| "Superiority" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Arthur C. Clarke | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction |
| Publication | |
| Published in | The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction |
| Publisher | Fantasy House |
| Publication date | August 1951 |
"Superiority" is a science fiction short story by British writer Arthur C. Clarke, first published in 1951. It depicts an arms race during an interstellar war. It shows the side which is more technologically advanced being defeated, despite its apparent superiority, because of its willingness to discard old technology without having fully perfected the new. Meanwhile, the enemy steadily built up a far larger arsenal of weapons that while more primitive were also more reliable. The story was at one point required reading for an industrial design course at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[1][2]