[Miscellaneous]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rAiTDQ-NVY

There’s the rub, @eltonioni.

We know only too well the consequences of our actions yet we do relatively little about it. You periodically suggest, based on our success in overcoming adversity, we will find a solution to global warming. Maybe we will? Or maybe we are too close to the trees, where the roses also happen to grow? The effect viewing Earth in the vastness of space has on astronauts tends to suggest we are too close to fully appreciate our existence. If we stand back to where the rose fragrance is not so overwhelming and from where we can see the wood, there may be a few clues as to how our future will play out?

In all of time over 99% of species have become extinct. That in itself is a very sobering thought. The dinosaurs lasted 165 million years and, as we know, met their demise through no fault of their own. Mostly, however, evolution takes care of the longevity of the species. Historically and significantly though, species don’t tend to have been the architects of their own extinction.

Homo sapien has been around for somewhere in the order of 300 000 years, that’s 0.2% of the time the dinosaurs roamed. The important years in terms of our influence on our own longevity is much less. There are many potential measures, whether industrial capability or population explosion, the differences in time being so insignificant the specific measures are not critical. Suffice to estimate we’ve largely become a significant influence over our own longevity in the last, say, 300 years. So, in 0.1% of our already insignificant time on the planet we have managed to threaten our own existence. Not only that, we do so on numerous fronts whilst being fully aware of the consequences of our actions.

When considered, it’s clear there is no other species with such a propensity for ‘self harm’.

From endangering the very environment we depend on for our survival, to actual self harm;

Environment:
Biologically
Contaminates
Climate
Resource depletion
AI?…

To large scale fighting;
Development of WMDs
International wars
Civil wars…

Atrocities;
Genocide
Ethnic cleansing…

Crime;
Human trafficking
Theft, murder or drug dealing
Domestic violence
Sectarianism…

Even down to self harm at an individual level;
Drug abuse
Smoking
Alcohol abuse
Obesity…

Ironically, not only are homo sapiens capable of stopping all of those actions, some immediately, they are capable of incredible feats of technological, engineering and medical wonder, compassion, philanthropy and problem solving. Sadly, despite the knowledge and experience of our actions we continue to let our primitive nature drive our actions at and to incredibly worrying levels. We have the ability to reset, certainly, however do we have the will?

Outside influences aside it’s estimated there’s a billion years until life cannot be sustained on Earth. Given our incredible 'achievement' and accelerating pace in our capability for self harm, particularly in the past 100 years, what’s the probability we will be around in a billion years, exceed the dinosaurs 165 million, last a million, or even another thousand years? Will some alien life form discover Earth in the year 20244 only to find remnants of AI and fossils? Or maybe, just as the dinosaurs preceded us, we simply precede whatever form of life develops next here on Earth?

Is it simply the case self annihilation is woven in to the very fabric of our genes? Maybe there’s an inevitability about our future, not in the sense of being predetermined by an agent, but in the sense that you’ll inevitably get wet if you jump in the sea without a form of waterproofing?

Even if our extinction is inevitable it is not something to worry about any more than the knowledge of our own death is. If it is the case though, it would be better for all if we took our heads out the sand and worked to prolong our time, rather than assisting evolution in minimising it. Whilst 1000yrs is in real terms diddly squat, it's an awful lot of time in terms of our achievements over the past 100yrs. I agree; let's reset and spend that time all pulling together and, for the love of God, in the same direction. But then, if it is in the genes and we don’t in fact have the free will to reset…