Next Radio 1 boss

[Guest]

Faced with a global population of 6 billion people and rising, all placing immense pressure on the supply of natural resources and food, it would seem unthinkable we could carry on living for hundreds of years without any further destruction to the environment, elimination of animal and plant species and loss of vast swathes of land to human residence and management at a devastating cost to everything which has occupied it previously.

Climate change also raises many possible threats, perhaps not directly to human existence, but indirectly in ways that can destabilize human control of nature and ultimately undo us to a great extent. Part of the current global food crisis is blamed on the devastation wrought by floods which destroyed many crops as a direct result of climate change.

Terrorism isn't interminable, notwithstanding its historical parallels to Roman vandals, barbarians, pirates and so on. Through political dialogue and the creation of a multi-polar world, it can be tackled. The recent disarmament of the IRA is a good example of the non-indefinite nature of the threat of terrorism. I wouldn't place it as one of the major threats to the continued existence of homo sapiens. However, political motivation dictates that terrorism is shown to be a far greater threat than either climate change and human proliferation.

According to Ernst Mayr, a famous biologist, 'the average life expectancy of a species is about 100,000 years'. Homo sapiens have been around for about 250,000 years. Is our time up or can our vast intelligence enable us to find solutions to the biggest threats we face as a species and overcome our possible extinction?

[Spev]

Nah, we'll be reet. As they say in various parts of Lancashire.

[Andy B]

250,000 years? You got your figures right there? Maybe 25,000 at a push but I'm almost certain it's not even that long.

Worst case scenario and the planet goes tits up I shall become a canibal! Plenty to eat then!

[Geezer7348]

Can't say I am overly bothered when it comes to an end, I'll hopefully be long gone before that time ever arises .

I think that certainly if we keep on polluting the air and causing global warming the way we are then certainly the life expectancy of the planet will shorten.

[Behelzebub]

It's difficult to predict how much longer the human race'll be around for... but if nothing's done to address and minimise problems such as global warming then our time may be up sooner than we think.

[Serin]

250,000 years? You got your figures right there? Maybe 25,000 at a push but I'm almost certain it's not even that long.

I think so. I read some scientists push the date even further back to 400,000 years ago at around the time homo erectus (from which we might be directly descended) began to disappear, possibly because we were better skilled at hunting and gathering and they couldn't compete.

It was only within the last 50,000 years that humans began to form culture and language, develop technology and therefore civilisations as our intelligence rapidly increased.

[Lucinda]

I think we'll have to put some effort into reducing our impact on the environment, some of which will happen naturally as market forces make fossil fuels more expensive. I also think that in 100 years time life on Earth will be very different. I think those of us in more developed countries won't suffer anywhere near as much as those in developing countries.

Water is likely to be the 21st century's biggest source of conflict, more so than oil was in the 20th century. 70% of the world's water use is irrigating crops and some countries are already running out of water to grow food, which is another pressure on wheat prices. China ceased to be self-sufficient in wheat in 2004 due to lack of water.

I hope the human race doesn't get wiped out entirely any time soon. I am busy enjoying life.

[DC]

yes we are all doomed.

[KingTutsWWH]

yes we are all doomed.

I was just waiting for you to say this dc. You're sooooo predictable. Haha.

[superchris0110]

Nature has a habbit of throwing up natural controls. It wont be long until there is another flu epidemic that wipes out millions, (China and India being worse affected). I believe a war on the scale of the 20th century are long gone, even if you have a hell bent dictator, they will most likely realise how interdependant each country is on another!

Thinking in the short term, the end of the human race as we know it could occur as early as between 2028-2032(cant remember the year) when an asteroid will pass the earth by a distance that is closer than our moon, if that hits.... we are all buggered!!!

[E*F*4L]

mankind is the first creature on earth to be potentially immortal, since we can now control evolution & our environment & in the future to a extent in which is undreamed of now-we become invulnerable.

if we don't recklessly & needlessly commit suicide, we will almost certainly reach a point where nothing else can hurt us except the overall end of the entire universe.

everyone should take a look at this & set it to [NOW] & just carry on as normal for a bit & have a look every so often :shock:

http://www.peterrussell.com/Odds/WorldClock.php

[Serin]

China ceased to be self-sufficient in wheat in 2004 due to lack of water.

That's interesting. Do you think biofuels (of which in Europe wheat is a significant contributor) are sustainable as a future replacement for oil or is research needed to seek other alternatives to oil as demand for wheat as food increases in rhythm with an expanding, and, wealthier global population?

[Lucinda]

I meant to bring up biofuels but I forgot.

I think that biofuels are just a distraction from the real environmental issues we are facing. They cannot be anything other than a bad thing as they are diverting already scarce resources from food production. They are not really any better for the atmosphere, particularly as most are imported. Governments and oil companies look like they're achieving something positive but in reality they're just making the situation worse by creating an alternative market for agricultural products, further increasing food prices, which might mean that it costs a few pence more for a loaf of bread in this country, but it has a much great impact on those who are struggling to survive.

Investment is needed in real solutions to the energy problems, not just more selfish developed world "solutions" that just serve to suppress the ex-colonial nations.

In order to prove Thomas Malthus wrong, technological innovations in agriculture which increase yields (such as certain types of GM) and improve the nutritional value of food should be considered in a non-biased way and not victimised for no logical reasons other than fear. Cross-breeding of crops has always been allowed but we are letting people suffer serious malnutrition and associated illnesses and death because people in developed countries want the food in their supermarkets to be "natural". In particular the Golden Rice project should be approved: http://www.goldenrice.org/

Unless we're all going to think like Garrett Hardin http://www.garretthardinsociety.org/articles/art_lifeboat_ethics_case_against_helping_poor.html we should all take action and stop being apathetic. Garrett Hardin used an analogy of a lifeboat back in 1974 to argue that we shouldn't bother helping those poorer than us because essentially they'll overload the boat and make us sink. It seems like the richest people in the world believe that they'll just jet off into space and live on the Moon or Mars when things go wrong on Earth, leaving those who can't afford it to essentially drown.

I could go on for a lot longer, but essentially this is what interests me in geography.

[Serin]

Amen to that.

The increasing demand for biofuels (particularly in the USA) is being partly blamed for the current world food crisis.

The sooner we can find a sustainable, environmentally-friendly alternative to oil the better. I don't think we should even be considering biofuels as a viable replacement.

[The Stig]

My god this is deep for UM! Anyway to restore the order and answer the original question proposed by the thread I haven't got a jeffing clue.

[sebdevlin]

We're all doomed I tells ya. I think with the utter mess we have made of the enviroment then good old mother nature may just right the balance after decades of abuse. As long as it's nothing like the film day after tomorrow then i'll be happy.

Althought I do think we will see events like mass flooding both in the UK and around the world due to rising sea levels so if you see a man with a white beard putting two of each animal in a large boat then start panicking.

[sinister]

Nuclear Fusion is the answer, they'll have it sorted out within the next century or so.

No more fuel energy problems for quite a while then.

I think self sustained off world bases will be very important things. The moon, Mars, artificial satellites even. Places to keep seed banks dna and the like, repositories of the history and know how of the planet. It's worth bearing in mind that they don't spot everything flying around the solar system and we could be impacted with only hours notice, if they'd even alert us to the fact.

[tamba]

Well isn't this a happy thread to start the weekend rolling

I agree with DC the end is nigh !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[DC]

at least i'll be dead and out of my misery.

[tamba]

Me too !!