The fate of humanity and the world

[G-Max]

I was thinking about humanity's ultimate fate... about the fact that our population-growth probably won't stop anytime soon... and, well, I wanted to know your opinions.

 

[Synobun]

Humanity will be crushed by many factors, not just one (unless you count the sun expanding or a massive asteroid). I'd have to say a combination of nuclear warheads, the discovery of utilizing antimatter, climate change, and depletion of vital resources will all play part in our downfall.

Maybe some alien invasions too.

 

[Eat_Up_Martha]

Middle-of-road estimates cap human population at about 9 or 10 billion by the end of the century. Obviously, it's a very difficult thing to predict, but I fall into the stabilization camp. The demographic transitional model has so far been quite accurate in describing the population shift from pre- to post-industrialized economies. I'm not entirely confident that the world over will be fully industrial or post-industrial by the end of the century, but I don't discount the possibility either. Drastic changes in the Western lifestyle may be necessary in order to feed a population ~10 billion, but I don't believe that mass starvation is necessarily unavoidable.

I guess the Singularity (more likely) or the Rapture (less likely) could happen, but I'm not banking on either.

And cap-and-trade and green jobs will actually accomplish the exact opposite of population control. Extreme climate shifts would result in a very brutal form of population control.

EDIT: I selected 'other' because I don't think that any of these massive doomsday predictions will come true.

 

[Lord of Elves]

Bad daytime television.

 

[Joecoolyo]

Humanity definitely has a fate.

 

[_random_]

Other:

 

[GamezRule]

The Sun gets hungry and goes nom nom nom on Earth.

 

[G-Max]

Middle-of-road estimates cap human population at about 9 or 10 billion by the end of the century. Obviously, it's a very difficult thing to predict, but I fall into the stabilization camp. The demographic transitional model has so far been quite accurate in describing the population shift from pre- to post-industrialized economies. I'm not entirely confident that the world over will be fully industrial or post-industrial by the end of the century, but I don't discount the possibility either. Drastic changes in the Western lifestyle may be necessary in order to feed a population ~10 billion, but I don't believe that mass starvation is necessarily unavoidable.

The Earth already cannot sustain 7 billion humans. How long could it sustain 9-10 billion before the damage to the biosphere becomes irreversible?

 

[Souron]

Humanity will slowly terraform the biosphere until all that's left is directly serving people. But under those conditions, economics can function just as well, so that won't be our doom.

World economic well being, which is measured by real wealth per capita, will be determined by social factors above all. Fortunately, high of welfare is a stable state; people who are well off tend not to have many kids. Hopefully poverty will decline more from development than genocide.

From a physics says the only thing limiting us is entropy, and that's not due to run out in a long time. The sun exploding can be overcome, probably by settling elsewhere.

So I'm actually pretty optimistic about humanity's ultimate fate. The near future is another story.

 

[PlutonianEmpire]

Other: The world's governments will brutally and violently slaughter 99% of the world's population, and enslave the rest, beginning either Dec. 21, 2012, or May 19, 2013.

 

[G-Max]

Humanity will slowly terraform the biosphere

...as opposed to turning it into a wasteland like we are now?

 

[Birdjaguar]

In the shorter run, more of the same for the next few generations. In the longer run, more of the same in a different setting and context that is yet to be determined.

Your solution: be kinder, work hard and raise your babies as best you can.

 

[Zelig]

Heat death of the universe.

 

[Dreadnought]

Honestly? Humanity won't go extinct until at least the end of the universe. If the Star Trek model is true, then we'd have mastered time by the 3000's, so we'll never truly end.

 

[Heretic_Cata]

Other:

Is Jesus pooping 2 rainbows in that pic ?

 

[Souron]

...as opposed to turning it into a wasteland like we are now?

That counts. It would be nice if there were more things to put the cost of externalizes on business, and sooner the better, but the worse things get, the more people will care, until finally something will be done. And people will start to care when their livelihood becomes at stake, not humanities' as a whole. And there's always the chance that academic arguments will work sooner.

Heat death of the universe.

It won't be a heat death. It'll be a slow, cold death as all the entropy runs out, and all that's left is infinite, uniform void.

 

[7ronin]

Humanity always seems to muddle through. The future may be bleak and there will be many crises but we will get through them. I think we will be around until either the sun winks out or enlarges and incinerates us. By then perhaps we will have mastered interstellar travel and launched a new wave of explorers into the reaches of the universe.

 

[Darkwind]

I guess we do not know enough to have chosen option 2 or 3. There is no clear relationship between the pollution human cause and the overall biosphere. There are way too many factors and any event like meteor or volcanic activities can make all the "pollution" we made a rounding error.

But I am still have hope on humanity and I do think we will have better technology in the future to conquer death. (may be with computer and bio-electronics)

 

[MjM]

Zombie apocalypse.

 

[El_Machinae]

My concern is the last one, because I think it is a real risk that can sneak up on us, and has the potential to derail progress. Right now, we mine natural resources (and the biosphere) non-renewably, and build human innovation with the capital. This has lead to increasing levels of perceived progress and wealth. If we made our natural resource consumption sustainable, ostensibly human innovation could continue to build progress.

Unfortunately, ecosystems suffer tipping points, so there's very little warning of impending doom. Things look find until they're not. So, what can you do? Try to build wealth as efficiently as possible, and try not to destroy nonrenewables for wasteful reasons ...

So, to answer. If not (c), then (b). Endgoal is a space-borne species