Can we recover from human caused climate change?

[AFTT47]

I have little doubt that our species will survive climate change. The question is one of quality of life in that survival. The further we ignore it, the poorer the quality of life will be for our descendants.

Eventually, we will migrate into space. It won't take the form of colonizing other planets like Mars which are completely incompatible with our physiology (children will absolutely NOT develop properly in the weak 1/3 gravity of Mars), it will be in the form of artificial colonies in space as visioned by Gerard K O'Neil. From there, we will direct our own evolution and evolve into synthetic creatures which will dwarf us in ways we cannot even imagine. We'll be fine in the long run. We'll evolve into what we could not distinguish from gods.

In the short run though, it's gonna suck. The more we ignore this problem, the harder it will be for our immediate descendants. It may not be a thing for us older folks but the younger generation is going to suffer. They'll still be planet-bound and it will be a planet with considerably less natural charms for them to enjoy. The push into space may come about as an option but the only pleasant option left. Ignore climate change and our children will curse us for it.

[Little lunch]

We're gonna build a whole new world for ourselves.
You know where? Underground.
You should see it down there, hundreds of miles of drains, sweet and clean now, after the rain, dark, quiet, safe.
We can build houses and everything, start from scratch.
And what's so bad about living underground, eh?
S'not been so great living up here, if you want my opinion.

[I_am_not_mafia]

[pocaracas]

[I_am_not_mafia]

I would like Alex K's opinion on whether ITER will work. My forum also had a post-doc nuclear physicist but myself I have absolutely no idea and nor would I. Even with a low chance of it working I still think it's important to pile money into to give it maximum chance of success though.

If it does work though then I don't see the problem of it being generated in a single place as being a problem. We already have Tesla cars in mass production and a whole infrastructure built for shipping an oil that could be harnessed for transporting fuel cells.

Pocaracas gives a typical example of the knock-on of any initiative such as more cycle lanes meaning more people need a shower at work. Another is the amount of rare earth minerals and oil needed to create enough renewable energy devices such as solar panels and wind turbines. Recycled rare earth minerals are apparently not as effective due to the contaminants.

The main problem I see is the short-sightedness of those in power and how our systems reward that.

[pocaracas]

I would like Alex K's opinion on whether ITER will work. My forum also had a post-doc nuclear physicist but myself I have absolutely no idea and nor would I. Even with a low chance of it working I still think it's important to pile money into to give it maximum chance of success though.

Nuclear fusion is an engineering problem, not a physics one. The physics is sound.
ITER is a tokamak design, one of the easiest to design, but not the most efficient.
I fully expect the Stellarator design to overtake the tokamak in a few decades.
But ITER is, as far as we are concerned, the first stepping stone... the first that is actually designed to produce more energy than that which has to be poured into it.
Not yet designed to extract that energy and dump it on the grid... but to show that such should be possible.

If it does work though then I don't see the problem of it being generated in a single place as being a problem. We already have Tesla cars in mass production and a whole infrastructure built for shipping an oil that could be harnessed for transporting fuel cells.

I know we have Teslas and Nissan Leafs (or is it Leaves? ), but their range is quite limited when compared with an equivalent gasoline or diesel powered car. They're improving... there is hope in that direction.
And it's good to see major manufacturers, like Nissan, hopping on that wagon.

The main problem I see is the short-sightedness of those in power and how our systems reward that.

aye.
Short sightedness...

[Minimalist]

[Edwardo Piet]

Nope, we'll never recover from human caused climate change.

All the efforts to make it better by good intentioned people are nothing compared to all the idiots who don't give a fuck.

[Thumpalumpacus]

At any rate, knowing we will some day go extinct, does that mean we should give up and just let it happen?  Does it mean we should behave completely irresponsibly?

Of course not. Where'd you get the idea that I needed to be told this?

[trev22]

At any rate, knowing we will some day go extinct, does that mean we should give up and just let it happen?  Does it mean we should behave completely irresponsibly?

Of course not. Where'd you get the idea that I needed to be told this?

This i doubt, it's impossible..........