# Quote — Frank Herbert, Dune

> Beyond a critical point within a finite space, freedom diminishes as numbers increase. This is as true of humans as it is of gas molecules in a sealed flask. The human question is not how many can possibly survive within the system, but what kind of existence is possible for those who do survive.

- Author: [Frank Herbert](https://www.leafyquotes.com/frank-herbert.md)
- Book: [Dune](https://www.leafyquotes.com/frank-herbert/dune.md)
- Source: [Wikiquote](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Dune#Appendices) ([CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/))
- Quote page: https://www.leafyquotes.com/frank-herbert/dune/beyond-a-critical

## More from this book

> The more I study the phenomenon of human creativity, the more mysterious it seems. Their whole process of innovation is elusive, but is critical for us to understand. If we fail in this endeavor, thinking machines are doomed.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/frank-herbert/dune/the-more-i-study.md)

> The future, the past and the present are intertwined, a weave that forms any point in time.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/frank-herbert/dune/the-future-the.md)

> Science, under the guise of benefiting mankind, is a dangerous force that often tampers with natural processes, without recognizing the consequences. Under such a scenario, mass destruction is inevitable.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/frank-herbert/dune/science-under-the.md)