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Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 12:14 am
by Gob
Stephen Hawking says that US President Donald Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris climate agreement could lead to irreversible climate change.
Prof Hawking said the action could put Earth onto a path that turns it into a hothouse planet like Venus.
He also feared aggression was "inbuilt" in humans and that our best hope of survival was to live on other planets.
The Cambridge professor spoke exclusively to BBC News to coincide with his 75th birthday celebrations.
Arguably the world's most famous scientist, Prof Hawking has had motor neurone disease for most of his adult life. It has impaired his movement and ability to speak.
Yet through it all, he emerged as one of the greatest minds of our time. His theories on black holes and the origin of the Universe have transformed our understanding of the cosmos.
Prof Hawking has also inspired generations to study science. But through his media appearances what has been most impressive of all has been his humanity.
His main concern during his latest interview was the future of our species. A particular worry was President Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement to reduce CO2 levels.
"We are close to the tipping point where global warming becomes irreversible. Trump's action could push the Earth over the brink, to become like Venus, with a temperature of two hundred and fifty degrees, and raining sulphuric acid," he told BBC News.
"Climate change is one of the great dangers we face, and it's one we can prevent if we act now. By denying the evidence for climate change, and pulling out of the Paris Climate Agreement, Donald Trump will cause avoidable environmental damage to our beautiful planet, endangering the natural world, for us and our children."
The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) also highlights the potential risk of hitting climate tipping points as temperatures increase - though there are gaps in our knowledge of this topic.
In its Fifth Assessment Report, the IPCC authors wrote: "The precise levels of climate change sufficient to trigger tipping points (thresholds for abrupt and irreversible change) remain uncertain, but the risk associated with crossing multiple tipping points in the Earth system or in interlinked human and natural systems increases with rising temperature."
When asked whether he felt we would ever solve our environmental problems and resolve human conflicts, Prof Hawking was pessimistic, saying that he thought our days on Earth were numbered.
"I fear evolution has inbuilt greed and aggression to the human genome. There is no sign of conflict lessening, and the development of militarised technology and weapons of mass destruction could make that disastrous. The best hope for the survival of the human race might be independent colonies in space."
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 3:26 am
by liberty
How much greenhouse gas reaches the stratosphere due to commercial jet air travel? Why not outlaw all civilian jets? This will never happen because the elites will never willingly give up their private jets.
Stephen Hawking Sees Danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 3:49 am
by RayThom
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 7:55 am
by Bicycle Bill
What are the odds?
-"BB"-
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 5:24 pm
by rubato
It's a rollover for Steve-o "The Hawk" Hawking.
yrs,
rubato
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 8:18 pm
by BoSoxGal
liberty wrote:How much greenhouse gas reaches the stratosphere due to commercial jet air travel? Why not outlaw all civilian jets? This will never happen because the elites will never willingly give up their private jets.
The entire transportation sector creates fewer greenhouse gasses than the meat industry. If we all became vegans we could save the planet - and at the same time end the suffering of millions upon millions of creatures, while drastically reducing chronic illness, heart disease and cancer.
But there is far too much money in making people - and the planet - sick.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 9:02 pm
by Big RR
Humans are omnivores, and inclusion of some meat in the diet should not make people sick (too much meat is a problem, of course) . However, it is difficult (not rocket science, but it requires some work) to get adequate nutrition from a diet comprised solely of vegetable matter would require significant education for some to be sure they get proper nutrition and do not get sick due to deficiencies. My guess is that getting adequate nutirition on a vegan diet would be difficutl for he average American--and even more difficult if they do not have access to fresh fruits and vegetables routinely.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 9:04 pm
by dales
liberty wrote: This will never happen because the elites will never willingly give up their private jets.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 10:29 pm
by BoSoxGal
Actually anatomically/digestively speaking humans are much more alike to our DNA higher ape cousins, making us frugivores, not omnivores. Chimps eat some flesh too - but less than 2% of diet. The concerns you state about getting adequate nutrition from a vegan diet are antiquated but still common misperceptions. The leading physicians who advocate a plant based animal product free diet (Pritikin, McDougall, Barnard, Fuhrman, et al.) have been studying patients for more than 5 decades now and see only positive health benefits from such diets.
