--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In 1960 I published a book that attempted…" description: "\"In 1960 I published a book that attempted to direct attention to the possibility of a thermonuclear war, to ways of reducing the likelihood of such a w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg" --- # In 1960 I published a book that attempted to direct… ![“In 1960 I published a book that attempted to direct attention to the possibility of a thermonuclear war, to ways of reducing the likelihood of such a war, and to methods for coping with the consequences should war occur despite our efforts to avoid it.” quote by Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg) > “In 1960 I published a book that attempted to direct attention to the possibility of a thermonuclear war, to ways of reducing the likelihood of such a war, and to methods for coping with the consequences should war occur despite our efforts to avoid it.” [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote warns of nuclear war risks and urges strategies to prevent and survive it. **In simple terms:** Warns about nuclear war and suggests prevention and coping strategies. Key Takeaway Plan and prepare for extreme risks. Themes security war prevention resilience Mood anxious serious Type political analytical When to use this quote - government policy - civil defense - international relations - public education Key Concepts deterrence risk assessment crisis management Questions to Reflect On - How can societies realistically reduce nuclear threats? - What personal actions can individuals take? A Different Perspective It may overstate the inevitability of nuclear conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Consequence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequence/) [Coping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coping/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Nuclear war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear-war/) [Possibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibility/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [An diligent person doesn't like to wasting their efforts into resolving a problem. But also he wasting their efforts to avoid any unhappens events.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/an-diligent-person-doesn-t-like-to-wasting-their-efforts-into/) Mak\_786 > [Science is so powerful that it drags us kicking and screaming towards the truth despite our best efforts to avoid it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-watts/science-is-so-powerful-that-it-drags-us-kicking-and-screaming-towards/) [Peter Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-watts/) > [An diligent people doesn't like to wasting themselves efforts in resolving a problem. But also he wasting their efforts to avoid any unhappens events.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/an-diligent-people-doesn-t-like-to-wasting-themselves-efforts-in/) Mak\_786 > [We must contemplate some extremely unpleasant possibilities, just because we want to avoid them and achieve something better. Nobody, however, likes to think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-wohlstetter/we-must-contemplate-some-extremely-unpleasant-possibilities-just-2/) Albert Wohlstetter > [Long before a thermonuclear war can come about, we have had to lay waste our own sanity. We begin with the children. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-d-laing/long-before-a-thermonuclear-war-can-come-about-we-have-had-to-lay/) [R. D. Laing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-d-laing/) > [During the Cuban Missile Crisis, decisions made by President John F. Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev could have plunged both countries into thermonuclear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-kessler/during-the-cuban-missile-crisis-decisions-made-by-president-john-f/) [Ronald Kessler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-kessler/) > [If Obama commits thermonuclear war, I won't have to worry about November and neither will you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kesha-rogers/if-obama-commits-thermonuclear-war-i-won-t-have-to-worry-about/) [Kesha Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kesha-rogers/) > [“one can ask why they didn’t explore more vigorously the possible environmental consequences of this unprecedented ecological experiment—an all-out thermonuclear war—for which they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-ellsberg/one-can-ask-why-they-didn-t-explore-more-vigorously-the-possible/) [Daniel Ellsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-ellsberg/) > [I'm going to destroy Android, because it's a stolen product. I'm willing to go thermonuclear war on this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/i-m-going-to-destroy-android-because-it-s-a-stolen-product-i-m/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Most music culture these days runs on systems and networks devised to deal with the aftermath of thermonuclear war. Music culture has a habit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/most-music-culture-these-days-runs-on-systems-and-networks-devised-to/) [Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/) > [The human species really could have faced global thermonuclear war. During seventy years of Cold War we grew used to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-niven/the-human-species-really-could-have-faced-global-thermonuclear-war/) [Larry Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-niven/) > [“global thermonuclear war”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genevieve-cogman/global-thermonuclear-war/) [Genevieve Cogman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genevieve-cogman/) > [It is false to say that what we don’t know can’t hurt us, especially when it comes to the Bible. If ever there were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul-jr/it-is-false-to-say-that-what-we-don-t-know-can-t-hurt-us-especially/) [R. C. Sproul, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul-jr/) > [ \[We need to \] select immigrants based on their likelihood of success in U.S. society and their ability to be financially self- sufficient. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-to-select-immigrants-based-on-their-likelihood-of-success-in/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [There's more likelihood of Ian Paisley being the next pope, than of me agreeing to a fix or a stitch-up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhodri-morgan/there-s-more-likelihood-of-ian-paisley-being-the-next-pope-than-of-me/) Rhodri Morgan ## More by Herman Kahn > [I'm against ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/i-m-against-ignorance/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [I'm against sloppy, emotional thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/i-m-against-sloppy-emotional-thinking/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [Anything that reduces war-related destruction should not be considered altogether immoral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/anything-that-reduces-war-related-destruction-should-not-be/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [World War I broke out largely because of an arms race, and World War II because of the lack of an arms race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/world-war-i-broke-out-largely-because-of-an-arms-race-and-world-war/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [For if enough people were really convinced that growth should be halted, and if they acted on that conviction, then billions of others might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/for-if-enough-people-were-really-convinced-that-growth-should-be/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [Risk-taking is the essence of innovation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/risk-taking-is-the-essence-of-innovation/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [“The common contaminated foods which would be the major source of Sr-90 might be classified into five grades- A, B, C, D, and E...