-that-all-technology-leaves-a-footprint-for/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [Several days in a row we sighted groups of metallic, saucer-shaped vehicles at great altitudes over the base Germany, 1951 and we tried to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-cooper/several-days-in-a-row-we-sighted-groups-of-metallic-saucer-shaped/) [Gordon Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-cooper/) > [What can we expect from nations still less advanced in civilization than the Greeks?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baptiste-say/what-can-we-expect-from-nations-still-less-advanced-in-civilization/) [Jean-Baptiste Say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baptiste-say/) > [Cardinal Arithmetics is much older than Number Theory. People used to exchange things way before there were numbers. Expressing numbers like 762 is already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saharon-shelah/cardinal-arithmetics-is-much-older-than-number-theory-people-used-to/) Saharon Shelah > [Lying under an acacia tree with the sound of the dawn around me, I realized more clearly the facts that man should never overlook:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/lying-under-an-acacia-tree-with-the-sound-of-the-dawn-around-me-i/) [Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/) > [“Being a noninvasive advanced civilization was the biggest mistake of Batak Kingdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/being-a-noninvasive-advanced-civilization-was-the-biggest-mistake-of/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [The statistics of life out there and the statistics of intelligent beings and advanced civilization is a certainty, the way I look at it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/story-musgrave/the-statistics-of-life-out-there-and-the-statistics-of-intelligent/) [Story Musgrave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/story-musgrave/) > [It seems to me far more likely that an advanced civilization would communicate inter dimensionally and telepathically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/it-seems-to-me-far-more-likely-that-an-advanced-civilization-would/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [“it could be accurately stated that one purpose of our lives, when taken in total, is to generate possible solutions to obstacles and problems,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-j-solomon/it-could-be-accurately-stated-that-one-purpose-of-our-lives-when/) Mark J. Solomon > [“Review history, visionaries advanced our civilization. Without them, we'd have been still in a barbaric and chaotic world. Thank you!!!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/review-history-visionaries-advanced-our-civilization-without-them-we/) [Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/) [Browse all 20 Advanced civilization quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advanced-civilization/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Life on earth is hard. Competition for the necessities of life is fierce. 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