One very basic way to look at it is this: the meat & dairy you think you need to get proper nutrition gets all its essential amino acids and minerals from plants - so being vegan just cuts out the middle creature and in the process saves trillions of gallons of water & fuel and tons of greenhouse gas emissions - without even counting the suffering to all involved in the meat and dairy industries.
Beyond that, looking at the traditional diets of humans going back thousands of years and meat and dairy aren't at all plentiful in those diets - heck even only 100 years ago, having a roast was a rare and special event for the majority of the working classes who subsisted primarily on carbohydrates. The Western diet of plentiful meat and dairy is a relatively new phenomenon and the countries where it has taken hold of most recently have exhibited in short order the serious negative consequences of eating that way - case in point Japan.
Meat and dairy eating on massive scale is completely a cultural creation and not at all our evolutionary ideal.
There are numerous good documentaries on Netflix and other video services where you can learn about this from scientists and highly regarded medical doctors who treat illness with nature's medicine - food - instead of enriching Big Pharma by writing scrip after scrip for poisons and never saying anything sensible to patients about nutrition other than general admonitions to lose weight. Most Americans are entirely clueless about what good nutrition really is and that's because the major educators on nutrition - the USDA and even the health organizations like American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, Komen, American Diabetes Association - are all taking millions from the meat and dairy industries. Americans also are sold food as entertainment, not as fuel for a healthy body.
I know lots of people consider vegans to be freaks and this becomes an emotionally charged subject, so to clarify I'm not pressuring anyone else - I've gotten here mostly because it's been very successful as a means to treat the ravages of multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune disorders and the more I researched and realized what is being fed (food & medicine) to the animals I was eating, the more I realized I didn't want to put that into my body. As someone raised primarily on a meat based diet (we had one meatless meal per week, if that, and our veggies were canned and our salads were iceberg lettuce) I certainly know the lure of a good steak and especially of cheese, which is seriously addictive.
But I've been only a few weeks now without animal products in my diet and eating fruits, veggies, pasta, healthy fats from nuts and olive oil and proteins from greens and legumes and I feel better than I have in years - I can literally feel the inflammation leaving my body from day to day, it's amazing. I can't wait for my next set of bloodwork in August to see where my numbers are, because everything I've read indicates that I should see remarkably positive changes and certainly I'm feeling better, sleeping better, my allergies have disappeared, etc. And I do feel good not eating anything with a face, that's a nice collateral gain - and knowing my carbon footprint is that much more reduced. I'm also learning a whole new world of cooking which is a fun and flavorful bonus.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 10:42 pm
by BoSoxGal
Just one more PS on the vegan thing: I realize a lot of us have grown up with the idea of vegans being pasty weak & unhealthy, especially with the whole 'you can't get your essential amino acids from a vegan diet' thing (which came out of old nutrition science - the field has improved markedly since we were kids), but here's a resource I stumbled on recently that made me realize just exactly how foolish those admonitions are:
http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/
Vegan bodybuilders - clearly very healthy, very strong - fitter than any of us, I'm guessing!
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 1:19 am
by BoSoxGal
Here's my last plug for veganism - one of the best documentaries that is worth checking out if you're interested, filled with the latest knowledge about plant based diet from expert nutritionists and physicians:
It's on Netflix.
It's got a section on vegan child rearing - did you know that in Dr. Spock's last book he recommended that children should never be exposed to dairy and meat? For health reasons alone, because he saw the damaging effects of an animal based diet in the increasing rates of obesity, chronic illnesses, heart disease and cancer.
Ok I'm done.
Stephen Hawking Sees Danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 3:20 am
by RayThom
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 3:52 am
by BoSoxGal
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 6:11 am
by Gob
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 6:29 am
by liberty
BoSoxGal wrote:liberty wrote:How much greenhouse gas reaches the stratosphere due to commercial jet air travel? Why not outlaw all civilian jets? This will never happen because the elites will never willingly give up their private jets.
The entire transportation sector creates fewer greenhouse gasses than the meat industry. If we all became vegans we could save the planet - and at the same time end the suffering of millions upon millions of creatures, while drastically reducing chronic illness, heart disease and cancer.
