The future for the human race

[Anomalocaris]

There are two components to the impact of climate change.

1. How much the fact that climate has changed would materially effect how we live, how our infrastructure functions, etc. This is quantifiable. We know, or at least can develop methods for predicting, how much impact of this kind there will be for a given amount and type of climate change.

2. The impact of how we react to it. I suspect one major indirect human reaction to damaging impact of climate change is war. Countries that sees the value of its own farmland and other nature resources reduced as a result of changes to climate will be inclined to attack others to get more nature resources. The effect of this is hard to predict.

[The Valkyrie]

Not sure where to post such a question, but I'm wondering, what is the prognosis for the human race?

As I see it we have four "enemies".... and they are:

1. disease - ebola currently, what are we to face?
2. political nonsense - like the Ukraine idiocy.
3. religion - the biggest threat in my book... humans vs humans is an abhorrent prospect
4. and space... probably more scary than I'm giving credit

Should my fear be microwaves, Van Allen, chemical imbalance etc?

I hope we are all happy, but what is the future for our great grandkids?

1. Disease will always be with us. The current flap with ebola is just the latest panic in a whole line of panics. Remember SARS and the Bird 'flu? Yes, it's a concern but I'm not going to panic over it. The Spanish 'Flu killed at least 18 million people around the world. The Black Death wiped out half of Europe. Humanity survives. Will there be pandemics in the future? Of course.

2. As with disease, war has been with us since the first human ancestor picked up a club and hit his neighbour. While out weapons have changed and are capable of killing millions at a time, I don't think the current crises will be the triggering of anything that threatens the survival of humanity as a whole. I'll leave that to when extremists get their hands on WMDs. Which leads us in to 3.

3. Religion, at least fundamentalist religion, is a threat to humanity. But then, we've had that sort of fundamentalist religion throughout history.

4. Yes, something from space could wipe us out. Which is why I believe an effort should be made to get off our one little dirtball and get out into space, to other planets and solar systems.

[lifesagift]

Not sure where to post such a question, but I'm wondering, what is the prognosis for the human race?

As I see it we have four "enemies".... and they are:

1. disease - ebola currently, what are we to face?
2. political nonsense - like the Ukraine idiocy.
3. religion - the biggest threat in my book... humans vs humans is an abhorrent prospect
4. and space... probably more scary than I'm giving credit

Should my fear be microwaves, Van Allen, chemical imbalance etc?

I hope we are all happy, but what is the future for our great grandkids?

1. Disease will always be with us. The current flap with ebola is just the latest panic in a whole line of panics. Remember SARS and the Bird 'flu? Yes, it's a concern but I'm not going to panic over it. The Spanish 'Flu killed at least 18 million people around the world. The Black Death wiped out half of Europe. Humanity survives. Will there be pandemics in the future? Of course.

2. As with disease, war has been with us since the first human ancestor picked up a club and hit his neighbour. While out weapons have changed and are capable of killing millions at a time, I don't think the current crises will be the triggering of anything that threatens the survival of humanity as a whole. I'll leave that to when extremists get their hands on WMDs. Which leads us in to 3.

3. Religion, at least fundamentalist religion, is a threat to humanity. But then, we've had that sort of fundamentalist religion throughout history.

4. Yes, something from space could wipe us out. Which is why I believe an effort should be made to get off our one little dirtball and get out into space, to other planets and solar systems.

That's what I was after, a calming, common sense voice..

Will you come and read me a bedtime story and mop my brow?!!

(I jest of course !)