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/the-common-contaminated-foods-which-would-be-the-major-source-of-sr/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [Human and moral factors must always be considered. They must never be missing from policies and from public discussion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/human-and-moral-factors-must-always-be-considered-they-must-never-be/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [For some years I have spent my time on exactly these questions - both in thinking about ways to prevent war, and in thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/for-some-years-i-have-spent-my-time-on-exactly-these-questions-both/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [It may literally turn out that a Hottentot, an educated and literate Hottentot it is true, but one who is a member of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/it-may-literally-turn-out-that-a-hottentot-an-educated-and-literate/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [New developments in weapon systems during the 1950s and early 1960s created a situation that was most dangerous, and even conducive to accidental war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/new-developments-in-weapon-systems-during-the-1950s-and-early-1960s/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [To the extent that these advanced weapons or their components are treated as articles of commerce, perhaps for peaceful uses as in the Plowshare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/to-the-extent-that-these-advanced-weapons-or-their-components-are/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [Only those who are ideologically opposed to military programs think of the defense budget as the first and best place to get resources for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/only-those-who-are-ideologically-opposed-to-military-programs-think/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [Nuclear weapons are intrinsically neither moral nor immoral, though they are more prone to immoral use than most weapons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/nuclear-weapons-are-intrinsically-neither-moral-nor-immoral-though/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) > [A healthy and fully functioning society must allocate its resources among a variety of competing interests, all of which are more or less valid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/a-healthy-and-fully-functioning-society-must-allocate-its-resources/) [Herman Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) [Explore all 39 Herman Kahn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/) ## More 1960s quotes > [We do need different types of propulsion to get to Mars. I wrote one of the first Ph.D. theses on that in the 1960s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-do-need-different-types-of-propulsion-to-get-to-mars-i-wrote-one/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [Each year more than 100,000 high school graduates, with proved ability, do not enter college because they cannot afford it. And if we cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/each-year-more-than-100-000-high-school-graduates-with-proved-ability/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) > [Nearly all the writing of our time is likely to disappear in a hundred years. Certainly most readers - and nearly all critics -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dirda/nearly-all-the-writing-of-our-time-is-likely-to-disappear-in-a/) [Michael Dirda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dirda/) > [Sometimes a party must sail against the wind. We cannot heed the call of those who say it is time to furl the sail.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-kennedy/sometimes-a-party-must-sail-against-the-wind-we-cannot-heed-the-call/) [Edward Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-kennedy/) > [ \[In the 1960s\]...you could take LSD but you couldn't wear a pantsuit. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsey-johnson/in-the-1960s-you-could-take-lsd-but-you-couldn-t-wear-a-pantsuit/) [Betsey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsey-johnson/) > [Is it a coincidence that stories from the private life became more popular just as the grand hope for public redemption through revolution was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/is-it-a-coincidence-that-stories-from-the-private-life-became-more/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [I think the general anxiety of the 1960s - '70s spawned our interest in the living dead. When people worry about the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/i-think-the-general-anxiety-of-the-1960s-70s-spawned-our-interest-in/) [Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/) > [“A friend once told me a story about a former Black Panther leader in a Midwest community who in the 1960s had his phone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-j-rodr-guez/a-friend-once-told-me-a-story-about-a-former-black-panther-leader-in/) [Luis J. Rodríguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-j-rodr-guez/) > [I was never bothered about my position in the industry. If I had believed in it, I wouldn't have allowed anyone to get ahead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dharmendra/i-was-never-bothered-about-my-position-in-the-industry-if-i-had/) [Dharmendra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dharmendra/) > [Under the system that we now have to nominate presidential candidates, for instance, I would prefer that we have a system that is closer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-beschloss/under-the-system-that-we-now-have-to-nominate-presidential-candidates/) [Michael Beschloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-beschloss/) > [My son Bill, who came to me in 1960-he was 14 then, quoted the old parable to me: "It is not by their words,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madalyn-murray-o-hair/my-son-bill-who-came-to-me-in-1960-he-was-14-then-quoted-the-old/) [Madalyn Murray O'Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madalyn-murray-o-hair/) > [There is a book called San Francisco Tape Music Centre:1960s Counterculture and the Avant-Garde and this book describes everything that you want to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauline-oliveros/there-is-a-book-called-san-francisco-tape-music-centre-1960s/) [Pauline Oliveros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauline-oliveros/) > [Much of the art of the 1960s, from body art to video and direct performance, was concerned with similar issues. And then there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valie-export/much-of-the-art-of-the-1960s-from-body-art-to-video-and-direct/) [Valie Export](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valie-export/) > [I went through college in the 1960s without having any idea that I was going to have to make a living. When I graduated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-prose/i-went-through-college-in-the-1960s-without-having-any-idea-that-i/) [Francine Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-prose/) > [“At the beginning of a decade when everything was beginning to seem possible, nothing seemed impossible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/at-the-beginning-of-a-decade-when-everything-was-beginning-to-seem/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) Browse all 486 1960s quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In 1960 I published a book that attempted to direct attention to the possibility of a thermonuclear war, to ways of reducing the likelihood of such a war, and to methods for coping with the consequences should war occur despite our efforts to avoid it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Herman Kahn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempted-to-direct-attention-to-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "1960s" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempted-to-direct-attention-to-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/herman-kahn-16803_1960s_in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempte_1140503.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In 1960 I published a book that attempted to direct attention to the possibility of a thermonuclear war, to…” — Herman Kahn", "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": "Herman Kahn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-kahn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In 1960 I published a book...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempted-to-direct-attention-to-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-kahn/in-1960-i-published-a-book-that-attempted-to-direct-attention-to-the/#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 } } ] } ```