Human surivial

[Kranis]

Who thinks humans will survive the next 1,000 years, yes?, no?, makes me wonder, war, diseases, overpopulation, lots of things that affect human survival.

[questionposter]

Who thinks humans will survive the next 1,000 years, yes?, no?, makes me wonder, war, diseases, overpopulation, lots of things that affect human survival.

 

Considering that human race has already survived ice ages and the desert and that other mammals had survived the k-t event and all the technology we have that none of them had, I'd say it's almost certain the human race will survive in the next 1,000 years even if civilization itself doesn't.

[Orundellico]

If you want the human race to vanish from this planet, you'll have to make them vanish all. Otherwise, there will always be the problem that the remaining people would make the whole game start all over again. (Natural) diseases or hunger won't be sufficient.

 

I see four (virtual) strategies which might be successful

 

1. Get them all at the same time

2. Destroy their means of existence

3. Block their offspring.

 

§ 1 - Could always be reached by a cosmic catrastophe, such as a meteorite impact, but I think, this is not really the topic of this thread.

I think that we are technically already able to blow ourselves all up. On the other hand, it is not the purpose of a war to kill oneself, too, so this could only happen by unprofessional handling of this tool.

On the microbiological level, I think it is/will be also possible to create a virus more efficient than the pest, which let anyhow two thirds of the European population alive in the Middle Age.

How probable is this to happen within the next 1,000 years ? We'll see.

 

§ 2 - Man is very versatile concerning his food stock and the physical conditions of life. So, it won't be sufficient - as it is for other species - to clear some square miles of rainforest to exterminate him. As we know, a climate change can be induced by the human race, but it must be a really extreme change in order to make end to any agriculture and to anything else to eat or to drink. I think that our species will only leave Earth as one of the last ones.

Soil erosion is potentially also effective to make an end to agriclture and to wildlife, but in such a case, the last survivants will be smart enough to live on the residues.

To make vanish or to poison all drinking water is obviously very difficult to realize as long as the cycle of evaporation and rainfall remains intact. I myself at least wouldn't know how to make it collapse.

 

§ 3 - One theory of the extermination of the mammouth is that the ice age people only hunted their calves, with a weight below one ton. In any case, attacking procreation is a very effective virtual stategy to make end to a species. What could make us stop to have children or what could kill them systematically or make them infertile ? One reason is that it could be "out of fashion" to have kids - in many indrustial countries the birth rate is much lower than 2 children per woman, so below the rate of self-reproduction. However, I doubt that this could really be extrapolated down to zero - before, some people could change their minds.

What else could stop the procreation ? Poisons, diseases, socially or educationally induced asexuality, food ?

 

As a conclusion, I dare the prediction that there will be a big crisis for our species, but not (yet) the real end.

[robheus]

Who thinks humans will survive the next 1,000 years, yes?, no?, makes me wonder, war, diseases, overpopulation, lots of things that affect human survival.

 

Most important: we must understand we can not grow exponentially on a finite planet. There is no planet B. (well there are plenty other planets, but it is not the case we can simply go to such a planet and pretend that depletion problems needn't be solved - no solution can solve exponential growth).

 

But we can surive of course, but we would need to develop more durable and sustainable forms for economic development. There are plenty of opportunites for that. Look for example at desertec, they plan to create huge amount of solar energy from desert regions (north africa, middle east). Waste heat can be used to transform salt water into drink water.

 

And they are plenty other ways for sustainable development.

Edited June 22, 2012 by robheus

[Chad]

Who thinks humans will survive the next 1,000 years, yes?, no?, makes me wonder, war, diseases, overpopulation, lots of things that affect human survival.

 

 

 

 

I sure hope we do. But I sure see were, you are coming from.

 

When you combine all of the following things, it does not look good. (And we don't have good plans, to stop any of these things.)

 

 

We are over populating this planet, and if everyone on Earth lived like Americans, we would need like 7? more planets, to provide everyone's resources.

And China's 1 billion plus people, are starting to live like Americans.

 

We are depleting the oceans fish stocks, (and I heard on PBS the other day, that when these stocks fall, they can get stuck that way.)

We are running out of fresh water reserves, that water Americas "bread basket."

 

Global warming temperature changes, will most likely cause sea levels to rise, and flood homes and crop fields.

Global warming temperature changes, could cause crop plants to no longer grow, were they do now.

Global warming could cause deep ocean currents to stop, and flip this planet upside down.

 

We are over prescribing antibiotics, and making germs that cant be killed.

We are destroying the rain forests, (and they remove carbon and stop global warming.)

We are letting out chemicals into our ecosystems, that cause birth defects and cancer.

ex. ex. ex.

 

 

 

 

 

 

But at the same time, new solar power systems, could start providing large amounts, of cheap and clean energy. And new technology like (indoor hydroponics and new fish farming) could fix many of the above problems. And scientists are even making machines, that remove carbon from the air.

 

 

It seems that the governments, of America and some European countries, are suffering from deficits and debt. And they no longer have the money to pay for social programs. I just hope that (if) and when, many people are no longer taken care of by their governments, these people will form some new government, that actually cares about its people.

 

Here in America there is a political spirit going around that says, "its o.k. if 40,000 Americans die each year, from not having health insurance" and "its not the governments responsibility to feed hungry children." If this spirit spreads, no one will care about any one. And this philosophy of not caring about people, it just cant help our present problems.

 

 

 

But I have noticed that many scientists, are starting to speak about, the above list of problems (AND I HOPE THEY DON'T STOP.)

 

 

 

Will we fix these problems? I personally think that with (LUCK) we can get past these problems. But I personally think, that (GOOD LUCK), will have to come into play.

 

 

Take care of yourself,

Chad.

Edited June 29, 2012 by Chad

[too-open-minded]

better yet who thinks humans will make it off the planet?