The End of the World has begun (1 Viewer)

[Mark R O]

Our final exodus from this planet (assuming there is one) to a new, distant home will not require hardware.

 

[Max Leung]

Ah ha...some kind soul cached that Onion article I was frothing at the mouth about:
Stephen Jay Gould Speaks Out Against Science Paparazzi
The guy/gal who cures cancer should be given 2 weeks off with a dozen or so Playboy Playmates, to hammer into the heads of the populace that scientists are invaluable. I'm sure that science enrollment would immediately swell... But that's just my opinion.

 

[Peter Overduin]

Okay; this sucks. You know what the end of the world will do to my real estate and mutual fund values? Darn!

 

[Kyle McKnight]

The link is dead.

 

[Max Leung]

Nope, I just tried it, works fine, so that means the world is still around! W00t!
Or you can look at the cache of the cached page on google:
http://www.google.ca/search?q=gould+...-8&hl=en&meta=

 

[Grant B]

So if it's the end of the world can I have your 65 inch HDTV?

 

[Christ Reynolds]

Nobody listens to scientists. They aren't sexy. They don't drape themselves with the droppings of status. They don't have the big SUV, private jet, entourage of paparazzi, supermodels hanging off the arm, and thousands of screaming teenaged girls greeting them at every airport and lecture hall.

will someone remind me why i go to engineering schoool again? and about moving to another planet, assuming the human race will live that long, which it wont. moving elsewhere is a silly idea. it is my belief that humans should perish with the planet, why should we move elsewhere? the dinosaurs were lucky, they werent advanced enough to predict what happened to them, they got blindsided. we, on the other hand, are the most advanced race this planet has seen. we are self-aware, and it lets us ponder these kinds of questions. of course, all of us will be long dead in 100 years, but humans wont have to move anywhere, because of the earth's life. thats millions of years in the future, and i dont know if any humans will be around to see it. maybe some other creatures will be around after the nuclear winter that is likely to happen within the next couple hundred years, and evolve into a smarter creature. then maybe they could leave the earth when they have to. or maybe this post will stretch on until the end of the earth. better stop it here.

CJ

 

[Jay Taylor]

What we should do is develop AI in our disposable diapers so life on Earth will be eternal.

Jay Taylor

 

[Max Leung]

Jay, that sounds like a Rudy Rucker SF novel plotline...oh wait, it is!
Christ, you went to engineering school on the mistaken believe that engineers get all the hot teenaged girls. Well, now you know better! If you have any offspring, now is the time to remind them.
"Son, if you want to get ahead in life, you should become a pop-star, a famous actor, or a professional athlete. If you want to make a difference in how people live, become a politician. If you want to find the truth but be ignored, become a scientist."
Eh, wait a minute...that's almost cynical-sounding. Oh well.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

As for thinking the human race should perish with the planet, go ahead and think that. Other people will one day help avert such, though.

does it really matter? humans are parasites by nature, do we really need to destroy another planet? its quite self righteous to assume that humans have the right to move to another planet, simply because we acquired the technology to (clumsily) do it. plus, theres nobody to 'stop' us. i'm all for the advancement of this race, but if this planet is in peril, we should prob go with it. but its silly to discuss details, if you think that humans will be around then, then maybe you should stick around and discuss it. half a billion years? we can barely go through a couple thousand without destroying ourselves. after 500 million, i doubt there will be much left worth saving.

CJ

 

[BrianW]

CJ, what lifeforms have you ever seen that are not parasitic? From what I can tell, metabolic functionality, which inevitably leads to occupying a "parasitic" spot on the food chain, is one of the necessary requirements for life itself. Either I'm not understanding something, or you really do hate humankind.

Help me understand. What would we have to be, what would we have to eat, and what would we have to think and accomplish before we could gain your approval to move offworld?

 

[Jack Briggs]

I don't particularly like someone saying that the human race deserves to die along with the planet. I read your statement last night and wrote out a response, posted it, and then thought better and deleted it. But, so help me, here I am a day later and I am still put off by such a statement.

 

[Sebastian]

You guys don't have to worry about this. Maybe what's going to happen after death is something to worry about. I did not know there were so many atheist on this board.
Oh well don't want to go any further because of this boards policy.

 

[Max Leung]

Pssst, I'm not an atheist. (*thinks to self* There, that should keep me from being the first up against the wall when the witch hunt comes. )
I'm not the opposite either.
Uh oh I blew my cover. My compatriots on Epsilon Eridani will be pissed!

 

[Max Leung]

BTW, anyone read this book?
Dragonfly: Nasa and the Crisis Aboard Mir
Interesting how the featured customer review said:

If there is one message this book leaves with the reader it is that technology is not the main challenge to space exploration today. Rather, it is the human factor. It is about the ability (or lack thereof) of people to get along with each other - and to be honest with each other in their working relationships. It is also about the awful consequences of not considering the human element of space operations i.e. depressed, isolated, over-worked, and scared people make mistakes. And finally, it is about the collision of culture and politics in the final frontier and the consequences that result when technical decisions are made for political reasons and political decisions are made for technical reasons.

An echo of Jeff's objections, and my interest in the sociological/psychological aspects of a mission to Mars (would it make a good movie? Ron Epstein reviews: "From the Pale Blue Dot to the Red Planet, next week on the HTF!").

 

[Mark Schermerhorn]

If y'all haven't read the red/green/blue mars series of books, I highly recommend it. Technology, politics, philosophy, human nature. Doesn't get much better

 

[Christ Reynolds]

I did not know there were so many atheist on this board.

atheist huh? given the definition, what exactly in the thread designates anyone an ahteist? thats rich...with all the intelligent members of this forum, god forbig us from having an intelligent coversation about this without resorting to "CJ hates the human race". i'm sure the moderators will close this thread soon anyway.

CJ

 

[Sebastian]

Ouch CJ,
Dealing with some personal issues, I see
Seriously though,
if I answer that question, this thread will be locked and I may be banned.
So I am not going to come between the members on this board discussing their theories on what happens in the future. Especially when it is already known to a few people.
I will stop there, anyone can PM me, if they like.

 

[BrianW]

CJ, I appreciate your response to my query, but you haven't helped me to understand. What is it about the human race that you regard as parasitic? Please don't take my question as a personal attack. I'm just trying to understand your POV.
As for all the atheists on this forum, I don't see anything here that would necessarily tag anyone an atheist. Don't confuse our inability to discuss religious beliefs with not actually having them. Space exploration and - that other thing - are not mutually exclusive.
Is discussing the ramifications of not being able to have religious discussions allowed?

 

[RobertR]

of course nobody would want to die, including me, but i dont see any reason why this race should be able to move around and pollute other areas of the universe

Your misanthropy is showing. By your logic, you (and the rest of the species) SHOULD die ASAP so as to spare the Universe all that “pollution”. Since you seem to place such a high value on “pollution avoidance”, I have to wonder why you choose to live (since you seem to think no human “deserves” to live because of his “polluting” presence).

This “we’d all be better off dead” philosophy is truly remarkable.