[helene_t]

In another thread, someone asked for a poll about how this will all be coming to an end.

[Trinidad]

I think that we will evolve into another species over many years to come. Maybe "Decay of the human genome" covers that, but I prefer to see it as "Improvement of the human genome".

Rik

[ochinko]

Comets are not feared enough of. Dinosaurs probably thought they would be forever too.

[helene_t]

Trinidad, on Jul 29 2009, 01:50 PM, said:

I think that we will evolve into another species over many years to come. Maybe "Decay of the human genome" covers that, but I prefer to see it as "Improvement of the human genome".

Yes, conventional wisdom has it that evolution has stopped, but actually Homo Sapiens is evolving extremely fast. Which is non-surprising, given how fast our environment changes. Take the ability to digest milk, a new feature that has evolved over a few thousands years.

[Fluffy]

I think that war, warming, disease, starvation or something like will kill more than half of the humans at some point, but not the entire race.

To get rid of us at once and forever it will take a meteor or the sun to colapse (probably the meteor).

Aliens invading earth looks to me completelly impossible on my understanding of the universe, but then you know... flying was completelly impossible 500 years ago too so maybe.


There is a small chance that we can colonice another planet and survive there before the meteor kills us, but very slim.

[kenberg]

I'm the vote for "some other pollution related problem" although my real vote is for the "middle group" of the list: Food shortage, disease, waster shortage, global warming, the whole packet interacting. London had its plague, only partly from lack of knowledge. Various civilizations have been wiped out from disease or from destroying their land. Scientific knowledge about such matters is useful to a point, but the problems are worldwide and I don't think we collectively have what it takes to deal with them.

Naturally I would like to bne wrong. About several things, actually.

[Aberlour10]

I tend to asteroid crash. There are undoubtedly several undiscovered of them, which can teoretically hit the earth. I watched an interesting detailed simulation of such a hit, placed near Yucatan... with terrible short- and long-term global effects.

Robert

[Al_U_Card]

I voted "other" because you didn't list "stupidity".

The other question is will the next stage in our development (homoconsciens) decide to share the earth with his predecessor? Then it becomes a question of whether they will leave the planet or not....

[hotShot]

Albert Einstein (unknown source) said:

Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.

Helene all options except Supenova and asteroid impact are in fact manifestations off human stupidity.

[helene_t]

I think I agree with Gonzalo.

[hrothgar]

Question: Are we talking the death of the entire human race or the destruction of what currently passes for civilization?

It would take something VERY big to kill off the whole human race. If I'm voting on this, I suspect that "Pissed off Individual" leads the pack, followed by some kind of planet killer (comet, asteroid, etc). As scary as it sounds, technology is progressing to the point that one really pissed off individual might be able to cobble together something that could end it all. Planet killers - asteroids, comets, and the like - also fit into this category.

If we're talking about ending human civilization while leaving a few stragglers... I think that (general) environmental degradation is the leading contender.

A few years back, I would have said nuclear exchange. Luckily, things have calmed down considerable. I think that there's a decent change that we'll lose a few isolated cities - Haifa tops my list - however, I don't really see much chance of the US or the Russians unleashing on each other.

[jjbrr]

To what degree do you think answering "stupidity" or "irresponsibility" or "some pissed off individual" makes the end a self-fulfilling prophecy? Doesn't this lead to paranoia, which leads to the desire to defend ourselves, which makes others paranoid of us, which causes them to build up their weapons supply, which makes us think others are supplying the Stupids, and on and on and on?

Einstein:

Quote

I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.

Anyway, I voted some other environmental issue.

[Al_U_Card]

Vigilence is not paranoia when there is a real potential for the issue at hand...

[Phil]

What will kill us all is blogging for hours on end and watching our pipes clog up.

[Al_U_Card]

Unless we are doing it WHILE we are on a treadmill (the exercise kind....) lol

[hrothgar]

jjbrr, on Jul 29 2009, 06:18 PM, said:

To what degree do you think answering "stupidity" or "irresponsibility" or "some pissed off individual" makes the end a self-fulfilling prophecy?

In the grand scheme of things, I worry much more about precious teenagers who have just gotten dumped by their significant others.

[Lobowolf]

No Global Warming votes at all?!

[luke warm]

Lobowolf, on Jul 29 2009, 12:41 PM, said:

No Global Warming votes at all?!

yes... it's a consensus

[Fluffy]

Global warming won't kill everyone, we have technology to survive a new glacial era, some of the technology will be lost if we are back to Noe's Arch, but not all.


I know nothing about these matter, but isn't some poeple worried that the earth might collapse because we will create a black hole ona lab or something like?

[jjbrr]

Al_U_Card, on Jul 29 2009, 10:48 AM, said:

Vigilence is not paranoia when there is a real potential for the issue at hand...

Does such a comment constitute paranoia?