But there is far too much money in making people - and the planet - sick.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/27/sunda ... ravel.html
The Biggest Carbon Sin: Air Travel - The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/.../the-biggest- ... ravel.html
Jan 26, 2013 · ... often by private jet, ... ticket can also afford to pay for the pollution from their travel,” says ... Biggest Carbon Sin May Be Air Travel.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 8:21 am
by BoSoxGal
A kilogramme of beef protein reared on a British hill farm can generate the equivalent of 643kg of carbon dioxide. A kilogramme of lamb protein produced in the same place can generate 749kg. One kilo of protein from either source, in other words, causes more greenhouse gas emissions than a passenger flying from London to New York.
linky
There are dozens of other sources, feel free to Google. The article you quoted says 'may' - from everything I've researched, it's a faulty assertion.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 5:36 pm
by Joe Guy
If we all went vegan, what would we do about all those wild cows and bulls reproducing all over the place? The methane they would produce would melt the Antarctic and the Arctic really fast. It would give the overpopulation of fish more room to live, I suppose.
Deer would take over all of our forests and deer hunters would have to change their habits and attempt to fire their rifles without hitting a deer in an overpopulated deer land (not to mention motorists having to yield at the overwhelming amount of deer crossings that would be created).
Duck hunters could shoot at duck drones. Fisherpeople would just be out of luck. Catching fish and throwing them back is cruel and unusual punishment. Those people would just need to sit in a boat or on a shore, drink beer and watch the fish jump around.
Veganism could destroy the American way of life. No more authentic Big Macs. Two all veggie patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun doesn't have the same ring to it. One too many syllables.
Veganism in the USA is probably something Putin is pushing for...
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 6:31 pm
by Econoline
First, I don't know that fish overpopulation is a problem anywhere now or in the foreseeable future. And isn't "sit in a boat or on a shore, drink beer and watch the fish jump around" what most fishermen do anyway, already?
Second, who said hunters would have to stop killing animals? People would just have to stop eating them. And roaming herds of cattle would make it easier for hunters with poor aim to at least kill something and take home a trophy.
McDonalds will probably do just fine, continuing to sell products that taste something like meat; they'll just have to find different raw ingredients to artificially flavor, is all.
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 7:21 pm
by Joe Guy
Econoline wrote:First, I don't know that fish overpopulation is a problem anywhere now or in the foreseeable future. And isn't "sit in a boat or on a shore, drink beer and watch the fish jump around" what most fishermen do anyway, already?
Fish overpopulation isn't a problem now because we're eating them all up! So much so that they have to use real ugly fish to make fish sticks. I read an article about that once. They say that it's cod or haddock but it's not. And yes, most fisherman could probably adapt but what kind of fish stories could they tell? How many fish they saw? How high they were jumping to get away from other fish?
Econoline wrote:Second, who said hunters would have to stop killing animals? People would just have to stop eating them. And roaming herds of cattle would make it easier for hunters with poor aim to at least kill something and take home a trophy.
You've got a point there. Most hunters probably don't eat what they kill. They just like to kill. They're serial killers. If they didn't have animals to shoot, they would be shooting at us.
Econoline wrote:McDonalds will probably do just fine, continuing to sell products that taste something like meat; they'll just have to find different raw ingredients to artificially flavor, is all.
McDonald's Big Muck. Taste just like dead animals with special sauce on a sesame seed bun.
Might work...
Re: Stephen Hawking sees danger
Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2017 8:55 pm
by BoSoxGal
We've already decimated 90% of the ocean's big fish populations (cod, tuna, marlin, swordfish, halibut, flounder, etc.) that's been the established science since @ 2003. We are currently fishing up the last fish populations and the ocean is rapidly dying as an ecosystem, not only because of how humans have devastated fish populations but because AGW is destroying coral reefs all over the planet and destabilizing the balance of life for the very basis of our existence and all of life on Earth, the phytoplankton.
70% of all arable land under cultivation is feeding animals, not people - and millions of those acres are clearcut rainforest that once served as the lungs of the Earth. Those are animals that only exist to feed people - there wouldn't be massive herds of beef cattle, pigs or chickens running around if we stopped eating them - we are the ones breeding and feeding them on such a massive scale, the ecosystem wouldn't otherwise support them.
It's really so depressing to consider. I am glad that I am almost 50 and will not live to see what this planet looks like in 2100, or what life is like for the human population then. At some point humans will no longer be able to ignore the devastation of the environment and will no longer be able to gorge themselves on animals in keeping with today's diets - but by then they will have altered the landscape irrevocably and made a much, much uglier world.
