He is such a buzzkill...

[nairiporter]

While we are about alarmist apocalyptic predictions, let me mention Stephen Hawking. The older he gets, the more pessimistic he seems to be. Now he is saying that humankind should colonise another planet within the next 100 years if it wants to prevent its own extinction. In a new documentary that he is making for BBC, he will make his argument in

Comments

[abomvubuso]

While we're about grim predictions, NdGT has something to say about America's future as well.

[oportet]

They'll have to keep it a secret, or the inevitable debate will be - who gets to go? Space colonization may be possible, but it ain't possible for 8 billion people. When the time comes, it's likely that many who are left out of the man-made rapture won't be too happy about it.

[htpcl]

Something like last night's development in The 100. Hard choices, brother.

[policraticus]

It seems to me that if we can develop the technology to colonize Mars (the most likely choice in our neighborhood) we will be able to deal with our problems here on Earth. The challenges we need to overcome to establish a self sustaining Martian colony are orders of magnitude greater than adapting to climate change, rebuilding after a major war, or surviving a new plague, plastic eating worms or whatever.

I agree with him about AI, though. And I think that we should shut SETI right the fuck down and take our whole planet off the cosmic grid, as much as we can. The last thing I want to do is advertise our existence to a species capable of interstellar travel.

[htpcl]

How do you propose that we stop broadcasting into space?

[policraticus]

Well, we can't stop the ambient radio waves, at least not with our current technology. But we can stop actively broadcasting "here we are, come and visit!" messages hoping the ET who visits will be benevolent.

Basically, I would prefer we not advertise our existence as much as possible.

[htpcl]

We've already done it. We've been doing it ever since the radiowaves got used for communication.

[luvdovz]

What makes anyone think that colonizing another planet would just make all our problems go away, as opposed to transferring them to other places and expanding them (the problems) beyond Earth?

[mikeyxw]

Exactly. My bet is that within a few hundred years, our colonies would have an array of planet busting MAD type weapons aimed at the Earth and vice versa... or at least the AIs that wiped us Earthlings out would.

[htpcl]

Reminds me of The Expanse. :-)

[luzribeiro]

"Let’s see if I have this right: we have trashed the earth - with the help of science, I might add, given that he asserts technology-gone-wrong is part of our current mess - so now what? Earth be damned, we must save our own hides, and quickly? Ah, yes. So many more planets to ruin, so little time."
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2017/05/08/why-stephen-hawkings-dire-warning-is-all-wrong-about-humans-and-earth.html

Very good point.