Agreed, when there's no war or issues, we like to just tick along at a mediocre pace (good old human laziness). We need wars or issues to over come. Just look at green tech. It's only starting to get a massive boost due to political pressure due to climate change.
If humanity focused... ?
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Agreed, when there's no war or issues, we like to just tick along at a mediocre pace (good old human laziness). We need wars or issues to over come. Just look at green tech. It's only starting to get a massive boost due to political pressure due to climate change.
We work in a social heirarchy that has been programmed from the time we first hunted together. The tendency to form groups and distrust other groups needs to be overcome, we need to stop worrying about social status. We basically need a 'spiritual coming of age' worldwide, for Humans to work closely together. Who knows where that will come from? It's not impossible, though it would probably require an event of massive magnitude to refocus mankind's efforts into something more altruistic and to work simply for the betterment of us as a species.
If we were to do so, the immediate benefits - cure for cancer/AIDs, end to third world hunger, massive advances in alternative energy, would all be achieved much sooner.
The Arab Spring shows what can happen in modern times - a domino effect that brings about a change across several countries.
If we were to do so, the immediate benefits - cure for cancer/AIDs, end to third world hunger, massive advances in alternative energy, would all be achieved much sooner.
The Arab Spring shows what can happen in modern times - a domino effect that brings about a change across several countries.
you're forgetting a very powerful human trait... sloth...
there will and always will be a big differences in the effort in some jobs... eg working in a mundane but otherwise office vs sweating your nuts off in a field picking produce, or years of immense and mind bending study (medicine) vs a much shorter period of education for another job.
You cant and wont get "everyone" to work together without some big carrot in front of each of them because given the chance, many wont "apply themselves" and just laze about.... just think, you ever see a "lazy ant"? Nope, everyone works.
You want humanity to truly apply themselves? Either a big stick (like a Extinction level event) meaning we need to get as many of us off this rock asap, or a big carrot (another earth like planet within "travel distance"). Barring that, it'll be a great achievement if we dont nuke ourselves to extinction. BTW, not fussed about the planet, it's a closed system, she'll take care of herself, with or without us.
there will and always will be a big differences in the effort in some jobs... eg working in a mundane but otherwise office vs sweating your nuts off in a field picking produce, or years of immense and mind bending study (medicine) vs a much shorter period of education for another job.
You cant and wont get "everyone" to work together without some big carrot in front of each of them because given the chance, many wont "apply themselves" and just laze about.... just think, you ever see a "lazy ant"? Nope, everyone works.
You want humanity to truly apply themselves? Either a big stick (like a Extinction level event) meaning we need to get as many of us off this rock asap, or a big carrot (another earth like planet within "travel distance"). Barring that, it'll be a great achievement if we dont nuke ourselves to extinction. BTW, not fussed about the planet, it's a closed system, she'll take care of herself, with or without us.
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What's the point in all this if it isn't sustainable? Sure we've done all those things, but are ruining the planet at the same time, and we know we are. Sounds more like stupidity to me. Then all these things have created a massive wealth gap. You can't claim all these wonderful things when millions of people still don't have access to clean water.
Sharks are a great example of a perfect species. Been around for hundreds of millions of years and have pretty much not evolved. And they're awesome too.
Not sustainable? Massively disagree. We adapt and technology improves.
We still work together more than any other species. That is an undeniable fact.
Other species also wage war and genocide, just becuase they don't have weapons, doesn't mean they don't destroy other nests, or protect their areas from other groups.
people for some reason believe we are unique in many things.
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The use of fossil fuels isn't sustainable, and it is harmful to the planet. We know this, yet very little is being done on a large enough scale to make a difference. The world is driven predominantly by money, which at the end of the day is worthless if we destroy the habitats around us, and the species that have just as much right to live on this planet as we do.
Sure we adapt our technology and perhaps some day it will save us, but there are too many interfering factors for it to save us now.
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Massive amounts our being done. Small scale farming was unsustainable. Guess what did it kill us off? did it make us resort back to scavenger society? No of course not. We improved and adapted and continued to prosper. Just like we are doing with the end of fissile fuels. The change over has already started. Its a long slow process, but change always is. things do not happen over night.
Many areas of pollution are far lower than in the past.
How can it save us? if like you say we are already doomed. Just nonsense and a lack of information on what has changed and what is changing.
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If we could do away with religion, the world would advance at a better rate, we'd all get along better, be more collective and become more of one. The poorer economies, would get wealthier, have less children, bring down the population to managable levels.
Totally agreed, motivation is needed for advancement, if for example independence day type aliens turned up you would pretty quickly see the world unite in order to fight them off, potentially with phenominal advances in technology and not just for military applications... However as happens repeatedly over history once the common enemy or obstacle has been removed its back to every man for himself!
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I never said we were doomed. I just merely stated that our technology wouldn't be able to save us at present. I think you misunderstood my point about things being done. Yes a lot is happening, but not nearly as much as could be happening. Your points are all geared towards the human race, and saving ourselves, but what about other life? I think that is the main problem with our race. We're so self centred and focused on ourselves that other species lose out.
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We'd be living on sustainable off-world colonies right now if we could work together. Mankind belongs amongst the stars.
However it seems we are going backwards when I comes to space and instead we are retreating into our own little nations and making petty threats against others.
It won't be an asteroid that brings us to extinction but rather it will be our own closed minded stupidity.
However it seems we are going backwards when I comes to space and instead we are retreating into our own little nations and making petty threats against others.
It won't be an asteroid that brings us to extinction but rather it will be our own closed minded stupidity.
We don't need most of the other life and actually. Things are being done about that as well. The EU regulations on rivers, that are starting to take effect and not only improve water quality. But in some places life is returning.
Less funding, but we are seeing more coporation than we ever had ISS, european space agency. We're even seeing emergence of new tech. Like VASMIR engine being tested on the ISS next year. That if it works outside the laboratory, could see us cutting the time to Mars to just 39days.
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If a species had the technology to get here we wouldn't have the time or technology needed to fight them off.
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Listen to yourself. "We don't need the other life". How self-centred. There is absolutely nothing that gives us more right to this planet than any other species, but you fail to see this. The other life doesn't need us, so maybe we should all pack up and go and leave them to it.
I can say with 100% certainty that not nearly enough is being done to save animals on this planet.
I'm not so sure "harmful" is the right word. Use of fossil fuels may be changing the planet, but only time will tell what effects occur. "Harm" is very much subjective. Some organisms like CO2 and heat, some dont. Some dont even like oxygen. So "harmful" is a perspective thing, and to the planet, she doesnt care, a warmer planet may see the rise of a "better" species after we kill ourselves off.
Also not so sure about the "right to live on this planet". On a closed biosphere, you'll often see one species kill off (intentionally or not) another, especially if they compete for the same resources. Nobody has a "right" to exist. You fight to exist, or die trying. Law of the jungle i'm afraid, no fluffy bunny stuff will save you when you're about to starve.
There isn't any right, for anything, species come and go. There's no Devine order or rights involved.
Also listen to myself. Not really its just reality. If we wanted to there's few species we actually need at all. I'm not saying how I think we should handle ourselfs, just that in reality we have goto a stage where we don't need these massive Eco systems to survive.
Also listen to myself. Not really its just reality. If we wanted to there's few species we actually need at all. I'm not saying how I think we should handle ourselfs, just that in reality we have goto a stage where we don't need these massive Eco systems to survive.
I'm not entirely sure fusion can explode. Its more of an inward process than fission which is more outward.
Seeing as you don't have the mass of hydrogen in a fusion reactor, it's likely to just stop working and go out.